Smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data-driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure

Abstract

The present invention relates to a Smart Traffic Electronic Enforcer on the Roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data-driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure. This road safety information exchange and traffic control system were developed based on data-driven technologies and wireless communications with focus on two road safety use cases: Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) prioritization and over speeding. An intelligent traffic controller equipped with a Variable Message Signboard (VMS) and Wireless Access Point (WAP) for communication of road safety messages, and an On-Board Unit (OBU) mounted on a vehicle, were developed, and applied to the two use cases. It was found that the system can communicate safety messages related to over speeding and ERV prioritization to motorists using the MQTT protocol over Wi-Fi and using a VMS for visual communication. Aside from road safety, the system can use road information to actuate traffic control.

Description

[0001] SMART TRAFFIC ELECTRONIC ENFORCER ON THE ROADS (STEER) UNIT AND INTELLIGENT DATA-DRIVEN TRAFFIC CONTROL AND SAFETY INFORMATION EXCHANGE INFRASTRUCTURE

[0002] SPECIFICATION

[0003] Technical Field

[0004] The present invention generally relates to road traffic control. In particular, it relates to a Smart Traffic Electronic Enforcer on the Roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure.

[0005] Background

[0006] Road safety is a major concern anywhere in the world. In the Philippines alone, transport accidents remain the top cause of death unrelated to any health problems. There are many reasons for road accidents, but the main cause of fatalities is the sheer velocity at which these events happen. On top of this, the probability of a crash increases the faster a vehicle is on the road. While motorists may tend to speed up at intersections when they perceive no immediate danger or traffic, it is a general rule to slow down when approaching one, especially when it is an uncontrolled intersection. This perception, however, may not always be correct, as other vehicles may appear unexpectedly. Failure to react quickly to such scenarios can result in accidents.

[0007] Another concern on the road is the ability of Emergency Response Vehicles (ERV) to pass through traffic unimpeded. While drivers generally give way to incoming ERVs, it takes time for the information to propagate to the front and for a clear path to emerge. This phenomenon is especially problematic when overtaking is not an option, as is the case in some Philippine roadways.

[0008] Providing drivers with vital safety information on the road increases awareness of potential dangers, which can aid decision-making. This invention accomplishes this by developing an On-board Unit (OBU) that can communicate with an intelligent traffic controller system equipped with data-driven technologies, including a Roadside Unit (RSU). For other motorists without an OBU, a Variable Message Signboard (VMS) is used as visual communicator. In this paper, we present how the system demonstrates a road safety information exchange environment to solve the two use cases mentioned above. Current state-of-the-art technologies such as Vehicle-to- Everything (V2X) are available and can also solve road safety problems. However, the current cost, accessibility, and availability of technology in the country are a large hindrance to its adoption. Thus, in this invention, alternative wireless technologies such as Wi-Fi are used due to their ubiquitous nature.

[0009] One related priort art is patent application no. PH 1 / 2012 / 501697, “METHOD OF DETERMINING SPEED AND COORDINATES OF VEHICLES WITH SUBSEQUENT IDENTIFICATIONTHEREOF AND AUTOMATIC RECORDING OF TRAFFIC OFFENCES AND DEVICE FOR REALISING SAID METHOD”. Said invention relates to traffic control and more specifically to the method and device for monitoring compliance with traffic rules, including speed. The proposed method involves combined processing signals from a radar set and an all-round view camera. Data streams from the video camera and the radar set are used independently, after which the data streams are compared and data on speed and coordinates are obtained with small error probability of identifying the violator vehicle. The device for realising the proposed method has a radar set with a signal processing module which calculates speed and distance to all vehicles within selected section of the road, and all-round view camera. The invention intends to reduce error probability of identifying a violator vehicle, increase in range of monitoring speed to several hundreds- thousand of metres, reduce expenses on constructing and servicing elevated structures for mounting devices for monitoring speed.

