Insigma Engineering x Chilas: enabling continuous structural health monitoring
Application Note / Customer Success Story
Insigma Engineering, a company based in Türkiye, offers 24/7 Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) systems for critical infrastructure. Their flagship SIMONE™ fiber interrogator model VS-100FQ system offers a fully customizable SHM solution for Fiber Brag Grating (FBG) sensors and OFDR based Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) applications. While the VS-100FQ is powered by a Chilas COMET Swept Wavelength Laser (C-band), the model VS-50T, that exploits interrogation techniques such as Optical Time and Frequency Domain Reflectometry (OTDR/OFDR) and offers a solution for highly accurate SHM is powered by Chilas POLARIS Frequency-Stabilized Laser.
The collaboration
Insigma Engineering embedded a Photonic Integrated Circuit (PIC) based tunable laser from Chilas into their SHM system. Our laser combines multiple unique aspects, making it excellent for fiber-based sensing applications:
➤ The PIC-based external cavity tunable laser from Chilas is compact and robust, combining a wide tuning range (ideal for FBG sensors) with ultra narrow linewidth and low phase noise (ideal for DAS applications).
➤ Insigma Engineering carried out the system integration: data acquisition, signal processing, and compliance testing. Chilas supported the photonic laser interrogation backbone.
The system is built for long-term stability, low noise operation, continuous data integrity and is compatible with SHM requirements, lying the foundation for future large-scale infrastructure monitoring projects.
Building such an application comes with challenges
➤ Regulatory compliance & documentation: The SHM regulations required continuous, certified data logging over long periods (months/years), traceability, and robust data integrity. Insigma Engineering ensured that the system architecture, the sensor calibration, the data storage and the reporting meet all requirements.
➤ Long-term stability & reliability: Infrastructure monitoring often spans decades; this requires stringent requirements on the optical interrogation system. Thanks to the photonic integrated circuits technology, the system provides long term stability, minimal drift and low noise, even under harsh environmental conditions.
➤ Integration & scalability: The system integrates seamlessly with Insigma Engineering’s existing monitoring framework, it allows remote monitoring, and supports potential expansion (more sensors, more sites).
➤ Data fidelity for safety-critical decisions: Highly sensitive, consistent vibration and strain measurements are required to detect the most subtle structural changes, crucial for avoiding potential safety hazards.
Thanks to the performance of Chilas lasers (narrow linewidth, wide tunability, low noise) combined with Insigma Engineering’ sensing expertise, these challenges were successfully addressed.
The Outcome
The Insigma Engineering SIMONE™ offers:
• A 24/7 continuous monitoring solution compliant with national SHM standards
• Reliable, high-resolution vibration and strain data over extended periods
• Scalable and modular architecture
• This system gives engineers and safety inspectors access to real-time structural health data and traceable reports when needed
• SIMONE™ can be used to replace conventional sensors for structural monitoring, as a solution for dams, bridges and railway infrastructure (monitoring and tracking trains), earthquake prediction, as well as aerospace structures – basically everything that vibrates
The video showcases the real time data of a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) based vibration sensor using tunable laser interrogation.
Looking ahead
This project demonstrates one more time that tunable lasers can support long-term, real-world SHM applications. Chilas is happy to partner with Insigma Engineering in this work and looks forward to contributing to future large-scale infrastructure monitoring projects.
COMET Swept Source & POLARIS Frequency-Stabilized
In INSIGMA Engineering’s system, Chilas’ COMET Swept Source and POLARIS Frequency-Stabilized Lasers play an important role. COMET delivers fast, highly linear wavelength sweeps with ultra-narrow linewidth, making it well suited for precise sensing and monitoring applications. POLARIS complements this with exceptional frequency stability and low noise, providing a reliable optical reference for long-term, high-accuracy measurements.
Subscribe to Chilas Newsletter!
Stay informed with the Chilas newsletter! Our bi-monthly updates bring you the latest in laser technology, including new product releases, technical insights, customer success stories, and exclusive company news.