Wireless Sensor Networks for Roads - Road SensiNet

The project will provide the communication of the transportation vehicles with the sensor network nodes installed on roads. The road infrastructure composed of wireless sensor networks will inform the driver and vehicle control system about the surface of the road (such as icy, wet, congested traffic)

Road SensiNet system will warn the drivers about the road surface conditions. In some European countries 50% of the traffic accidents are due to wet or icy roads. Most of the drivers do not notice warnings on the road where they travel frequently. However, Road SensiNet system will warn the driver just in the case where the vehicle approaches to a region where the surface of the road is icy or wet.

The infrastructure will be composed of wireless sensor nodes capable of:
1. Sensing the road surface condition through humidity, temperature and magnetic sensors
2. Communicating with a moderate range of neighbouring sensor nodes in order to pass the information in a collective manner to a distance of 2-3 kilometers away, where the driver will be able to slow down and be aware of the road surface ahead.
3. Communicating with the vehicles and passing road surface status information to the driver and vehicle control system.

State of the art
On board sensor systems are widely used in current vehicle manufacturing technologies. Theses sensors can control the current activity of the vehicle, driver and road. A sensor system warning the driver only at the moment where the vehicle is ON the icy or wet surface will not prevent possible accidents most of the times. However, the Road SensiNet infrastructure will warn the vehicle from 2-3 kilometers away and give the chance to the driver to take the necessary precautions. Any “Icy Road” warning on a traffic sign by the road will not be effective as a sensor system on the road where the warning cause is not a possibility but a fact!

The state of the art of the system:
1. The wireless sensor network nodes will be sensing 20-30 meters around and communicating with at most 100 meters away neighbours. The road status information will be transferred to the approaching vehicles through collective work of the sensor nodes in a diameter of 3-4 kilometers from the icy region.
2. The sensor node hardware cost will be very low such that a local authority will be able to install the nodes instead of other expensive warning systems
3. The nodes will be able to detect the vehicles passing through due to a magnetic sensor. Especially the spead of the vehicle and the direction.
4. The sensor network will be self configuring (detecting its exact location and the neighbour nodes) where there will be no need to engineering designs while installation the nodes on the roads.

Project objectives
- To provide a low cost wireless sensor network communication infrastructure designed for roads
- To design a infrastructure to vehicle network communication infrastructure
- Design an interface to the information coming from the road to the vehicle control, navigation system and the driver

Expected result
The system will decrease the accident rate of the vehicles with a significant improvement. Intelligent roads will decrease the transport cost and increase the performance.

wireless sensor networks
driver warning
transport efficiency
accident prevention
road
traffic

- Sensor node manufacturers
- Wireless network hardware designers and manufacturers
- Software companies expert on wireless communication protocols
- Vehicle manufacturers
- Navigation system manufacturers
- Research organizations to simulate the system (hardware and communication infrastructure)
- Organizations to verify and test the system
- Local authorities responsible of the roads
- Driver and vehicle organizations
- Organizations/companies that will work on dissemination part of the project

PROFILE 1: Wireless Sensor Node (onboard and on the road) hardware manufacturing

PROFILE 2: Communication protocol design and implementation. Data collection and evaluation

PROFILE 3: Vehicle interface design and implementation.

PROFILE 4: Organizations to simulate and test the overall system

PROFILE 5: Organizations to disseminate the project results

PROFILE 6: Organizations to

 

- To provide a low cost wireless sensor network communication infrastructure designed for roads
- To design a infrastructure to vehicle network communication infrastructure
- Design an interface to the information coming from the road to the vehicle control, navigation system and the driver

Local authorities responsible of roads

Academic and research organizations

Driver and vehicle organizations

No