[0010] Another prior art is patent application no. PH 1 / 2022 / 552682, “PROCESSING APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT OF A NETWORK OF ROADS”. Said invention provides a processing apparatus for traffic management of a network of roads is provided, to, process data corresponding to the network of roads to identify an incoming road and an outgoing road intersecting at an intersection node of the network, the incoming road being for incoming traffic leading to the intersection node and the outgoing road being for outgoing traffic leading away from the intersection node, determine, based on the data corresponding to the network, whether there is a bypass road to allow the incoming traffic from the incoming road to bypass the intersection node and flow to the outgoing road via the bypass road, and, if it is determined that there is the bypass road, generate data indicative of a turn restriction for communicating to road users of restriction of flow of the incoming traffic to the outgoing road via the intersection node.

[0011] Still another priort art is patent application no. PH 1 / 2019 / 000145, “ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TRAFFIC DETECTION SYSTEM”. Said invention relates to an artificial intelligence traffic detection system, which captures a plurality of consecutive intersection images by a fisheye camera located at an intersection, and analyzes the images by a processor with an artificial intelligence algorithm to generate traffic information. After the traffic information is transmitted to a server, the server generates a timing plan for controlling the traffic lights of the intersection based on the traffic information. The invention can provide traffic information instantly and continuously without interruption, and helps to instantly generate a timing plan which is most suitable for traffic lights of various intersections, thereby solving the traffic congestion problem.

[0012] Still another priort art is patent application no. PH 1 / 2022 / 551540, “LOCAL NAVIGATION ASSISTED BY VEHICLE-TO-EVERYTHING (V2X)”. Said invention provides enhanced ultra-local navigation services for V2X devices (e.g., smartphones incorporating V2X chip sets). The V2X devices can transmit vehicle information to edge network devices (e.g., roadside units). The roadside units can be deployed at intersections or along roads to collect traffic information through various sensor inputs and V2X communications with multiple vehicles. The communication between V2X devices and the edge network devices can be accomplished through wireless communication (e.g., direct PC5 interface or through local Uu interface with edge computing. The edge network devices can perform local route optimization and compute one or more recommendations (e.g., a recommend route, a recommended speed, a recommended lane). The edge network devices can transmit the one or more recommendations via a wireless communication to the V2X devices. The V2X devices can display the recommendations to a user.

[0013] Summary and Objects

[0014] The present invention relates to relates to a Smart Traffic Electronic Enforcer on the Roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data-driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure.

[0015] The primary object of the invention is to provide an intelligent traffic controller system equipped with a Variable Message Signboard (VMS) and Roadside Unit (RSU).

[0016] Another object of the present invention is to provide an On-Board Unit (OBU) mounted on a vehicle or a Emergency Response Vehicles (ERV).

[0017] These and other objects will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0018] To illustrate the invention, an exemplary embodiment is presented by way of example in the accompanying drawing, it is understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the precise instrumentalities shown.

[0019] Figure 1 shows the STEER Unit.

[0020] Figure 2 shows the Data Flow Between STEER Units in a 4-way intersection as an Example.

[0021] Figure 3 shows the Traffic Light Controller.

[0022] Figure 4 shows the Actuation of Traffic Lights.

[0023] Figure 5 shows the Connection Testing of TLC in Serial Monitor.

[0024] Figure 6 shows the Emergency Response Vehicle in Node-RED.

[0025] Figure 7 shows the VMS Message for: (a) Default, (b) ERV, (c) Over-Speeding.

[0026] Figure 8 shows the Mobile Phone Safety Message in Popup Notifications.

[0027] Figure 9 shows the Sample Vehicle Detection Runtime on Sample Video Feed.

[0028] Figure 10 shows the the equation for calculating speed of vehicles.

[0029] Figure 11 shows the equation on Optimal Yellow Light Timing based on Traffic Parameters.

[0030] Figure 12 shows the Traffic Parameter Extraction including Speed Estimation using Computer Vision.

[0031] Figure 13 shows the Computer Vision versus Ground Truth Comparison of Yellow Light Timing Computation.

[0032] Figure 14 shows the MQ Telemetry Transport Protocol. Figure 15 shows the V2X Onboard Unit.

[0033] Figure 16 shows the V2X Single Board Computer as Platform for V2X System on Module for V2X Road Side Unit.

[0034] Figure 17 shows the Variable Message Signboard.

[0035] Figure 18 shows the Intersection Traffic Direction of Each Leg.

[0036] Figure 19 shows the VMS for Priviledged Pedestrian Crossing Message and RFID / NFC Technology for Privileged Pedestrian Crossing .

