Apparatus and method for road hazard and safety alerts

Abstract

An apparatus for road hazard and safety alerts, the apparatus comprising a processor configured to receive road hazard location data from a detector deployed at a road hazard location; send the road hazard location data to one or more devices residing or to be resided in a vehicle, wherein each device is installed with an application configured to receive the sent road hazard location data and the application is configured to obtain location data of the device; and receive travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles detected by the detector, wherein if the location data of the device matches with the location data of a detected vehicle, and the detected travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle is determined to be unsafe, the device installed with the application triggers an alert to notify an operator of the vehicle.

Description

[0001] Apparatus and Method for Road Hazard and Safety Alerts

[0002] Field of Invention

[0003] The invention relates to an apparatus and a method for road hazard and safety alerts, in particular, for monitoring and warning a user in a moving vehicle that may enter or have entered a designated zone with a road hazard.

[0004] Background

[0005] There are many instances in which individuals, such as construction personnel, public service / outdoor facilities maintenance personnel (e.g. plant pruning, road-sweeping, paramedics etc.), work on roads or in an area with high vehicle traffic. Consequently, these individuals are exposed to a high risk of traffic accidents.

[0006] To prevent accidents, signs may be put up to warn drivers to avoid road lanes with road hazards, including road works, fallen tree, or where public service / maintenance is being carried out. However, despite that signs are put up, there will still be a number of cases in which a vehicle driver becomes distracted and accidentally drives into a road lane with road hazards. For instance, the driver may be distracted because he or she is communicating on a mobile phone or having a conversation with passengers.

[0007] Existing solutions to ensure the safety of the aforementioned individuals may have horns and / or flash lights located near the road hazards and will sound such horns and / or flash lights if a vehicle is detected to be driving dangerously. However, the sound of such horns and the flash lights may be too distracting to other road users on the road, in particular, most of the road users that are driving safely.

[0008] Summary of Invention

[0009] The present invention is defined in the independent claims. Optional features of the invention are defined in the dependent claims.

[0010] Brief Description of DrawingsEmbodiments of the invention will be better understood and readily apparent to one skilled in the art from the following written description, by way of example only, and in conjunction of the drawings, in which:

[0011] Figure 1 is a diagram of a system for road hazard and safety alert according to an example of the present disclosure.

[0012] Figure 2 is a diagram of a detector in the system of Figure 1 for alerting a vehicle in a designated zone.

[0013] Figure 3 shows a map to be displayed by an application on a device residing in a vehicle according to an example of the present disclosure.

[0014] Figure 4 shows a diagram of the system of Figure 1 in use in an example scenario.

[0015] Figure 5 shows two flow charts illustrating workflow of an application and a detector of the system of Figure 1.

[0016] Figure 6 shows a flow chart illustrating a mapping algorithm of Figure 5 that is used to map a detected vehicle with location data of a device in the vehicle.

[0017] Figure 7 shows a system architecture of a server, a device, or a processor according to one example of the present disclosure.

[0018] Figure 8 shows an example of a detector according to one example of the present disclosure. Figures 9A and 9B show a top view of an example of a detection module of a detector according to one example of the present disclosure.

[0019] Figure 10 shows an example of a detection module mounted on a vehicle according to one example of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 11 shows a distance graph taking reference from a truck-mounted attenuator located at the origin of the graph.

[0021] Detailed Description

[0022] With reference to Figure 1, an example of the present disclosure includes an Internet-of-Things (IoT) system 100 comprising:

[0023] a detector 102, which is also known in the present disclosure as a sensing and connectivity frontend, for vehicle detection deployed at a location of a road hazard 104; - a processor, pP, 106, which may be an IoT edge controller, cooperating with the detector 102;

[0024] a server 108, which may be a cloud or remote server in the internet 110; and a plurality of instances of an application 112, wherein each instance of the application 112 is installed in a device 114 to be resided or residing in a vehicle 116.The road hazard 104, the detector 102 and the processor 106 may be located for instance along a left lane of a road 118 comprising two lanes (i.e. left and right lanes). For Figure 1, it is assumed that each of all the vehicles 116 shown in Figure 1 has the device 114 residing in it. The road hazard 104 refers to anything that may be hazardous to road safety and may include roadworks area (e.g. road repair, road laying, etc.), accident area (e.g. vehicle collision, fallen tree etc.), dangerous zone (e.g. falling rocks from cliff), obstruction (e.g. fallen tree), area where maintenance / public service is carried out (e.g. trees trimming, road cleaning, etc.), and area crowded with people due to certain events (e.g. riot, marathon event, parade, etc.).

