Determination Of Structural Cracks Using Deep Learning Frameworks

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel deep learning ensemble approach using residual U-Net models for more accurate and efficient structural crack detection, outperforming existing architectures especially with low-resolution images.

Contribution

The study presents a new ensemble deep learning framework combining residual U-Net models with a meta-model, improving crack detection accuracy over traditional methods.

Findings

Ensemble model outperforms individual residual U-Net models.

Residual U-Net models perform well with low-resolution images.

The proposed method achieves higher IoU and DICE scores.

Abstract

Structural crack detection is a critical task for public safety as it helps in preventing potential structural failures that could endanger lives. Manual detection by inexperienced personnel can be slow, inconsistent, and prone to human error, which may compromise the reliability of assessments. The current study addresses these challenges by introducing a novel deep-learning architecture designed to enhance the accuracy and efficiency of structural crack detection. In this research, various configurations of residual U-Net models were utilized. These models, due to their robustness in capturing fine details, were further integrated into an ensemble with a meta-model comprising convolutional blocks. This unique combination aimed to boost prediction efficiency beyond what individual models could achieve. The ensemble's performance was evaluated against well-established architectures such as SegNet and the traditional U-Net. Results demonstrated that the residual U-Net models outperformed their predecessors, particularly with low-resolution imagery, and the ensemble model exceeded the performance of individual models, proving it as the most effective. The assessment was based on the Intersection over Union (IoU) metric and DICE coefficient. The ensemble model achieved the highest scores, signifying superior accuracy. This advancement suggests way for more reliable automated systems in structural defects monitoring tasks.