[0037] Figure 20 shows the Data-Driven Traffic Control Implemented by STEER Units.

[0038] Figure 21 shows the ERV Prioritization Procedure Implemented in STEER Units.

[0039] Figure 22 shows the Overspeeding Detection in STEER Units.

[0040] Figure 23 shows the Yellow Light Timing Computation, CV versus Ground Measurement.

[0041] Figure 24 shows the Extended Crossing Time for Privileged Pedestrians in STEER Units.

[0042] Figure 25 shows the Phone Integration to the STEER Unit as Additional Road Safety Message Recipient.

[0043] Detailed Description

[0044] The present invention relates to relates to a Smart Traffic Electronic Enforcer on the Roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data-driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure.

[0045] A smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure, wherein the STEER unit comprises: a plurality of cameras to detect and classify road vehicles; a STEER Comms that wirelessly communicates to a Roadside Unit, an On-Board Unit, and other mobile devices; an NFC or RFID reader to be used by pedestrians when crossing; wherein the plurality of cameras, STEER Comms, and NFC or RFID reader provides the input to a Computing System that actuates a Traffic Light Controller; wherein the information from the Computing System and Traffic Light Controller is displayed on a Variable Message Board, on a plurality of Forward Traffic Lights, on a plurality of Turn Assist Lights, on a plurality of Pedestrian Crossing Lights, and on the screen of other mobile devices; and wherein a Master STEER and multiple Client STEERs wireless communicates with each other when placed at road intersections.

[0046] I. STEER System Integration

[0047] Shown in Fig. 1 is the STEER Unit. The STEER Unit comprises of cameras, NFC or RFID reader, STEER Comms (Wifi / Cellular / LoRa / Bluetooth), V2X Roadside Unit (RSU), Computing System (CPU), Traffic Light Controller, Forward Traffic Lights, Turn Assist Lights, Variable Message Signboard, Pedestrian Crossing Lights (PedXing) Lights, Power Subsystem, and Trailer Mounting.

[0048] Fig. 2 shows the Data Flow Between STEER Units in a 4-way intersection.

[0049] Traffic Light Controller (TLC)

[0050] With traffic light control as a major part of this invention, a traffic light controller, shown in Fig. 3, was developed using an ESP32 microcontroller equipped with relays to actuate traffic lights according to provided light instructions. As seen in Fig. 4, the TLC can successfully drive the traffic lights using the relays, powered by on-grid AC supply and protected by a breaker. The ESP32 microcontroller also comes with a Wi-Fi module, which enables the TLC to wirelessly communicate with the master STEER by connecting to its access point.

[0051] Connection Testing

[0052] The TLC is programmed to perform a connection test every iteration of the loop by checking if it can access the broker at the master STEER through port 1883. If it cannot do so, it blinks the yellow and red lights alternately as warning to the road users, shown in Fig. 4, while trying to reconnect to the broker as shown in Fig. 5. Once it passes the connection test, it goes through the rest of its programming in Fig. 20. If there is a missing TLC in the system, it receives an incomplete alert and executes the blinking warning again. Once all the TLCs are complete again, they go back to regular operation.

[0053] Emergency Response Vehicle Detection

[0054] For ease of testing, the ERV OBU used a Raspberry Pi and Node-RED MQTT tools, shown in Fig. 6. The device is wired with four buttons connected to the GPIO: three for each of the legs in a T-junction and one for a “Passed” message. To simulate an ERV entering the STEER intersection, a button corresponding to the name of the leg it is traversing is pressed, which publishes the leg name to the broker repeatedly. The STEER bypasses its normal operation and keeps the ERV leg moving while stopping the other legs. The “Passed” button is pressed once the ERV crosses the intersection, which stops the publishing of the leg name then publishes the “Passed” message only once. The STEER then transitions back to its regular operation.

[0055] Variable Message Signboard

[0056] To implement safety information dissemination to all road users, the VMS displays the messages on the screen for all to see. As shown in Fig. 7(a), the default message is displayed by default during regular operation. Once an ERV, such as an ambulance, is detected by the master STEER, the safety message shown in Fig. 7(b) is displayed while giving the ERV prioritization in the traffic lights. Independently, if an OBU reports overspeeding on its vehicle, as shown in Fig. 22, the message shown in Fig. 7(c) is displayed in the VMS.