[0025] The detector 102 is configured to detect vehicles in a detection designated zone 120. The detector 102 may comprise a radar, one or more cameras, one or more sensors (e.g. infrared sensor) and / or Lidar for the detection. Specifically, the detector 102 detects the travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles in the designated zone 120. The detector may be mounted on a vehicle deployed to reside at the road hazard location.

[0026] The processor 106 may be integrated with the detector 102 and is part of the detector 102 or separately connected to the detector 102. The processor 106 comprises of or is connected to a transceiver for wireless communication, for instance, via the telecommunications network (e.g. 3G, 4G, and 5G). The processor 106 helps the detector 102 to communicate with the server 108 though the transceiver.

[0027] The device 114 may be a mobile device like a smartphone, tablet computer, and the like or a device built or integrated in the vehicle 116. The device 114 can communicate with the server 108 via the telecommunications network (e.g. 3G, 4G, and 5G). In some examples, the device 114 may be a vehicle navigation device.

[0028] The application 112 may be a mobile application that can be downloaded from an application store accessible using the device 114, or an application 112 pre-installed in the device 114.

[0029] Each instance of the application 112 is configured to communicate with the server 108 via the internet 110.

[0030] The server 108 comprises one or more processors 128 configured to execute instructions (software) in a memory to perform the functions of the server 108. The one or more processors 128 of the server 108 are configured to operate the server 108 to:

[0031] receive road hazard location data from the detector 102 deployed at the road hazard’s location; andsend the road hazard’s location data to one or more of the device 114 residing or to be resided in the vehicle 116.

[0032] Each of the one or more devices 114 is installed with an instance of the application 112 configured to receive the sent road hazard location data and the instance of the application 112 is configured to obtain location data of the device 114.

[0033] The server 108 is also operable to receive the location data of the device 114 (sent by the application 112 from the device 114) and receive travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles detected by the detector 102. That is, the server 108 receives or obtains periodic (or frequent or real-time) updates from the detector 102.

[0034] If the location data of the device 114 matches with a location indicated by the location data of one of the one or more vehicles, for instance a vehicle 122 in Figure 1, detected by the detector, and the detected travelling speed and / or location data of vehicle 122 with matching location is determined to be unsafe according to an algorithm, the device 114 residing in vehicle 122 triggers an alert to notify an operator of vehicle 122. The algorithm may be executed by the server 108 or by one or more processors (e.g. 106) of the detector 102. In an example which the algorithm is to be executed by the detector 102, the server 108 is configured to send the received location data of the device 114 to the detector 102.

[0035] The algorithm may be configured to compare the detected travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle with a predetermined reference speed and predetermined reference distance from the detector 102 or road hazard 104. Unsafe status may be given if the detected travelling speed is equal to or exceeds the predetermined reference speed and / or the location data of the vehicle shows that the vehicle is lesser than the predetermined reference distance from the detector 102 or road hazard 104. The algorithm may be configured such that when the speed and / or location data of a vehicle is deemed to be unsafe (e.g. vehicle 122) in comparison with predefined data, a camera 126 residing at the road hazard location is activated to capture images of possible vehicle near-miss or crash events. The captured images of the camera may be stored in a local database (e.g. in a flash memory card, hard disc drive, solid state drive, and the like) or a cloud or remote database accessible via the internet 110. The camera 126 may be integrated with the detector 102 or separately connected to the detector 102.

[0036] The database may be configured to store the deployment time of the detector 102 and the location data of road hazards 104. Captured images and / or videos may be analysed later togain a better understanding of near misses or accidents, which can help prevent future incidents. For instance, the algorithm may be adjusted based on this analysis to improve near miss or accident prevention. Data collected from the detector 102 (e.g., a radar) may be cross-referenced with the images and / or videos to ensure consistency and / or accuracy in detected vehicles and / or detected incidents. Additionally, this data can be used to analyse near misses, accidents, and driving habits to further enhance the algorithm.

[0037] The server 108 may be operable to obtain data relating to weather at the road hazard location and taking into consideration the weather data, adjust the algorithm so that the determination of whether the travelling speed and / or location data of a vehicle is unsafe will be accurate based on the weather. The weather data can be obtained from online sources in the internet 110 or obtained from the processor 106, which can be configured to use the detector 102, the camera 126 and / or any other sensors (e.g. temperature sensor, humidity sensor, etc.; not shown in Figure 1) to determine the weather at the road hazard location.

