Counting cars made easier for traffic police
In the near future, if you have to count vehicles as they pass through an intersection, you might not need to hire staff. A small box hanging from a flyover could do the job just as well.
Jatuporn Chinrungrueng, a researcher at the National Electronics and Computer Technology Centre, said the centre had developed what it called Wireless Sensor Network (WSN), for auto numbering or automatic vehicle counting. The sensor is triggered when a vehicle move through it's field of vision which extends between one and four metres. He said when a vehicle passed beneath the sensor, the computer at the sensor node sent information via microwave to a server which can be up to 70 metres away. He said that the Wireless Sensor Network will also help police during rush hour since they do not need to call their colleagues on the walkie-talkie to assess the traffic situation. If police utilise the WSN integrated with other traffic management systems, comprehensive traffic information would be available to the network in real time. "The system can also manage the sets of traffic lights at intersections automatically by calculating the number of vehicles passing through at that particular time," said Jatuporn. In the first step, Nectec plans to utilise the WSN to count vehicles as they enter and leave the Science Park in the next couple of months. He said the team plans further development so the system can evaluate the speeds of cars.
Jirapan BoonnoonThe Nation jirapan@nationgroup.com
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