Improved extended digital image correlation for crack tip deformation measurement

• The shape function of X-DIC is investigated and simplified.
• Non-rectangular subset is proposed to eliminate the effect of the crack width on the measurement accuracy.
• The developed technique is useful to measure the crack tip deformation.

The objective is to find an appropriate shape function which can enhance the performance of Extended Digital Image Correlation (X-DIC). This paper presents an improved X-DIC methodology to measure the discontinuous deformation across the crack. After simplifying the shape function of crack tip element based on the linear elastic fracture mechanics, non-rectangular subset is proposed to eliminate the effect of the crack width on the measurement accuracy. Then, the work verifies the performance of improved X-DIC by measuring the deformation of a specimen with a mode I crack. Experimental results show that the proposed method is effective at improving the measurement accuracy and enhancing the computational efficiency of X-DIC. In the end, the thesis provides a practical application of improved X-DIC to crack tip deformation measurement.