This award supports travel and expenses for 15 U.S. participants to exchange scientific research and share data in the field of smart structure technology for steel structures at a 2-day workshop (November 16-17, 2006) in Seoul, South Korea. A total of 35 participants from the United States, Korea and several from East Asian countries will meet at this two-day event to identify critical research topics that promise to advance this emerging field. The PI is Dr. Zhang, Yunfeng, Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at Lehigh University. The counterpart organizer is Dr. Yun, Chung-Bang, who serves as Professor and director of the Smart Infra-Structure Technology Center in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) in Daejeon, South Korea.
Steel structures account for a significant share of the nation's infrastructure system. Steel has its own unique properties and damage pattern. Innovative smart structures technologies include sensors, structural control, structural health monitoring, and information technology, which can improve the structural reliability, longevity, system performance and safety of steel structures, and are thus of great importance to the nation's economic viability. The major goals of this workshop are to provide a forum to exchange current knowledge and to establish meaningful collaboration in this new and integrated engineering field. The final outcome will be a comprehensive research plan for accelerating development of smart structures technology for steel structures. The workshop will feature one additional day of site visits to industrial and academic research facilities to acquaint U.S. participants with the expertise and resources available in Korea. The workshop is uniquely designed to highlight research that melds conventional engineering with new technology-based systems which will improve the overall quality of research and educational courses for students, as well as inform professional education and training for engineers in both countries in the field of smart structures technology with applications to steel structures. The proposal strongly emphasizes the participation of underrepresented early career scientists and engineers.
