System Identification of Large-Scale Structures

An efficient algorithm for system identification of large-scale structures is presented. The efficiency and practicality of the algorithm is demonstrated by application to models of an offshore steel-template platform and a concrete dam.

The majority of the computational effort for system identification is required for structural parameter estimation. This computational effort is minimized by including closed form analytical response derivatives for sensitivity calculations and parameter linking for problem size reduction. These features and a general purpose finite element code developed to include these features are discussed.