Detection, Monitoring & Machine Vision

One of the biggest problems facing US ITS professionals, says Georgia DOT's Hugh Colton, is the constrained thinking which is sometimes forced upon those making procurement decisions. It is time, he says, to look again at how we do things. In the November/December 2010 edition of this journal, Pete Goldin interviewed Joseph Sussman, chairman of the US's ITS Program Advisory Committee. Amongst other observations that Sussman made was that, technologically, ITS in the US is 10 years behind that in the world-l

Austria-headquartered Efkon has announced its latest innovation - the Image to Information (I-to-I) Reader, an innovative product which builds on established technology. Although the new device weighs a mere 1.0kg, it incorporates two cameras, a flash, computer, communications unit and power supply in a package small enough to fit in the palm of a hand. Moreover, the I-to-I Reader requires only a standard cable for data and power connection. Despite its compact appearance, Efkon says there is no compromise

David Crawford detects a market for European experience. Well-established now in at least three European countries, Hard Shoulder Running (HSR) on motorways is exciting growing interest in the US. A November 2010 Report to Congress by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), on the Efficient Use of Highway Capacity, notes the role of HSR in the European-style Active Traffic Management (ATM) strategies now being recommended for implementation in the US where, until recently, they were virtually unknown.

Guillaume Ponsar, tunnel safety engineer with Egis Road Operation, writes about the advantages to be gained from the use of tunnel simulators. Major tunnel disasters over the last decade and more have shown how swiftly and badly a simple crash or fire may evolve should the wrong actions be taken by control room operators or traffic managers. Global safety issues and the reactions of operations staff have now become the principal concerns for Operations and Maintenance (O&M) service providers. As a result, n

The new Hindhead Tunnel is the first in the UK to use radar-based incident detection. Paul Arnold, project manager with the Highways Agency, talks about the project. The comparatively remote location of the A3 Hindhead Tunnel has resulted in it becoming one of the most sophisticated in the UK in terms of monitoring and control systems, according to Paul Arnold, project manager for the Highways Agency (HA), which manages strategic roads in England and Wales. It is the first tunnel in the UK to use radar for

Geoff Collins of Vysionics Intelligent Traffic Solutions talks about the near-term prospects of ANPR. The continued absence of a champion for its cause is preventing digital enforcement technology from delivering the true levels of cost-effectiveness of which it is capable, according to Geoff Collins, sales and marketing director of ANPR specialist Vysionics Intelligent Traffic Solutions.

Hi-Tech Solutions (HTS) has announced the VIR (Vehicle Identity Recognition) suite, a patent-pending technology which the company claims is a generation ahead of basic Licence Plate Recognition (LPR). The VIR suite recognises vehicle manufacturer logos (car make), car model, vehicle body and plate colours, country or state names and special icons on the plate itself (such as a handicap badge). HTS says the recognition capabilities of the numerous parameters identifying vehicles greatly enhance and improve v