Smart Construction Work-Zone Safety With V2I Passive Material Sensing

This study explored new vehicle to infrastructure (V2I) technology in construction work zones (CWZ), where speeding, unsafe driving behaviors, and drivers’ failure to obey traffic signs contribute significantly to elevated accident rates and fatalities. The objective of this research to advance CWZ safety by evaluating the potential of 3-axis magnetometers attached to a moving cart and traversing over a pavement-assisted passive sensing system can improve vehicle lateral positioning and warning in CWZ. Secondly, to develop a process to implement a programmable ferromagnetic oxide material for roadway coatings to interface with vehicles containing magnetometers on a field site. The research testing used a custom-built cart equipped with multiple 3- axis magnetometer to detect EM signals from invisible markings composed of 10% and 20% CrO₂, that were created to alert for speed, lane merges, and lane-keeping. The invisible marking strips were oriented and positioned in various ways to test the repeatability and ability to reliable detect a signal and signature that could be interpreted with automated algorithm. The experimental test results were acquired in a parking and signal-processing technique was established that normalized the raw signals, removed background EM signals not related to the created EM signatures, filtered high- and low-frequency noise, and took the derivative of the EM flux density with respect to the number of points. The V2I signals in the Y and Z-axes occasionally failed to exceed the minimum threshold set for the experiments, but the X-axis signals consistently exceeded the minimum value of ±200nT throughout the testing. The minimum threshold signals were used to calculate the speed of the cart, indicate a lane merge, and determine the lateral lane position of the cart. The detected speed signals closely correlated with the GPS speed measurements on the cart as well as provided accurate cart positioning and maneuvering actions. This pilot study demonstrated the potential of V2I communication specifically EM pavement signatures to enhance CWZ safety and provide detectable and actionable feedback to the vehicle.