[0038] In one example, with reference to a vehicle 124, if the device 114 residing in vehicle 124 detects via tracking technology such as Global Positioning System (GPS) or via Cellular network that the location of the device 114 in vehicle 124 is within a predefined distance of the road hazard location, the instance of the application 112 installed in the device 114 can cause the device 114 to trigger a pre-warning alert to the operator of vehicle 124. In another example, such pre-warning alert may be triggered by the server 108 when it detects that the received location data of the device 114 in vehicle 124 matches an area within the designated zone that is within a predefined distance range around the predefined distance away from the road hazard location.

[0039] The alert triggered due to unsafe vehicle speed and / or distance and / or the pre-warning alert triggered when a vehicle is within a predefined distance of the road hazard may be an audio output from a speaker of the device 114 and / or a visual alert on a display (i.e. LCD, LED display, and the like) of the device 114.

[0040] Figure 3 illustrates examples of some mapping features that may be displayed by the instance of the application 112 on the display of the device 114. The reference numerals of the elements of Figure 1 that are in use are provided in the description of Figure 3.

[0041] The instance of the application 112 may be configured to display a map 300 on the display of the device 114 showing road hazard locations 302. In the present example, the road hazards are all roadworks. The data of the road hazard locations is sent to the server 108 and updatedby a plurality of detectors 102 deployed to the various road hazard locations. The map 300 shows the user where all the road hazards are located.

[0042] The instance of the application 112 may be configured to provide a user interface, which can be a graphical user interface, for a user to enter a destination 310 and show a route 304 for travelling from a current location 308 of the device 114 to the destination 310 on the map 300. The route 304 would intersect a road hazard location 302 if roadworks happen to be along the route 304. The route 304 shown may be the shortest road path from the current location 308 to the destination 310. This would pre-alert the user of the road hazard ahead.

[0043] In one example, if the instance of the application 112 is configured to provide driving guidance, one or more alternative routes may be displayed for travelling from the current location 308 of the device 114 to the destination 310 that is not obstructed by the road hazard.

[0044] Furthermore, the instance of the application 112 may be configured to display a boundary 306 marking out a predefined area (for example, 1 km to 5 km radius from the current location) surrounding the current location 308 of the device 114 on the map 300. The boundary 306 is a good reference point for the user reading the map 300. In the present example, the boundary size marks out a 5km radius and is fixed by the developer of the instance of the application 112. However, in another example, the instance of the application 112 may be configured to allow the size of the boundary 306 to be adjusted by the user. In one example, if a travelling vehicle 116 moves such that the boundary 306 displayed in the device 114 residing in the vehicle 116 crosses a road hazard location 302, the instance of the application 112 of the device 114 can be configured to start sending updates of the location of the device 114, which corresponds to the location of the vehicle, to the server 108. Hence, the boundary 306 can be an indicator of when the device 114 needs to start sending updates of the location of the vehicle 116 to the server 108.

[0045] Figure 4 illustrates another example of the present disclosure where the system 100 of Figure 1 can be used. The reference numerals of the same elements in Figure 1 are reused in Figure 4.

[0046] In the present example, the system 100 is specifically designed to enhance road safety in roadworks zones, where truck-mounted attenuators (TMA) mounted to trucks are deployed. Specifically, in Figure 4, a TMA 402 is deployed to a roadworks zone or site 412 and parked at the location of the roadworks zone 412. In the present example, the detector 102 includesthe processor 106 and is configured as a Sensing and Connectivity Frontend comprising the following modules:

[0047] - an advanced radar-based traffic management system;

[0048] - a High Definition (HD) wide angle camera i.e. a camera (e.g. 126 of Figure 1) for recording near-miss / crash events;

[0049] - a sensor to detect crash events (e.g. Lidar, Infra-red sensor and / or an imaging sensor configured for crash detection and / or pressure sensor mounted to an attenuator bumper, which a vehicle would likely crash into if safety limits are breached);

[0050] a Global Positioning System (GPS) device for location and for weather condition determination; and

[0051] an industrial 4G / 5G modem (i.e. transceiver) for internet connectivity.

[0052] The radar-based traffic management system is the software and hardware that uses a 4 dimensional (4D) radar sensor for multi-lane, multi-object tracking. 4D imaging radar is high-resolution, long-range sensor technology that offers advantages over 3 dimensional (3D) radar, particularly when it comes to identifying the height of an object. This radar-based traffic management system is capable of measuring distance range, target speed, angles, and reflectivity of multiple targets simultaneously. The sensor’s high definition allows it to distinguish objects (vehicles) by speed, distance, and azimuth angle, and it performs reliably in various weather, temperature, and lighting conditions.