[0057] Safety Alert Messages on Smartphones

[0058] These safety messages are also communicated to smartphones connected to the system as popup and voice (using the smartphone text-to-speech engine) notifications, as depicted in Fig. 8. Because mobile phones are subscribed to the STEER’S broker topics, they also receive alerts when ERVs are in proximity to the vehicle, notifying the road user to make way for the incoming ERV.

[0059] II. STEER Capabilities

[0060] A. Road and Traffic Data Collection

[0061] Computer Vision

[0062] You-Only-Look-Once (YOLO) is a computer vision model used to object detection, classification, and segmentation. Ultralytics is a computer vision module which can utilize Y0L0v8 model which has tools for object recognition, classification, as well as tracking and counting.

[0063] As seen in Fig. 9, a custom Computer Vision algorithm is developed using the Ultralytics YOLOv8’s tools to detect and classify road entities such as cars, buses, trucks, motorcycle, etc. These road entities are tracked and given object ID’s using Ultralytics’ own tracking tools. The Supervision line counter tool is used twice to count the number of vehicles that passes each leg. Concurrently, the timestamps of each passing vehicle the moment they pass each line counter is also stored in a python dictionary. The timestamps of each passed vehicle are then compared to get the time it takes for the vehicle to pass from the first line counter to the second. The distance between these two markers is estimated to be around 3 meters apart. The speed of each passing vehicle, shown in Table 1 , is then calculated as the marker distance divided by the time taken for each vehicle to pass both markers as shown in equation in Fig. 10. This calculated speed is then used to calculate the yellow interval duration in as shown in equation in Fig. 11. Road statistics such as the flow rate in vehicle count per amount of time, average approaching speed of each vehicle, and the maximum approaching speed of the phase are collated after every phase that a leg is allowed to cross the intersection as seen in Fig. 12.

[0064] TA

[0065] SPEED ESTIMATION U

[0066] This invention utilized the developed Computer Vision algorithm to intelligently compute for the average vehicle approach speed in an intersection, which is closer to ground-truth than the 85th-percentile speed. This computed speed average was then used as input for the kinematic equation in Fig. 11. The output of which was used as the actuated yellow interval duration for the respective intersection leg. This whole process is illustrated in Fig. 13. The change in yellow interval duration had no effect on the total length of the traffic light cycle. Only the respective green light duration is affected as a longer yellow interval duration is equivalent to a shorter green interval duration, and vice-versa. Of all the factors of the kinetic equation in Fig. 11 , only the vehicle speed is not readily available upon setup. While the reaction time, deceleration rate, vehicle length are often approximated to be 1 second, 3m / s2, and 6m, respectively, and the road incline and road width can be measured on the ground, the vehicle speed is dependent on the road users’ behaviour. Nevertheless, the YOLOv8 based computed vision algorithm was used to estimate the speed of the passing test vehicle on a test road taken on video. The computed yellow interval durations obtained by plugging in speed values acquired from the computer vision algorithm was compared against the ones acquired from the speedometer of the test vehicle as seen in (speedometer). The yellow interval duration from the computer vision acquired speed values are expected to be statistically congruent to those from the speedometer acquired speed values. These yellow interval duration data was used to actuate the traffic lights to an appropriate amount of time.

[0067] In this invention, an algorithm applied to computer vision was used to determine vehicle speeds. This information was used as an input to the kinematic equation for optimizing yellow interval duration to be actuated by an intelligent traffic controller. It was statistically shown that the computed yellow interval duration using the speeds generated by the computer vision algorithm was effectively congruous to those computed with speeds from the test vehicle’s speedometer.

[0068] The collected traffic statistics which include the vehicle count, queue length, flow rate, and average speed are then sent to the server which will generate the optimized traffic signal timing accordingly.

[0069] B. Road and Safety Information Wireless Communications

[0070] It is imperative that the traffic lights work synchronously to avoid collisions caused by miscommunication between road users. To facilitate this, the traffic lights and road users need to intelligently communicate with one another. To facilitate communications between road entities, this invention uses MQ Telemetry Transport (MQTT) over Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN).

