Medical devices can be useful construction devices too, apparently.

Researchers at the University of Delaware adapted a medical imaging technique called electrical impedance tomography (EIT) for use on bridges and roads. They paired the imaging method with existing “smart skin” they already installed on the roadways. They use the EIT info to help find structurally compromised areas in the construction.

The developers, Thomas Schumacher and Erik Thostenson, published their research in the Journal of Nondestructive Evaluation. Check out Construction Equipment to see what’s next for their project: