Our Projects
Smarter Buildings with NI cRIO: Structural Health Monitoring at Monash University
Overview
Wired-in Software partnered with EngAnalysis to deliver a comprehensive structural health monitoring (SHM) system for Monash University’s Woodside Building for Technology and Design based on the NI cRIO platform. The system integrates over 300 sensors with synchronised, high-rate data acquisition and the NI SystemLink platform for real-time monitoring, dashboards, and controlled access for students and researchers. Operating reliably for over a year, it supports teaching, research, and building performance management while simplifying software deployment and maintenance.
The Challenge
🌱 Monash University’s Woodside Building is one of the largest Passive House–certified educational buildings in the Southern Hemisphere (~19,000 m², five storeys). It serves as a “living laboratory” where exposed structures and systems are part of the teaching experience.
The Monash Uni School of Civil Engineering wanted to install a SHM system as part of this new building that would be a foundation for teaching structural monitoring. To do this, we needed to achieve the following:
- High-resolution, synchronised data from hundreds of sensors, across several levels
- Reliable long-term monitoring and alerting
- Direct access to performance data for teaching and research
Collaboration
The project was a collaboration between the following organisations:
Wired-in Software: Instrumentation selection, software development, SystemLink integration, ongoing support
EngAnalysis: Sensor selection, design & installation (~300 strain, accelerometers, temperature, and other sensors)
Monash University: Vision and requirements, IT administration and support, Academic and Development use
Solution (Wired-in Software’s contribution)
Instrumentation & Software
- Eight NI cRIO-9056 units running NI Linux RT OS:
- Custom application running developed in NI LabVIEW RT and NI DAQmx
- NI MAX used to manage all of the sensor channels, tasks, scaling, and calibration
- Data captured from the distributed strain, accelerometer, temperature sensors (acquired at 1.67 kHz per channel and then decimated to 557 Hz ) with Time Sensitive Networking ensuring signal synchronisation < 1us
- SystemLink Client publishes tag and file data to Systemlink Server
- One Campbell Scientific datalogger:
- Custom LabVIEW application running on a Virtual machine, acquiring Piles structural data from a Campbell Scientific datalogger via Modbus,
- Publishing data to SystemLink Server
- NI SystemLink Advanced Server installed on a Virtual Machine
- Acting as a single point of data storage, systems management, and analysis
Systemlink Integration
- Client Deployment: Each cRIO and virtual machine sends tags and TDMS data to the SystemLink server
- System Monitoring: Alerts for client errors, dropouts, high CPU/memory usage for faster assessment and response
- Centralised Software Management: Update all nodes with a single click
- Data Search: TDM DataFinder plugin for advanced dataset queries
- Dashboards: Simple, clear dashboards for at-a-glance system status and measurements
- Jupyter Notebook: Custom python code can be executed within the JupyterHub plugin for automation tasks such as machine learning, data analysis, and visualisation
- Student & Academic Access: Controlled API access for research, projects, and teaching
Integration Challenges and Commitment to Quality
The project presented some complex integration challenges including synchronisation issues, SystemLink setup and licensing, secure port establishment, data captured maxing out local SSD capacity and cRIO LabVIEW memory leaks just to name a few. Nonetheless Wired-in stayed focused and committed throughout, and methodically resolved each issue, and still periodically monitors system status to ensure uptime. By applying our core systems integration capability, we persisted and ensured the SHM platform was delivered to a high standard, reliable, and fully supported for ongoing research and teaching.
Ongoing Support
Wired-in continues to maintain and update the software and instrumentation, ensuring reliability and adaptability for evolving research needs.
Results and Benefits
- Continuous Insight: 300+ synchronised sensors streaming in real time
- Improved Reliability: Automated monitoring and alerting reduces downtime
- Efficient Management: Centralised software deployment simplifies maintenance
- Quick Visibility: Dashboards provide immediate access to system health
- Research & Education: Students and academics use SHM data for projects, analysis, and teaching
- Proven Performance: The original system was deployed in 2020 and has demonstrated scalability and robustness
- High-Quality Delivery Despite Complexity: Integration challenges were overcome through focus and Wired-in’s expertise in systems integration