[0071] As illustrated in Fig. 14, MQTT is a publish-subscribe protocol with a server hosting the broker which serves as the central node of the network where all clients publish and subscribe to. The information transfer can be compartmentalized with different topics, each of which contains a different type of information. This ensures that each client only publishes and / or subscribes to topics that are relevant to its use cases. Moreover, MQTT has a feature called “Last Will Testament” (LWT), where a client can publish a “Keep Alive ” message periodically to the broker to let the latter know that the former is still connected and operational. Once the broker stops receiving the “Keep Alive” message, it assumes that the client is dead (Disconnected or Not in service) and executes the LWT of the client by publishing a message stating that it is no longer part of the network.

[0072] Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) and WiFi-based Communication (STEER Comms)

[0073] V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything) devices utilizing Commercial-Off-The-Shelf OBU (On- Board Unit) illustrated in Fig. 15 and RSU (Road-Side Unit) illustrated in Fig. 16 technology, integrated with V2XCast software, are designed to enhance communication and interaction between vehicles and their surrounding environment. The OBU will be installed onboard vehicles, while the RSU will be strategically placed along roadways and intersections. Leveraging advanced wireless technology, this device facilitates data exchange among vehicles, infrastructure, pedestrians, and other entities within the transportation ecosystem. Through real-time information sharing, including traffic conditions, road hazards, and emergency alerts, it empowers drivers with enhanced situational awareness, thereby reducing the likelihood of accidents and optimizing traffic flow.

[0074] The present invention also discloses a Wi-Fi-based communication system using the MQTT Protocol shown in Fig. 14.

[0075] STEER uses a messaging protocol called MQTT. MQTT is like a special language that lets devices send and receive small messages on a specific subject. This keeps things fast and secure. STEER is safe and powerful; it can handle data exchange well. With MQTT, devices publish messages about certain topics, and others who are interested in those topics can subscribe to hear them. This way, only interested devices get the information they need, making things more secure. For important messages, STEER uses a special mode (QoS 2) to ensure they get delivered exactly once and not lost.

[0076] C. Road and Safety Information Visual / Sensory Communications

[0077] Variable Message Signboards, as shown in Fig. 17, use array of LEDs controlled by a control device that can be used to display text, graphics, and moving graphics. This is used by the invention to display road safety information. D. Intelligent Traffic Light Control

[0078] An intersection of roads can be defined by its legs, which are segments of road that enter an intersection. Shown in Fig. 18 is a four-way intersection, which has four legs entering it, arbitrarily named North, East, South, West for convenience. Each leg is specified to have up to three directions of traffic flow: left turning (Left), crossing (forward or FW), and right turning (Right) directions for all four legs of a 4-way intersection, while a T-junction only has two directions for each of its legs.

[0079] This invention defines a light instruction as the specific arrangement of lights that each leg needs to actuate at a given time, as portrayed in Table 2. For a leg with only two directions, a parallel pedestrian crossing, and a perpendicular pedestrian crossing, a format for light instruction can be: {Left: Red, Forward: Green, Right: Off, Parallel Pedestrian: Go, Perpendicular Pedestrian: Stop}. Simplifying this light instruction by using “11”, “10”, “01”, “00” as codes for “Green”, “Yellow”, “Red”, “Off” for vehicular lights and “1”, “0” as codes for “Go”, “Stop” for pedestrian traffic, we derived the encoded “01-11-00- 1-0” light instruction, which can be packed into an unsigned character byte. For a given time, each leg actuates the traffic lights according to its light instruction without having to change. This duration is defined as a phase. The traffic controller needs to execute these phases in order and for specified durations. However, instances come where, after iterating through the phases, the light instruction repeats itself. The collection of phases before the light instructions repeat is called a cycle. Its duration is called cycle timing, and the order of phases is called a sequence. For convenience, the sequence, the light instruction of each leg in each phase, and phase duration are presented in a Timetable of the entire cycle in Table 3. The cycle start time is also specified to properly time the execution of each phase.

[0080] Table 2. Sample Light Instruction of Each Leg. Table 3. Sample Time Table of Whole Cycle.

[0081] For convenience, the sequence, the light instruction of each leg in each phase, and phase duration are presented in a Timetable of the entire cycle in Table 3. The cycle start time is also specified to properly time the execution of each phase.

