The signals display their data as variable messages and are sent to wireless vehicles.
A team of researchers in Poland created smart traffic lights to alert drivers on highways, by providing them with information about traffic movement and weather conditions when they occur, to avoid many emergency hazards and prevent collisions, especially in times of bad weather.
These signals are characterized by their ability to provide drivers with this information, using radars that work with Doppler technology, which rely on ultrasound, and are equipped with video cameras, audio radars, in addition to weather stations that can predict any sudden weather changes.
These traffic signals, which have been described as the smartest to date, were revealed during the 179th meeting of the American Acoustics Association, which is holding its activities remotely via electronic platforms, between 7 and 10 December 2020.
Andrzej Ceshevsky, Professor of Multimedia at Gdansk University of Technology, gave a presentation on his applied research project to develop autonomous traffic signals with integrated acoustic radar devices, during a session entitled “Comparison of Traffic Density Estimates Using Passive Acoustic Radar and Doppler Radar Sensor Microwave”, on the first day For meetings.
The importance of creating these smart signals
We can develop an acoustic transmission sensor, allowing us to calibrate it and use it to measure the volume of traffic density on highways, by counting the number of vehicles, by analyzing the noise they emit while they are passing.
It also enables a comparison between the efficiency of using the microwave microwave and sound radar methods, and the signals obtained by radar Doppler devices can be used as a reference source when needed.
Although the acoustic carrier sensor, which is an embodiment of the acoustic radar, is less accurate than the Doppler radar in counting the number of vehicles, and it cannot measure the vehicle’s speed with the same accuracy, it has several main characteristics compared to Doppler sensors.
The most prominent characteristics
Perhaps the most prominent of these characteristics is that it does not emit any signals, and it is not affected by electromagnetic interference, unlike Doppler sensors, and the audio carrier sensor also enables analysis of audio signals, to assess the different weather conditions on the road, whether they are wet or dry.
The project also allows the design and development of mobile traffic signals that can be placed on a trolley or suspended above the road, alerting drivers to the recommended speeds, which are dynamically updated, and are automatically determined by an electronic unit integrated into the traffic signal on the road.
These signals are distributed along the highway, are linked via a wireless communication network, and are distinguished by being able to operate independently, displaying their data in the form of variable messages, or sending them to vehicles equipped with wireless communication technologies, "Wi-Fi" or "Bluetooth".
Designing and developing smarter traffic signals is of utmost importance to solve many research and technical problems, including assessing traffic parameters using effective and less expensive sensors, and calculating recommended speeds on different roads, taking into account the road structure.
Physically entering the service
The leader of the research team confirmed that this technology was about to actually enter service earlier this year, but that the repercussions of the "Corona pandemic" caused slow production processes, indicating that work on that applied research project began in 2017, and the equipment was designed. , Obtaining a patent for her, and already commencing her road tests.
He added that in 2020 the research team started inviting industry representatives to present the project to them, but unfortunately, due to the epidemic, meetings at the university were banned, and researchers were not allowed to travel to the areas where the equipment was being tested, which caused a delay in its practical implementation.
And finally .. "More than 1.3 million people die annually due to road accidents in various parts of the world, which is a much greater number than the lives that the Corona epidemic has claimed so far, which requires continuous work to put an end to road accidents."
