Patent ID: 8886468

Claim:
A system for monitoring the structural integrity of a building comprising: a plurality of structural members wherein the structural members are configured to form a part of the framework of a building; each structural member having a radio frequency module mounted thereon; each radio frequency module including a unique identifier and where the unique identifier is correlated to the particular structural member that the radio frequency module is mounted on; each radio frequency module operative to assume at least two states, a normal state and an abnormal state; wherein in the normal state the structural member associated with the radio frequency module assumes a normal position, has not failed and shows no indication of potential failure, and in the abnormal state the structural member associated with the radio frequency module has failed or indicates a potential for failure; a radio frequency module reader for querying each radio frequency module and determining if the radio frequency module is in a normal state or an abnormal state; and wherein when a plurality of the structure members with radio frequency modules are incorporated into a building, the location of each radio frequency module and associated structural member is known such that by querying the respective radio frequency modules, the state of each radio frequency module is determined and the state of the radio frequency modules in turn indicates the location of structural failures or potential structural failures in the building.