[0053] The processor 106 of the system 100 is an IoT Edge Controller comprising a high-performance, industrial-grade single-board computer (SBC) that connects directly to the detector 102. It can process real-time data from the radar-based traffic management system and executes a proprietary safety distance algorithm to warn of possible collisions, activate the camera (e.g.

[0054] 126 of Figure 1) to record near-miss events or crashes, and / or generate incident reports for the near-miss events or crashes. The integration of the 4G / 5G modem allows for periodic and event-driven updates by the detector 102 to the server 108. The server 108 in this example is an IoT Cloud Server. The updates may include the detector’s deployment site’s name (the site refers to the site of the road hazard 104), road lane identification details (e.g. lane 1, 2, 3 etc. as specified in known map or traffic data), GPS coordinates of the site, operational status of the detector 102 and / or its modules, detected vehicle data (including speed and / or location), and an indication whether safe braking distance of a vehicle is compromised. The road lane identification details may be entered manually by a user (e.g. driver of truck mounted with TMA or operator of the TMA), obtained from a server in the internet accessible via telecommunication network (e.g. a server updated with location details of the roadworks by people who are aware of the roadworks), or may be obtained via tracking technology like GPSon site by the processor 106. The safe braking distance is calculated from the travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle, and it can be used to decide whether to trigger a brakingdistance compromised alert or alarm.

[0055] In some examples, vehicle data may include vehicle type, which can be obtained through the detector 102 (e.g. obtained from radar data or lidar data, depending on the detection technology used), image processing via the camera 126 and / or obtained from voluntary or mandatory user entry to the instance of the application 112. Vehicle type may affect the algorithm to be used for safe braking distance assessment. For instance, a smaller vehicle such as a motorcycle (having lesser braking contact compared to a car) and a large truck or bus may require longer safe braking distance than a normal car.

[0056] The server 108 hosts IoT server application services that monitor the operational status of the system 100, store the detected vehicles data and respective braking distances provided by the processor 106, and provide Application Programming Interface (APIs) for instances of the application (mobile app) 112 installed in a driver’s or operator’s mobile device 114 (in this case, a smartphone) to assess and decide whether to trigger a braking-distance compromised alarm.

[0057] Figure 2 shows a vehicle 116 and a TMA 202. The reference numerals for the same elements present in Figure 1 are reused in Figure 2. The instance of the application 112 installed on the mobile device 114 uses GPS to alert drivers of upcoming road works by monitoring speed and direction of movement of the mobile device 114 residing in the drivers’ vehicles. The instance of the application 112 will indicate the location of roadworks, where detectors are deployed, to the drivers on a map (e.g. 300 in Figure 3) displayed on a display of the mobile device 114.

[0058] An early audio and / or visual notification (i.e. pre-warning) can be provided when a vehicle 116 crosses a predefined distance away from the detector 102. There may be more than one prewarning sent at different predefined distances away from the detector 102. For example, the predefined distances may be 500 meters away and / or 900 meters away from the detector 102. The pre-warning may include information such as which road lane the TMA comprising the detector 102 is located. When the vehicle 116 is even closer to the detector 102 and within a designated detection zone of the detector 102 (e.g. within 100 m to 200 m away), the instance of the application 112 may connect to a cloud server API to fetch roadworks locations and check if an alarm, which can be a visual and / or audio notification, should be triggered to prompt a driver to reduce speed to prevent a collision. For example, if the vehicle 116 is being driven dangerously within the detection zone, an alarm would be activated on the mobile device 114 if a calculated safe braking distance of the vehicle 116 is going to be breached. Such safebraking distance can be calculated from the detected vehicle speed and / or location with respect to the detector 102. It should be appreciated that the alarm should be activated before the vehicle 116 reaches an irreversible speed and distance (to the detector 102) for accident prevention. Hence, a reference or threshold safe braking distance value to be used for comparison with the calculated braking distance to determine whether to activate the alarm may be predetermined with this in mind to allow the driver of the vehicle 116 to have some reaction time to slow down the vehicle 116.

