BMS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT

Application of Lasers in Highway Engineering

Presented by,
ZOHAIB MOHAMED UMAIR (1BY16CV074)

Under the supervision of

Mrs. SHOBHA R
Department of Civil engineering
18-04-2020
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Contents
• Full Form of LASER

• Desirable Properties Of Lasers

• Introduction

• Application Of Lasers In Highway Engineering

 Road Profiling
 Pavement Surface Deflection
 Bridge Deflection
 Speed Checkers

• Advantages Of Using Lasers In Highway Engineering

• Limitations Of Lasers In Highway Engineering

• Conclusion

• References 2
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What is LASER ? DESIRABLE PROPERTIES OF LASERS

Monochromatic
L - Light
Unidirectional
A – Amplification; by
Coherent
S - Stimulated
Portable
E - Emission of
Detect moving object
R - Radiation
Work outside with exposure to sunlight

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INTRODUCTION
There is a growing need for strategic management of the national
roadway network to preserve the large capital investment

Pavement management activities require accurate, fast and cost

effective pavement testing techniques to record current status of the
pavement structures rapidly.

Laser technique has the characteristics of high accuracy, high

resolution, repeatability and has been widely applied in Range-
finding

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APPLICATION OF LASERS IN HIGHWAY ENGINEERING

1. ROAD PROFILING

2. PAVEMENT SURFACE DEFLECTION

3. BRIDGE DEFLECTION

4. SPEED CHECKERS

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1. ROAD PROFILING
The road profile is the shape of the road in the vertical plane along a
reference line

Profilometer is a measuring instrument used to measure the profile

of different surfaces

LASER BASED ROAD SURFACE PROFILER (RSP)

The system consists of two primary components:

a. A transducer unit carrying laser sensors and accelerometers

b. A PC with expansion slot capability

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PROFILER COMPONENTS 7
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VEHICLE FITTED WITH LASER PROFILER

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LASER PROFILER
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GRAPH

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2.PAVEMENT SURFACE DEFLECTION
Pavement surface deflection measurements are the primary means of
evaluating load transfer on flexible structures and rigid pavements

Deflection is an important criteria for pavement’s structural layer stiffness

and the sub grade thus; many characteristics of flexible pavements can be
determined by measuring its deflection in response to load

TYPES OF DEFLECTOMETERS
1) Texas Rolling Dynamic Deflectometer (RDD);
2) Airfield Rolling Weight Deflectometer (ARWD);
3) Rolling Wheel Deflectometer (RWD);
4) Road Deflection Tester (RDT); and
5) High-Speed Deflect-graph.

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ROLLING WHEEL DEFLECTOMETER (RWD)

The RWD is constructed with the help of a specially designed tractor-
trailer which is 53 feet long

The trailer has a single rear axle that is loaded up to 18,000lb

Its objective is to measure pavement surface deflections at traffic speeds

and to characterize the load carrying capacity
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The RWD measures wheel deflections at the pavement surface by

means of a spatially coincident method

What is spatially coincident method?

As the RWD travels on top of the pavement, triangulation lasers
mounted on a 25.5ft. Aluminium beam and placed at 8 feet intervals,
are used to measure surface deflections
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The beam is mounted on the right side of the semi-trailer to follow the
right wheel path on the right lane

Three spot lasers are placed in front of the loaded wheel to define the
unloaded surface.

One spot laser is placed directly on top of the loaded dual-tire

assembly in order to measure the deflected surface

The laser sensors are set to collect a reading at a fixed interval of 0.6
inch at all truck speeds

The upgraded system has a 0.4 inch measurement deflection range

and has an accuracy of 0.001 inch

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BENEFITS OF USING RWD

Measures pavement deflection applied by an actual, moving

semi-trailer wheel load

Records a continuous deflection profile, thus provides for

rapid processing

Operates at normal highway speeds

Does not require lane closures (improved safety and less

interruption to users)

Limit exposure of personnel to hazardous traffic.

