Crack Identification in Stepped Cantilever Beam Combining Wavelet Analysis with Transform Matrix

This paper illustrates the crack identification method combining wavelet analysis with transform matrix. Firstly, the fundamental vibration mode was applied to wavelet analysis. The crack location was found by the peaks of the wavelet coefficients. Secondly, based on the identified crack locations, a simple transform matrix method requiring only the first two tested natural frequencies was used to further identify the crack depth. The present method can be used for crack identification in a complex structure. Numerical results of crack identification of a stepped cantilever beam show that the suggested method is feasible.