[0059] Returning to Figure 4, once the truck-mounted attenuator (TMA) 402 is deployed at the roadworks zone (or site) 412 and the mounted detector 102 is set up and operational, the processor 106 connected to the detector 102 will update the GPS location information of the TMA 402 and the roadworks zone name along with road lane number or numbers of the roadworks to the server 108. The server 108 will broadcast roadworks zone location information to instances of the application 112 in devices 114 residing in vehicles such as vehicles 404 and 406. The roadworks zone location should not be broadcasted to vehicles like vehicle 408, which are travelling on a lane with opposing traffic as the lane where the roadworks zone resides, so as not to confuse the drivers of such vehicles. The devices 114 are smartphones in the present example and the application 112 is mobile application.

[0060] In the present example, the instance of the application 112 in each device 114 indicates on a display a map (e.g. 300 of Figure 3) the locations of all the TMAs 402 deployed. The locations of the deployed TMAs 402 (mounted with detectors 102) are indicative of the locations of the roadworks zones 412.

[0061] The instance of the application 112 can be configured to start monitoring the distance of the vehicles such as 404, 406 and 408 (each having the device 114) to the nearest roadworks zones 412 when each vehicle 404, 406 and 408 is at a predefined distance (e.g. 1 km to 5 km) still considered far away from the detector 102. In one example, the boundary 306 described with reference to Figure 3 can be used by the instance of the application 112 to check whether each vehicle (404, 406 or 408) is within the predefined distance. No notification needs to be sent to the driver at such predefined distance as it is still far from the roadworks zones 412.

[0062] In the present example, when the instance of the application 112 detects that the vehicle 404 is within a pre-warning predefined distance that is closer to the roadworks zone, like 500 meters, the instance of the application 112 is configured to send, for instance, an audio and / or visual notification to the driver driving the vehicle 404 towards the direction of the roadworks zone 412. In Figure 4, a circle with broken lines 414 is used to indicate this predefined distance.The audio and / or visual notification informs the driver about the upcoming roadworks zone 412, prompting the driver to slow down or change road lane if required. This first audio and / or visual notification is a pre-warning.

[0063] In the example of Figure 4, the detector’s detection zone 120 is set up to cover a relatively short distance range (e.g. 100 m to 200 m) from the rear of the TMA 402. The detection zone 120 only covers the portion of the road lane near the roadworks zone 412. If a vehicle like vehicle 406 enters the detection zone 120, the instance of the application 112 of the device 114 residing in vehicle 406 connects to the server 108 to match the vehicle’s travelling speed and location with what the detector 102 detects. When there is a match, it means that the detector 102 detects the presence of the vehicle 406. The vehicle’s travelling speed and location are then used to calculate the vehicle’s braking distance and a check is performed to see whether the safe braking distance will be compromised. Such check can be done by the processor 106 of the detector 102, the server 108 or the instance of the application 112. If compromised, the instance of the application 112 will activate an alarm, which can be visual and / or audio, prompting the driver of vehicle 406 to reduce speed immediately. This alarm is the accident prevention warning (no longer a pre-warning).

[0064] The IoT Edge Controller i.e. the processor 106 may be configured to trigger or start the camera (e.g. 126 of Figure 1) to capture video for near-miss or crash events. This process can start once the vehicle enters the detection zone 120 of the detector 102 and repeats until the vehicle exits the roadworks zone 412. The processor 106 will log and update the server 108 all compromised events such as near-miss or crash for record and analysis at a later stage.

[0065] Once the instance of the application 112 detects via GPS or is updated by the server 108 (which obtains updates from the processor 106) that the vehicle exits the roadworks zone location, the instance of the application 112 will resume normal operation to monitor the vehicle’s distance to the next nearest roadworks zone 412. The instance of the application 112 may be configured to also send the pre-warning to vehicles such as vehicle 408 at the pre-warning predefined distance. Vehicle 408 is a vehicle that would pass by the roadworks zone 412 but will not travel in the road lane leading to the roadworks zone 412. A circle with broken lines 410 indicates the pre-warning predefined distance in Figure 4.

[0066] In another example, the instance of the application 112 may be configured such that if the vehicle 408 will not be the path or lane leading to the roadworks zone 412, the pre-warning will not be sent to the driver of vehicle 408. For instance, the driver of vehicle 408 may enter his / her destination and the route between the current location of vehicle 408 and thedestination does not intersect with the roadworks zone 412. Additionally or in another example, the instance of the application 112 may rely on GPS positioning to determine whether the vehicle 408 is in the road lane leading to the roadworks zone 412. If the vehicle 408 is not in the road lane, the pre-warning is not sent.

