Converting finite element models to irreducible element models for use in population-based SHM

Population-Based Structural Health Monitoring (PBSHM) has emerged as a promising approach to increase the understanding of structural health by leveraging data from a population of structures, surpassing the insights attainable from individual structures alone. For successful knowledge transfer in PBSHM, structural similarities need to be established to prevent negative transfer effects. Irreducible Element (IE) models, combined with graph theory, are the vehicles used within PBSHM to facilitate this process. This paper presents a Finite Element (FE) to Irreducible Element model converter. While FE models are conventional in civil engineering, IE models represent a novel technology tailored for PBSHM, with limited available tools for their creation. This paper details a procedure for transforming FE models into IE counterparts. By enabling the conversion of existing FE models into IE models, this tool mitigates the need for specialised IE model expertise, resulting in more accessibility and ease of adoption of PBSHM. The significance of the FE to IE converter in the field of bridge Structural Health Monitoring is that it can help bridge the gap between conventional SHM and emerging PBSHM. The conversion tool also significantly enhances the accessibility of PBSHM in the civil infrastructure industry. The converter's utilisation holds the potential to accelerate the adoption of PBSHM by enabling the incorporation of an expansive array of structures with pre-existing FE models into the PBSHM framework.