Open AccessLADAR‐based collision warning sensor to prevent over‐height vehicle bridge hits
Author(s) -
Singhal Abhishek,
Kamga Camille,
Agrawal Anil Kumar
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
iet intelligent transport systems
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.579
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1751-9578
pISSN - 1751-956X
DOI - 10.1049/iet-its.2017.0117
Subject(s) - bridge (graph theory) , lidar , truck , collision , warning system , limiting , range (aeronautics) , collision avoidance , speed limit , computer science , software deployment , engineering , real time computing , transport engineering , simulation , automotive engineering , remote sensing , computer security , telecommunications , aerospace engineering , medicine , mechanical engineering , geology , operating system
Impacts by over‐height (OH) vehicles on bridges, commonly known as ‘bridge hits’, cause significant risk to safety and preservation of transportation infrastructure in the USA. Currently, available over‐height vehicle detection systems (OHVDs) have specific site requirements, extremely high installation costs, and propensity for false alarms, which limit their field deployment to few locations. This study describes a new, enhanced LADAR‐based OHVDs (L‐OHVDs), which can be installed on the face of a structure to be protected and can measure the height of an approaching vehicle before the safe stopping distance from the structure. Built using off‐the‐shelf components and a patent pending optical design, it exhibits enhanced features like vehicle detection, actual height measurement, and collision prediction with no reported false alarms. The developed prototype has a detection range of 220 ft with height measurement accuracy (±0.66 inches) that is better than currently available OHVDs. This system has exceptional precision and is well suited to detect OH trucks and tractor trailers approaching a low vertical clearance bridge. With superior performance and cost‐effective installation, the proposed L‐OHVDs has the potential to reduce occurrences of ‘bridge hits’, thereby limiting consequences such as congestion and damages to bridge while sustaining safety of motorists.