[0067] The radar-based traffic management system may be configured to use the GPS location of the roadworks zone 412 to extract weather information. The safety distance algorithm for calculating safe braking distance, any reference or threshold braking distance to be used for comparison to gauge safety, the size of the detection zone 120, and the predefined distance for pre-warning, can be adjusted according to the weather conditions. For instance, if it is raining, the safe braking distance should increase to account for slippery roads. Warnings should sent earlier than usual.

[0068] Figure 5 shows two flowcharts 500a and 500b illustrating an example of a method that can be adopted by the system 100 of Figure 1 for the use case of Figure 4. Reference numerals of the elements of Figures 1 and 4 are provided in the description of the steps of the flowcharts 500a and 500b below to facilitate understanding.

[0069] Flowchart 500a illustrates the workflow of the instance of the application 112 of the device 114 residing in one of the vehicles 116.

[0070] At step 502, the instance of the application 112 is launched.

[0071] At step 504, the instance of the application 112 gets or obtains location of deployed Truckmounted attenuators (TMAs) 402 from the cloud server 108. Each TMA 402 is mounted with the detector 102. Each TMA 402 is deployed at the road hazard location 104, or in this example, the roadworks zone 412.

[0072] At step 506, the instance of the application 112 checks whether there are any deployed TMAs within 2 km of the current location of the vehicle 116, in which the device 114 is residing. The current location of the vehicle 116 is obtained via GPS positioning. The device 114 may be configured with GPS features. In some examples, a in-built GPS system of the vehicle 116 may be used.

[0073] If there is one or more TMAs within 2 km of the current location of the vehicle 116, the instance of the application 112 obtains the locations of the one or more TMAs within 2 km from the server 108 at step 510.

[0074] If there is no TMA within 2 km of the current location of the vehicle 116, the instance of the application 112 delays for a first time duration, in this example, 30 seconds, at step 508 before requesting for TMA locations within 2 km from the server 108 again (i.e. go to step 506).After obtaining locations of one or more TMAs within 2 km from the server 108 at step 510, the instance of the application 112 checks whether there are any TMAs within 500 m of the current location of the vehicle 116 at step 512.

[0075] If there is one or more TMAs within 500 m of the current location of the vehicle 116, the instance of the application 112 sends a first pre-warning alert notification at step 516 and obtains the locations of the one or more TMAs within 500 m from the server 108 at step 518. If there is no TMA within 500 m of the current location of the vehicle 116, the instance of the application 112 delays for a second time duration, in this example, 10 seconds, at step 514 before requesting for TMA locations within 500 m from the server 108 again (i.e. go to step 512).

[0076] After obtaining locations of one or more TMAs within 500 m from the server 108 at step 518, the instance of the application 112 checks whether there are any TMAs within 150 m of the current location of the vehicle 116 at step 520.

[0077] If there is one or more TMAs within 150 m of the current location of the vehicle 116, the instance of the application 112 gets or obtains near-miss data from the server 108 at step 526. Near-miss data refers to the map coordinates (e.g. X and Y positions), speed, and heading or direction of travel of vehicles detected and updated to the server 108 by the detectors 102 mounted on the one or more TMAs within 150 m. The near-miss data are then computed using a mapping algorithm at the instance of the application 112 (or in other examples, computed at the server 108) at a step 528. The computed result of the mapping algorithm is checked at a step 530 to determine whether the near-miss data is abnormal or not i.e. whether they are within safety requirements or limits.

[0078] A warning alert notification is sent by the instance of the application 112 to the driver of vehicle 116 at step 524 if the near-miss data is abnormal and not within safety requirements or limits. After the warning alert notification is sent, the instance of the application 112 obtains the locations of the one or more TMAs within 150 m from the server 108 again (i.e. goto step 520). Hence, more than one warning alert notifications may be sent continuously if the near-miss data continues to be abnormal and not within the safety requirements or limits.

[0079] If the near-miss data is normal and within safety requirements or limits, the instance of the application 112 obtains the next set of near-miss data from the server 108 (i.e. go to step 526) for checking.

[0080] If there is no TMA within 150 m of the current location of the vehicle 116, the instance of the application 112 delays for a third time duration, in this example, 3 seconds, at step 522 before requesting for TMA locations within 150 m from the server 108 again (i.e. go to step 520).

[0081] Flowchart 500b illustrates the workflow of the detector 102 comprising the processor 106. The detector 102 and the processor 106 are mounted to the deployed TMA 402.After the TMA is deployed and parked at the road hazard location at step 532, the processor 106 sends the location of the TMA 402 to the server 108 at step 534.

