IEEE 3456.2-2025

New IEEE Standard - Active.

High-strain testing instruments for deep foundations are testing devices that are used to evaluate the load-bearing capacity and integrity of foundation piles. Unlike low-strain testing, a large impact force is applied to the pile head to generate stress waves, thereby simulating actual pile loading conditions.

The terms, symbols, basic requirements, and technical specifications for high-strain testing instruments are specified by this standard.

Necessary requirements such as:

• hardware requirements;
• software requirements;
• shock amplitude linearity error;
• impact zero drift;
• center frequency and bandwidth of the acceleration measurement system;
• its static performance and dynamic performance;
• dynamic range;
• channel conformity error;
• environmental robustness; and
• electromagnetic compatibility

are also included.

Testing methods, inspection rules, and marking requirements for high-strain testing instruments are also provided by this standard.

This standard specifies general requirements for the measurement and analysis system of testing instruments, covering the composition, configurations, working conditions, typical performance, test methods, and inspection rules for judging the compressive bearing capacity and integrity of deep foundations.

A deep foundation is a foundation that is installed to a significant depth greater than 3 m to handle a specific load. However, the depth depends on the engineering construction and geological conditions.

A high-strain testing instrument utilizes high-load (tens to hundreds of kilonewtons) transient-state excitation to cause relative displacement between the pile and soil. It utilizes wave inversion theory to reveal the performance of the pile-soil system in elastic-plastic deformation, evaluate the quality of the pile body, and analyze the ultimate bearing capacity of the pile.

The standard specifications include:

• classification,
• measurement system,
• analysis system, and
• safety requirements.

The purpose of this standard is to provide specific requirements for the measurement and analysis system of testing instruments.

There are many different requirements and regulations in the production and use of testing instruments in industry. The lack of standards also hinders the healthy development of the testing instruments in the industry, and production enterprises are unable to produce products uniformly, which poses significant risks in the market.

It is imperative to formulate international standards.