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3.BRIDGE DEFLECTION

In order to detect the performance of bridges, deformation of key parts

is usually determined. The deformation is caused by changes of natural
conditions and long-term load including overload. It may bring damage
if exceeded more than certain threshold

Box Diagram of instrument used:

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The deflection measurement system is composed of laser emitter, laser
receiver and upper computer
The laser beam should have
1. long-term stability
2. anti-interference
3. high positioning accuracy
In order to ensure the accurate positioning of centre
Working:
4. Laser is projected on the fixed laser screen
5. Laser image is sampled by CCD (Charge Coupled Device) and sent to the
MCU (Micro Controller Unit)
6. A laser spot is formed in the imaging, and is processed by digital image
processing technology
7. The co-ordinate of the centre of the laser spot will be calculated
8. In order to reduce measurement error, this study introduces tilt sensor
to measure the angle of the laser emitter.
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A is the datum position

B is the laser light spot position
L is the length of AB line
Φ is the obliquity of light spot receiver relative to datum plane
Δ= L cos Φ (Δ – Displacement)

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ADVANTAGES OF LASER SYSTEM FOR CALCULATING
BRIDGE DEFLECTION

Measure bridge deflection from a range of up to 30m.

A computer-controlled scanning system controls the laser and

allows the system to scan a large area of a structure.

Measurement of resolutions less than one mm is possible with

the system.

No special target or surface preparation is required.

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4.SPEED CHECKERS

 The laser system basically comprises of two laser transmitter-LDR (Light

Dependent resistor) sensor pairs, which are installed 100 meters apart
on the highway with the transmitter and the LDR sensor of each pair on
the opposite sides of the road.

 The system displays the time taken by the vehicle in crossing this 100m
distance from one pair to the other with a resolution of 0.01 second,
from which the speed of the vehicle can be calculated.

 This speed checker can check the speed of only one vehicle at a time.

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LINE DIAGRAM
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LASER BASED SPEED CHECKERS 23
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A laser speed gun shoots a very short burst of laser light and then waits
for it to reflect off the vehicle.
 The gun counts the number of nanoseconds it takes for the round trip,
and by dividing it by 2 it can calculate the distance to the car.

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ADVANTAGES OF USING LASERS IN HIGHWAY
ENGINEERING
Laser based system can measure road profile and deflection accurately
while travelling at normal speed.

It results in rapid measurement and quick data collection.

 Multiple locations can be measured from single instrument position.

 It doesn’t require any set up or break down.

 This can be fitted on any vehicle required by the user.

 It can operate at a speed of 105km/h.

 It collects real-time data as it traverses the pavement’s surface.

 It05/06/2020
eliminates the need for lane closures or traffic control while testing.
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LIMITATIONS OF LASERS IN HIGHWAY ENGINEERING

High operating cost and maintenance charges

Variations in operation speed

Temperature dependent effect

Complex thermo-mechanical behavior

Requires special skills and Training

Lasers could be harmful to the environment

Expensive
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CONCLUSION
The laser system have several advantages over the traditional instrumentations in
highway engineering.

Laser based road profile measuring system are non-contact type system capable of
measuring road profile and road deflection at normal traffic speeds

Pavement deflection measurement at traffic speed results in quick data collection

without compromising safety of the travelling public.

The system is quick to set up, and results are produced immediately after
measurement.

 Since no targets are required for the laser system, access to difficult-to-reach areas
under the bridge is not necessary.

 Also laser has fewer source of interference and has better ability to detect
decelerating
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REFERENCES
[1] YujingGuo, Li Wei, ”Study of Deflection Measurement for Bridge Using Laser Image
Technology”, 3rd International Conference on Machinery, Materials and Information Technology
Applications (ICMMITA 2015), November 28-29, 2015 in Qingdao, China.

[2] Dr. Ibrahim M. Asi, “Pavement Performance Evaluation", International Journal of Pavement
Research and Technology Vol.5 No.2 Mar. 2012.

[3] Mostafa A Elseifi, Ahmed M. Abdel-Khalek, Kevin Gaspard, Zhongjie Zhang, Said Ismail,
“Evaluation of Continuous Deflection Testing Using the Rolling Wheel Deflectometer in
Louisiana”, Journal of transportation engineering © asce / April 2012,J. Transp. Eng.
2012.138:414-422

[4] Gonzá lez, E.J. O’Brien, Y.-Y. Li, K. Kashell, “The Use of Vehicle Acceleration Measurements to
Estimate Road Roughness”, Vehicle System Dynamics, International Journal of Vehicle
Mechanics and Mobility, Vol. 46, No. 6, Taylor & Francis (2008), pp. 483-499

[5] Mostafa A Elseifi, Ahmed M. Abdel-Khalek, and KarthikDasari, “Implementation of Rolling

Wheel Deflectometer (RWD) in PMS and Pavement Preservation”, Report No.
FHWA/11.492August 2012, Page 36.
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