[0082] At step 536, the radar system (radar) of the detector 102 is set up and switched on.

[0083] At step 538, the radar detects the presence of vehicles within the detection zone 120 which has a length of 150 m. In the present example, the speed, location and heading (i.e. direction of travel) of any vehicle detected in the detection zone 120 would be collected as near-miss data. Such near-miss data will be subjected to a check by the mapping algorithm in step 528 of Flowchart 500a.

[0084] If no vehicle is detected, the radar will continue the detection process until it is switched off or until one or more vehicles is detected.

[0085] If one or more vehicles are detected, the near-miss data collected for these one or more vehicles will be uploaded to the server 108 at step 540 and the radar will continue with the detection of presence of vehicles in the detection zone 120 at step 538.

[0086] Figure 6 shows a flowchart 600 illustrating steps 526, 528, 530 and 524 of Figure 5. The mapping algorithm of step 528 is shown with more details. Reference numerals of the elements of Figures 1, 4 and 5 are provided in the description of the steps of the flowchart 600 below to facilitate understanding.

[0087] In the present example, the mapping algorithm is used to map location data of a vehicle (e.g.

[0088] 116 in Figure 1) detected to be in the detection zone 120 by the detector 102 mounted to a TMA with location data of the device 114 in the vehicle.

[0089] After step 520 in Figure 5, the instance of the application 112 of the device 114 obtains or receives near-miss data from the server 108 at step 526.

[0090] After receiving the near-miss data, at step 602, a Z distance of each vehicle detected in the detection zone 120 is calculated or obtained by the processor 106 of the detector 102 or in other examples, calculated or obtained by the server 108. In the present example, the Z distance is calculated by the processor 106 from the radar data of the detector 102. The Z distance will also be calculated by the instance of the application 112 in each vehicle using GPS location data of the detector 102 obtained from the server 108 and the location of the device 114, which can be obtained via GPS at the device 114. The calculation of Z distance is illustrated by Figure 11, which will be described as follows.

[0091] Figure 11 shows a diagram 1100 containing x and y axes and a TMA 1102 located at a position (called origin) with coordinates (x = 0, y = 0). In the present example, the x axis is directed towards the rear of the TMA 1102 and the x coordinates have positive values in this direction. The y axis is perpendicular to the x axis, wherein positive y values are directed tothe right-hand side of Figure 11. The detector 102 is configured to detect vehicles, such as V1 and V2, residing in a designated or detection zone 120. The detection zone 120 is substantially rectangular in the present example and has a width of 40 m, extending from coordinates (x = 0, y = -20) to (x = 0, y = 20), and a length of 150 m, extending from coordinates (x = 0, y = 0) to (x = 150, y = 0). With respect to the y and x axes of Figure 11, V1 is located at a position with coordinates of (x = 100, y = -3) and V2 is located at a position with coordinates of (x = 80, y = 5).

[0092] The Z distance is defined as direct distance between the TMA 1102 (where the detector 102 is mounted) and a detected vehicle, such as V1 and V2, residing in the detection zone 120. The equation of Z distance is z = √x2+ y2. In the present example, the processor 106 will calculate the Z distance based on the radar data of the detector 102. In another example, the calculation of the Z distance may be performed by the server 108. Specifically, the Z distance, zi, of V1 is z1= √1002+ (−3)2. The Z distance, Z2, of V2 is z2= √802+ 52.

[0093] Returning to Figure 6, at step 604, a loop is started for the number of vehicles detected by the detector 102 (e.g. V1 and V2 in Figure 11) in the detection zone 120.

[0094] At step 606, the Z distance calculated by the processor 106 of the detector 102 at the TMA (e.g. 1102 in Figure 11) is compared to the Z distance calculated by the instance of the application 112 for a detected vehicle (e.g. V1 or V2 in Figure 11). If there is a match in the Z distances, the process goes to step 608 but if there is no match in the Z distances, the process goes back to step 604.

