Operational Modal Analysis Based on Subspace Algorithm with an Improved Stabilization Diagram Method

Subspace-based algorithms for operational modal analysis have been extensively studied in the past decades. In the postprocessing of subspace-based algorithms, the stabilization diagram is often used to determine modal parameters. In this paper, an improved stabilization diagram is proposed for stochastic subspace identification. Specifically, first, a model order selection method based on singular entropy theory is proposed. The singular entropy increment is calculated from nonzero singular values of the output covariance matrix. The corresponding model order can be selected when the variation of singular entropy increment approaches to zero. Then, the stabilization diagram with confidence intervals which is established using the uncertainty of modal parameter is presented. Finally, a simulation example of a four-story structure and a full-scale cable-stayed footbridge application is employed to illustrate the improved stabilization diagram method. The study demonstrates that the model order can be reasonably determined by the proposed method. The stabilization diagram with confidence intervals can effectively remove the spurious modes.