In this paper, we present an overview on the design, integration, installation and operation of a structural health monitoring (SHM) system used to monitor the behavior of Artemis Racing AC72 composite sailing catamaran during tests as well as in live America’s Cup sailing competition. The SHM system consisted of strain and temperature optical fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors that were either embedded into or surface-bonded onto distinct composite parts. A total of 150 sensors were used, many as custom-made FBG arrays. A dynamic FBG interrogator running scans at 1kHz, combined with a 16 channel Mux were used to measure and data log the data. The composite catamaran’s behavior was monitored at key structural points in real-time during tests, sailing sessions and actual competition races. The accuracy and reliability of this fiber optic SHM system has been proven throughout the entire project.
doi: 10.12783/SHM2015/219