[0082] An ESP32-based microcontroller was used as traffic light controller to actuate the traffic lights of the system, depicted in Fig. 3. The TLC initializes by performing a connection test to see if it can access the MQTT Broker hosted on the master STEER through port 1883. If it is not connected, it flashes blinking yellow and red on the traffic lights to indicate that the traffic lights are not yet operational and that road users should treat the intersection like one with a stop sign, as they would with out-of-order lights. If it is connected, it utilizes the Last Will Testament (LWT) feature of MQTT and sends a Keep Alive message to the broker periodically to signify that it is still operational. Once the broker stops receiving these Keep Alive messages from the TLC after a period of 5 seconds, the LWT is executed, and the former assumes that the latter is not operational anymore while notifying all connected TLCs that they are incomplete. If a TLC receives the incomplete alert, it also executes the blinking warning, ensuring that if at least one TLC goes down, the entire intersection notifies all road users to treat it as a stop sign intersection, avoiding any accidents.

[0083] E. Road Safety for non-vehicle actors on the road

[0084] NFC or RFID can be used to identify privileged pedestrians in order to extend crossing time and informing other road users to take caution as they cross the pedestrian lane as shown in Fig. 19.

[0085] III. STEER Example Use Cases / Applications

[0086] Example 1 : Dynamic and Data-Driven Traffic Light Actuation

[0087] Shown in Fig. 20 is the Data-Driven Traffic Control Implemented by STEER Units.

[0088] This invention developed an intelligent traffic controller system named Smart Traffic Electronic Enforcer on the Roads (STEER) which uses MQTT over Local Wi-Fi Network for its wireless communications, as depicted in Fig. 2. Each leg of an intersection is equipped with a corresponding STEER unit. Each STEER unit comprises a mini-PC connected to a Variable Message Sign (VMS) and other sensors, as well as a Traffic Light Controller (TLC) that actuates the Traffic Lights. A STEER system comprises of a Master STEER and multiple Client STEERs. The Master STEER acts as the server and hub of communications within the system by utilizing its network adapter as the Access Point for the local network and hosting the MQTT broker, to which all the mini-PC and TLC of each client STEER are subscribed and can publish to. The TLC receives Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) alert and light instructions for its respective leg, while the mini-PC receives the safety messages to be displayed on its VMS and publishes road statistics and information from its sensors to the broker.

[0089] The modularity of this intelligent traffic control system, illustrated in Fig. 25, is not limited to client STEER units. It is augmented by On-Board Units (OBU) mounted on vehicles that extract information such as speed, acceleration, location, and engine condition. This information is transmitted to the Master STEER for aggregation, and the OBUs receive safety information to be displayed in the vehicle head unit. For vehicles that cannot adopt an OBU, a mobile phone, which is often already used for road navigation, can be integrated with the MQTT local network to serve the function of an OBU by sending vehicle data and receiving safety information. Moreover, Active ERVs can publish the leg name that they are currently traversing to notify the master STEER that they need prioritization to pass the intersection.

[0090] Example 2: ERV Detection and Prioritization

[0091] Shown in Fig. 21 is the ERV Prioritization Procedure Implemented in STEER Units.

[0092] The broker also has a topic for ERV Detection. It connects to the network and immediately, periodically publishes the name of the leg it is currently on. Once the TLCs detect the ERV, they give prioritization to its leg by keeping GREEN light on the ERV leg while keeping RED light on the rest of the legs to ensure that the ERV can pass safely and quickly. Meanwhile, once the master STEER mini-PC detects the ERV, it notifies all other mini-PC to flash a message on their VMS reminding all road users to give way to the ERV. If there is no ERV detected, the master STEER publishes the current light instruction of each leg to the broker, where the TLCs are subscribed and waiting for the respective light instruction to actuate. Example 3: Overspeeding Detection

[0093] Shown in Fig. 22 is the Overspeeding Detection in STEER Units.

[0094] Shown in Fig. 23 is the Yellow Light Timing Computation, CV versus Ground Measurement.

