SecurityWorldMarket

24/07/2022

Hanwha helps manage traffic on Italy's newest motorway

Chertsey, Surrey

A new highway relies on AI-powered video technology from Hanwha Techwin and Sprinx to keep traffic moving smoothly and safely and to provide operators with crucial information on traffic volume and speed.

To address the need for a new motorway to link the cities of Vicenza and Treviso, the first stone of what is now the Pedemontana Veneta or “SPV” toll highway was laid in November 2011 in Romano d'Ezzelino, and in 2012 work began on the first stretch of the 2.6-billion-euro road. Once completed, the SPV’s 162 kilometres will link Vicenza and Treviso, interconnect with three national motorways and deliver greater mobility for the area’s 4.9 million inhabitants and the 500,000 businesses that call the region home.

Overcoming challenges

Given the amount of traffic the road is expected to carry, it is vital that SPV’s operators keep the highway moving smoothly and safely and that they have access to data on traffic volumes and average speeds. To do so, they are relying on an AI-powered video surveillance system from Hanwha Techwin and its technology partner, Sprinx.

Italian distributor Sirius – Compass and systems integrators SIS scpa and Pagano Spa worked together to install 600 cameras along the route of the SPV, calling on Hanwha Techwin’s high-resolution Wisenet cameras with day & night ICR technology and a wide dynamic range to deliver high-quality images regardless of light levels. The installation also features Hanwha Techwin 32x zoom PTZ dome cameras, all managed through a Wisenet Wave video management system.

Easing congestion and early incident detection

The cameras are integrated with analytics expert Sprinx’s Ttraffix.ai solution, which uses deep learning and image processing to deliver a wide range of server-based analytic functions that increase safety for road users and provide greater insight into how the highway is being used.

These functions include automatically detecting traffic incidents in real-time and immediately alerting the highway’s operators to initiate an emergency response. Whether it is a stalled vehicle in one of the highway’s lanes, or a car travelling the wrong way down the highway, the system can reliably detect events that could cause traffic congestion at best and serious accidents at worst. The solution can also spot and alert operators to smoke in any of the highway’s many tunnels, which might indicate a traffic incident or a fire.

Using Hanwha Techwin’s cameras as a traffic sensor, the Sprinx software solution is also able to detect queues of traffic and objects in the road, such as cargo spilt by vehicles en route and which present a hazard for oncoming traffic. Added safety is also ensured by the system’s ability to alert operators to any pedestrians who have strayed onto the highway.

Delivering insights into road use

Deploying AI in the system delivers additional benefits for the SPV beyond safety alone. Using Sprinx’s traffic analytics, the system installed along the length of the highway keeps track of vehicles moving in any of the Wisenet cameras’ field of view, and is able to collect data on the highway’s two lanes at the same time and in both directions of travel.

The traffic data that can be recorded and stored as a result provide a rich source of insight into how and when the highway is being used and by what types of vehicles. The system allows operators to undertake vehicle counting, measure traffic density and ascertain the average speed of vehicles along the route. Fully integrated with the Wisent Wave video management system, all this information is delivered via an intuitive web user interface.

“Together, Hanwha Techwin and Sprinx make the Pedemontana Veneta highway safer for road users and help keep traffic flowing,” says Gerando Capezzuto of SIS scpa. “Using the performing combination of Sprinx’s AI video analytics and the Wisenet Wave VMS platform of Hanwha Techwin, we are able to instantly detect incidents along hundreds of kilometres of road to provide a faster response, while the insights it has provided into how the highway is being used are proving invaluable in maximising the efficient use of the road.”


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