FHWA deploys new robot to inspect US bridges

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in the US has used a new robot to check the safety and structural soundness of concrete bridge decks across the country. The new technology has been developed in collaboration with Rutgers University, and combines a variety of customised imaging technologies that give safety inspectors more accurate real-time information on the overall condition of the bridge decks. The imaging technology, similar to x-ray technology, allows inspectors to see such details of the bridges such as the condition of the concrete and reinforcing steel of the bridge decks, details which are cannot be normally seen by the naked human eye without damaging or penetrating the bridges. The robot is being used by the FHWA on 24 bridges in the US and would be eventually used on up to 1,000 bridges across the country over the next five years.