Flir combines vision and radar sensing of intersections

TrafiRadar, an integrated radar and visual intersection monitoring and sensing system, is being demonstrated by Flir. The unit contains both a Doppler radar and a megapixel camera and can detect the presence, speed and location of a vehicle up to 250m from the stop line.
April 6, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
TrafiRadar, an integrated radar and visual intersection monitoring and sensing system, is being demonstrated by 6778 Flir. The unit contains both a Doppler radar and a megapixel camera and can detect the presence, speed and location of a vehicle up to 250m from the stop line.


By overlaying the radar output onto the camera image, traffic controllers (both human and electronic) can derive more complete information. “You cannot detect the speed of a vehicle 250m away through optical means alone because there are not enough pixels to determine the speed, but this is not a problem for radar,” said Flir’s Robin Collaert.

‘Virtual loops’ can be created in each lane both to identify vehicles driving or waiting in the dilemma zones. Separate truck and car dilemma zones can be created for each lane and, combined with the vehicle speed, the system can determine if the green signal for crossing traffic, cyclists or pedestrians needs to be delayed to prevent a red-light running incident. Once vehicles have stopped, they no longer register on the Doppler radar so the visual detection takes precedence.

Speeding vehicles can also be detected at a distance far enough away to allow the lights to be turned to red to bring them safely to a halt.

According to the company the system not only improves safety and efficiency of the intersection, it can also replace up to five loops in each lane. The combined camera/radar unit can be positioned on existing infrastructure either side of the intersection without significant loss of performance.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Intelligent intersection control
    April 12, 2013
    Intelligent intersection control systems have a growing role to play in making urban traffic more efficient. Robin Meczes reports. The idea of every traffic light turning green as you approach it has long been a dream for many an urban driver – and none more so than those driving heavy goods vehicles (HGVs), which are slow and difficult to bring to a halt and then accelerate back to normal travel speed. But that dream has become a reality for some drivers in a small number of cities around Europe in the las
    Read More
  • Low-costs solutions to improve pedestrian safety
    May 8, 2015
    David Crawford welcomes low-cost safety initiatives for pedestrians in America. Some 10 people die each week in accidents on crosswalks in the US, that’s more than 10% of all pedestrian fatalities in road traffic incidents - the number of which is running at a five-year high. Ensuring crosswalks are safe is key in supporting the growing enthusiasm for walking as a travel mode. In the last decade of the 20th century, numbers walking to work in the US fell by 26%; while, as recently as 2012, Americans were e
    Read More
  • Computer technology increasingly aids traffic management
    February 3, 2012
    Alan Perrott, Tyco Fire & Integrated Solutions (UK) Ltd, looks at trends in CCTV technology for traffic surveillance applications
    Read More
  • Russia 2018 World Cup: ITS can win it
    June 5, 2018
    Teams and supporters will cover vast distances in Russia for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Stephane Clauss from Sony Europe’s Image Sensing Solutions division examines how the latest camera technologies can be deployed to help things run smoothly over the next month or so... For one month, from June 14, Russia is hosting the 2018 FIFA World Cup. This is the largest country in the world and the distances between venues will be larger than at almost any other World Cup - bar the finals in the US and Brazil.
    Read More

Highlighted Content