Data analysis of collapse mechanisms of a 3D printed groin vault in shaking table testing

The aim of this novel experimental study is to investigate the behaviour of a 2m x 2m model of a masonry groin vault, which is built by the assembly of blocks made of a 3D-printed plastic skin filled with mortar. The choice of the groin vault is due to the large presence of this vulnerable roofing system in the historical heritage. Experimental tests on the shaking table are carried out to explore the vault response on two support boundary conditions, involving four lateral confinement modes. The data processing of markers displacement has allowed to examine the collapse mechanisms of the vault, based on the arches deformed shapes. There then follows a numerical evaluation, to provide the orders of magnitude of the displacements associated to the previous mechanisms. Given that these displacements are related to the arches shortening and elongation, the last objective is the definition of a critical elongation between two diagonal bricks and consequently of a diagonal portion. This study aims to continue the previous work and to take another step forward in the research of ground motion effects on masonry structures.

UWB radar sensor networks: Detection algorithms design and experimental analysis

In the last years radar sensor networks for localization and tracking in indoor environment have generated more and more interest, especially for anti-intrusion security systems. These networks often use Ultra Wide Band (UWB) technology, which consists in sending very short (few nanoseconds) impulse signals. This approach guarantees high resolution and accuracy and also other advantages such as low price, low power consumption and narrow-band interference (jamming) robustness. In this thesis the overall data processing (done in MATLAB environment) is discussed, starting from experimental measures from sensor devices, ending with the 2D visualization of targets movements over time and focusing mainly on detection and localization algorithms. Moreover, two different scenarios and both single and multiple target tracking are analyzed.