Thinking about the "Shape" of the Future based on Data Driven Structural Mechanics
Welcome to the Structural Mechanics and System Laboratory (SMSL) at Hokkaido University! We seek to create better living and social infrastructures from the viewpoint of structural mechanics and data science, targeting structures in physical space subjected to various loading conditions, temperature fluctuations, and environmental changes. Things that serve people's lives and protect their safety in severe and new environments. Through their development, we think about our better future.
News and Topics
Assoc. Prof. Kitahara Awarded the JSCE Applied Mechanics Research Paper Award for 2025
Associate Professor Masaru Kitahara received the JSCE Applied Mechanics Outstanding Paper Award for 2025 for the following paper. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the co-authors and all those involved.
Tomoki Takizawa, Ryota Kurihara, and Masaru Kitahara: Variational Identification of Nonlinear Dynamics for Seismic Response Estimation, Japanese Journal of JSCE, Vol. 82, Issue 15, 25-15008, 2026.
Structural Engineering Symposium Excellent Presentation Award Winner
Haruki Ouchi, a graduate of the SSML, received the Excellent Presentation Award at the 72nd Structural Engineering Symposium. We would like to express our gratitude to all co-authors and related parties. Haruki Ouchi, Yasunori Miyamori, Takehiko Saito, Takanori Kadota, Masaru Kitahara, Tomoya Fujimori, Shuichi Mikami: Study of climatic and geographical factors affecting damage to bridge members in Okhotsk municipalities, Journal of Structural Engineering A, 2026, Vol.72A, pp.109-123, (in Japanese)
New Student Assignments for Academic Year 2026
Laboratory assignments for this year’s senior undergraduate students have been finalized, and five new members (two supervised by Prof. Miyamori and three by Prof. Kitahara) have joined the Structural Mechanics and System Laboratory. In addition, one master’s student and one doctoral student have newly joined the laboratory. This academic year, the laboratory consists of a total of ten students, and we look forward to an active and productive year of research.
Degree Award Ceremony for Academic Year 2025
This year, degrees were conferred upon five undergraduate students, three master’s students, and one doctoral student. Congratulations to all graduates, and we wish you great success in your future endeavors.
Isamu Hiroi Commemorative Award and Dean's Award for Academic Achievement at the School of Engineering Hokkaido University
A senior undergraduate student, Ms. Nao Matsuura, won the Isamu Hiroi Commemorative Award and Dean's Award for Academic Achievement at the School of Engineering Hokkaido University, which is acknowledged for her excellent academic achievement in undergraduate courses. Congratulations!
Open Laboratory 2026
We will hold open laboratory events for prospective senior students in the civil engineering courses. Visit the event website and SMSL website for detailed information. (ELMS users only)
Excellent Student Presentation Award of Japan Society of Civil Engineers Hokkaido Branch
Undergraduate seniors, Nao Matsuura and Haruma Tanabe, were awarded the Excellent Student Presentation Award of the Japan Society of Civil Engineers Hokkaido Branch. We appreciate the co-authors and other collaborators.
Title: Study on Point Cloud Model Construction and Shooting Methods for a Steel Bridge Using a Projector, Authors: Haruma Tanabe, Kakeru Komuro, Soushi Suto, Yasunori Miyamori, Makoto Sato, and Moeka Obara.
Title: Bayesian model updating of seismically isolated bridges using Variational Auto-Encoder for likelihood evaluation, Authors: Nao Matsuura and Masaru Kitahara.
Hokkaido University JIKATAGAKU Award
Master's student Haruki Ouchi was awarded the Hokkaido University JIKATAGAKU Award for his research. The "JIKATAGAKU (Local Studies) Practical Support Program" assists graduate students in engaging in collaborative field research with local communities and organizations, empowering them to take the lead in addressing regional issues within Hokkaido. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Kitami City, Engaru Town, and Nakagami Civil Engineering Design Office Co., Ltd. for their invaluable cooperation. Project Theme: Research on Sustainable Infrastructure Maintenance and Management in Kitami City and Engaru Town Using Field Surveys and Meteorological Data
SMSL Welcomes a New Faculty Member
Dr. Masaru Kitahara has joined our laboratory as an Associate Professor, effective April 1, 2025.
Faculty
Yasunori Miyamori, Professor Researcher Directory
email: miyamori.y (at) eng.hokudai.ac.jp
Masaru Kitahara, Associate Professor Researcher Directory
email: kitahara (at) eng.hokudai.ac.jp
Professor Shunji Kanie retired at the end of March 2023.
Students
As of Oct. 1, 2026
Ph.D. Students (D): 1
Master's Students (M2): 1 / (M1): 4
Undergraduate Students (B4): 5
Research topics
Data-Driven Analysis and Rational Maintenance Support for municipal infrastructure management
Sensing-Based Safety Evaluation Methods for structural systems
Assessment and Visualization of In-Situ Performance of existing structures using point cloud data
Performance Evaluation of Infrastructure in Cold Environments via hybrid dynamic response analysis
Next-Generation Structural Digital Twins integrating physics-based and data-driven models
Bayesian Uncertainty Quantification for structural systems and their service environments
AI-Enhanced Reliability Analysis and Model Updating using mathematical statistics
Title of Doctoral Thesis in 2025
Study on Construction Management Methods for Serpentinite Tunnels Based on Advanced Boring Data
Titles of Master's Theses in 2025
Regression analysis of damage to bridge members and influencing factors in municipally managed bridges in the Okhotsk region
Experimental and Analytical Study of the Variation of Natural Vibration Characteristics of PC girders
Methods for integrated FE model construction using point cloud data of damaged parts and dimensions of intact parts
Titles of Bachelor's Theses in 2025
Estimation of Seismic Response Displacement for a Single-Degree-of-Freedom System Using Sparse Nonlinear System Identification with Varying Noise Levels
Comparative Study of Learning Functions in High-Dimensional Reliability Analysis Combining Gaussian Process Active Learning and Dimensionality Reduction
Long-Term Variations and Extraction Methods of Closely Spaced Vibration Modes in a Few-Girder Bridge
Study on a Projector-Based Shooting Method for Improve the Quality of SfM Point Cloud Data for Steel Bridges
Current Seismic Performance Assessment of Existing Seismic-Isolated Bridges Based on Bayesian Model Updating Using Variational Autoencoder
Title of Master's Thesis in 2024
Numerical Evaluation of Terrain Deformation at the Outer Edge of Continuous Permafrost Due to Environmental Disturbance
Titles of Bachelor's Theses in 2024
Identification of dominant frequencies in structural monitoring of actual bridges and their variation with temperature and other factors
Point cloud modeling of in-service pedestrian bridge and quantitative measurement of the damage
Damages of Bridges in Kitami City and Engaru Town and Consideration of Influencing Factors
Titles of Master's Theses in 2023
Study on Environmental Disturbance on Permafrost with its Evaluation Model
The Study of the Impact of Tower Structures of Ice Lenses on the Strength Characteristics of Frozen Soil
Effect of Geographical Features on Permafrost Conservation and Degradation Caused by Environmental Disturbances
Titles of Bachelor's Theses in 2023
Bridge integrity managed by municipal governments in Okhotsk region
Fundamental study on natural frequency of PC girders with decreasing prestress force
Study on point cloud data acquisition method for small-scale bridges and its finite element modeling
教授 宮森保紀
准教授 北原優
