Bridge inspection structures are the structure which is installed on the piers, abutments, and copings for the inspection and maintenance of substructure. In this study, the structural performance of the bridge inspection structures using aluminum members manufactured by extrusion process is evaluated. The bridge inspection structures can be installed regardless of the shape of concrete surface through the simple cutting process. The structural performance of bridge inspection structures is evaluated using FE analysis. Moreover, experimental studies are conducted for the estimation of the structural safety of the members for the design load.

Damages due to typhoon and floods are increasing as a result of global warming and abnormal climate phenomenon over the world. Flood and scour is one of the major causes for bridge collapse. However, maintenance and inspection techniques still need improvements especially for underwater structures like bridge piers in rivers. Conventionally, manual inspection by divers has been carried out for underwater structures of bridges. This has difficulties in gathering accurate and reliable field data under severe environmental conditions. Therefore, in this study, underwater inspection of bridges has been carried out using the side scan sonar (SSS), one of unmanned underwater inspection equipment. Compared to the conventional manual inspection, it has been found that the SSS can be efficiently utilized to underwater inspection of bridges especially with bad visibility or large-scale inspection area.