Education
In this seminar, John Evans will discuss a practical sensor technology to improve public safety through the remote sensing of snow and ice on bridge and road surfaces. A system based on such technology can provide real-time information about the surface condition of a roadway. This information could then trigger signage to alert motorists of unsafe conditions and/or notify maintenance personnel that deicing is needed. Evans' approach uses time domain reflectometry (TDR) to acquire dielectric relaxation spectroscopy (DRS) data from low-cost passive sensors. TDR and DRS technology has been used in such disciplines as soil science and high-speed electronic data transfer and is a viable alternative for probing bridge or road surface conditions. Evans will outline the electronic hardware and software components necessary for this approach, as well as explain the integration of the components into an overall system that can be deployed in remote locations.