Strain Energy of the structure can be changed with the damage at the damage location. The accurate detection of the damage location using this index in a force system is dependent on the degree of accuracy in determining the structure deformation function before and after damage. The use of modal-based methods to identify damage in complex bridges is always associated with problems due to the need to consider the effects of higher modes and the adverse effect of operational conditions on the extraction of structural modal parameters. In this paper, the deformation of the structure was determined by the concept of influence line using the Betti-Maxwell theory. Then two damage detection indicators were developed based on strain energy variations. These indices were presented separately for bending and torsion changes. Finite element analysis of a five-span concrete curved bridge was done to validate the stated methods. Damage was simulated by decreasing stiffness at different sections of the deck. The response regarding displacement of a point on the deck was measured along each span by passing a moving load on the bridge at very low speeds. Indicators of the strain energy extracted from displacement influence line and the strain energy extracted from the rotational displacement influence line (SERIL) were calculated for the studied bridge. The results show that the proposed methods have well identified the location of the damage by significantly reducing the number of sensors required to record the response. Also, the location of symmetric damages is detected with high resolution using SERIL.
