Dynamic measurements are being performed during driving of these piles at the GeoLogan 1997 Conference in Utah. The measurements are being taken with the PDA (pile driving analyzer) system.
The pile extending out of the ground has been instrumented with strain gauges and accelerometers. A computer data acquisition system will record these instruments and provide time histories of driving stresses and velocities. These quantities can be used to detect damage to the piles or used in advanced analyses to infer the axial load carrying capacity of the pile. The adjacent hammer will soon be positioned over the pile to complete its installatio
Close up view of this double-acting hammer.
Notice the wires hanging from the instrumentation on the pile, and the orange markings at 1-foot intervals that assist the engineer in keeping a driving record (e.g., includes hammer blows per foot of penetration).