[0095] Another feature of STEER is monitoring speeds of the passing vehicles and detecting any over-speeding non-ERV entity, as illustrated in Fig. 22. The On-Board Unit (OBU) connects to the vehicle’s On-board Diagnostics (OBDII) port to extract vehicle data such as speed, acceleration, GPS, vehicle health, which are then sent to the master STEER for aggregation. If an OBDII port is unavailable, an OBU can also rely on external sensors, such as the case when a smartphone is used as an OBU. The master STEER also continuously publishes the speed limit of its leg to a broker topic, to which all the OBUs are subscribed. If a vehicle determines that it is travelling above the speed limit, it publishes an overspeeding alert message to the broker. Otherwise, the OBU only publishes its speed and vehicle information to another broker topic. If the master STEER sees an over-speeding message other than the speed limit broadcast, it tells all client STEER to flash a safety message on their VMS warning all road users of an over-speeding vehicle. If there are no over-speeding vehicles, the STEER units keep the default message on their VMS.

[0096] Example 4: Extended Pedestrian Crossing Time for PWD / Senior

[0097] Shown in Fig. 24 is the Extended Crossing Time for Privileged Pedestrians in STEER Units

[0098] This includes road safety mechanisms, such as using RFID and NFC to detect senior citizen and Persons with Disability (PWD) pedestrians as additional inputs to traffic actuation and communication.

[0099] Example 5: Safety Message Dissemination (VMS / Phone Integration)

[0100] Shown in Fig. 25 is the Phone Integration to the STEER Unit as Additional Road Safety Message Recipient. Some vehicles may not be suitable to mount an OBU for several possible reasons. In this case, a smartphone, already used for road navigation, can act as the OBU by publishing the vehicle speed according to GPS data and subscribing to safety message announcements to be displayed as popup or voice notifications. Using an android terminal emulator such as termux, the mobile phone can be equipped with MQTT capabilities. With a terminal emulator in the mobile phone, Node-RED, a NodeJS-based programming tool, can be used with its MQTT nodes for publishing and subscribing to a remote broker, as well as customizable popup and text-to-speech notifications. The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. The described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is, therefore, indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure, wherein the STEER unit comprises: a plurality of cameras to detect and classify road vehicles; a STEER Comms that wirelessly communicates to a Roadside Unit, an On-Board Unit, and other mobile devices; an NFC or RFID reader to be used by pedestrians when crossing; wherein the plurality of cameras, STEER Comms, and NFC or RFID reader provides the input to a Computing System that actuates a Traffic Light Controller; wherein the information from the Computing System and Traffic Light Controller is displayed on a Variable Message Board, on a plurality of Forward Traffic Lights, on a plurality of Turn Assist Lights, on a plurality of Pedestrian Crossing Lights, and on the screen of other mobile devices; and wherein a Master STEER and multiple Client STEERs wireless communicates with each other when placed at road intersections.

2. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein said cameras communicates with the Computing System that uses a custom Computer Vision algorithm using the Ultralytics YOLOv8’s tools.

3. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the STEER Comms can communicate via Wifi, Cellular, LoRa, and Bluetooth.

4. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the Roadside Unit, integrated with V2XCast software, are strategically placed along roadways and intersections.

5. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the On-Board Unit, placed on road vehicles, wirelessly communicates with the Roadside Unit and the STEER Comms.

6. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the Roadside Unit and the STEER Comms wirelessly communicates to other mobile devices, when the On-Board Unit is not applicable to use, by publishing the vehicle speed according to GPS data and subscribing to safety message announcements to be displayed as popup or voice notifications.

7. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the NFC or RFID reader can read the NFC or RFID cards of senior citizen and Persons with Disability (PWD) pedestrians as additional inputs to traffic actuation and communication.

8. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the Computing System is a mini-PC containing the STEER protocols.

9. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the Computing System has Emergency Response Vehicle Detection and Prioritization protocol to ensure that the Emergency Response Vehicle can pass safely and quickly.

10. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the Computing System has Overspeeding Detection protocol to detect overspeeding road vehicles.11 . The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the Traffic Light Controller has an ESP32 microcontroller equipped with relays to actuate traffic lights according to provided light instructions.

12. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the Variable Message Signboard and the screen of other mobile devices can display Road Safety Messages.

13. The smart traffic electronic enforcer on the roads (STEER) unit and intelligent data- driven traffic control and safety information exchange infrastructure according to Claim 1 , wherein the Forward Traffic Lights, Turn Assist Lights, and Pedestrian Crossing Lights lights up to show visual indications that controls the traffic flow of road vehicles and pedestrians.

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