Fibre optic Bragg grating sensor measurements in composite materials

Despite the many advantages of composite materials, limited data on their inservice performance continues to restrict their application in aircraft structures. Networks of strain sensing elements offer the potential to perform continuous structure health monitoring, as well as gathering information on structure operating conditions. This paper describes some preliminary findings of an ongoing research programme, which aims to implement embedded optical fibre sensing systems. It is envisaged that these systems will be used for health monitoring of composite aircraft components