[0095] At step 608, with reference to both Figure 6 and Figure 11, the x and y coordinates of each vehicle detected in the detection zone 120 would be calculated or obtained by the processor 106 of the detector 102 or in other examples, calculated or obtained by the server 108. In the present example, the x and y coordinates are calculated by the processor 106 from the radar data of the detector 102. The x and y coordinates will also be calculated by the instance of the application 112 in each vehicle using GPS location data of the detector 102 obtained from the server 108 and the location of the device 114, which can be obtained via GPS at the device 114. Furthermore, at step 608, the x and y coordinates calculated by the processor 106 at the TMA (e.g. 1102 in Figure 11 ) is compared to the x and y coordinates calculated by the instance of the application 112 for the detected vehicle (e.g. V1 or V2 in Figure 11). If there is a match in the x and y coordinates, the process goes to step 530 in Figure 5 but if there is no match in the x and y coordinates, the process goes back to step 604.The computed result of the mapping algorithm helps to determine whether there is a match in location data of a vehicle obtained from an instance of the application 112 and a detected vehicle detected by the detector 102. In the present example, the mapping algorithm conducts matching checks for all vehicles detected by the detector 102. A match means that the vehicle having the device 114 is indeed the detected vehicle. Once such match is detected, at step 530, a check is performed to see whether the near-miss data i.e. the x and y coordinates and the Z distance is abnormal or not i.e. whether they are within safety requirements or limits.

[0096] A warning alert notification is sent by the instance of the application 112 to the driver of vehicle 116 at step 524 if the near-miss data is abnormal and not within safety requirements or limits. The process after step 524 are described earlier with reference to Figure 5.

[0097] In summary, the mapping algorithm maps coordinates of the detected vehicle to the device 114 residing in the vehicle, and step 530 is a safety check algorithm. The mapping algorithm and the safety check algorithm work very closely and may be configured as parts of a single algorithm.

[0098] An example of the abnormality check (or safety algorithm) of step 530 is described as follows. Note that the examples of the present disclosure are not limited to the numerical values stated below.

[0099] The abnormality check may involve a stopping distance formula, which is calculated by the instance of the application 112:

[0100] Equation 1: Ds= Offset from radar (O) + Buffer distance (DB) + (V X TR) + [V x (T1+ T2)] + [V2 / (2xg)]

[0101] Where:

[0102] Ds: Stopping distance required

[0103] TR: a fixed radar refresh rate, which can be for example, 0.05s or 50ms.

[0104] V: detected speed of vehicle in meters / s obtained by the instance of the application 112 from the server 108 (the server 108 obtains such detected speed from the processor 106) or calculated at the instance of the application 112 from GPS location data obtained from the server 108 and / or obtained by the instance of the application 112.

[0105] Ti: a fixed Braking Response Time, which can be set between 2 to 3 seconds, preferably 2.12s i.e. this is the time taken assumed for a driver to respond.T2: 0.3S; average time for driver to reach for example, 0.4g of braking, where g is defined below. 0.4g is a deceleration for comfortable braking.

[0106] g: deceleration in meters / sec2- “g” refers to deceleration when applying brakes and is defined as g = 9.8m / s2.

[0107] Offset from radar (O): a first constant, which can be set at between 1 to 6 meters, preferably at 5 m. This offset from radar may be required because the radar of the detector 102 may not be placed exactly at the origin i.e. at coordinates (x = 0, y = 0) of Figure 11. This offset from radar may also be for offsetting any blind spots close to the radar, which the radar is unable to perform detection. In some cases, the main or only reason for the offset is for offsetting such blind spots.

[0108] Buffer distance (DB): a second constant, which can be set at between 10 to 25 meters, preferably at 15 m to enable driver to react after hearing alarm or alert. DBcan be adjusted to account for delays in receiving near miss data from the server 108 for obtaining V and the distance of object given by radar, Do. Specifically, DBcan account for a distance away from the TMA or detector in the detection zone, which is regarded as a dangerous distance for the vehicle to intrude. Unwanted accident may happen if a vehicle in the detection zone suddenly moves out of a lane obstructed by a road hazard. Such action may cause drivers of vehicles on another lane, which the vehicle is moving into, to have no time to react. DBis included in anticipation of such dangerous driving action.

[0109] In another example, if vehicle data is considered, the Equation 1 above may be amended to the following:

[0110] Equation 1 A: Ds= Offset from radar (O) + Buffer distance (DB) + (Vx TR) + [V x (TI + T2)] + [V2 / (2 x g)] + Dv,

[0111] where Dvrefers to a distance to be added or a negative distance value to be subtracted depending on vehicle type. For instance, generally a larger vehicle like a big truck would require longer braking distance compared to a normal car and Dvmay be a positive value. A smaller car may require lesser braking distance compared to a larger car and Dvmay be a negative distance value.

[0112] The abnormality check also involves a response distance formula, which is calculated by the instance of the application 112:

[0113] Equation 2: DR = (Tmx V),

[0114] where:DR: Response distance

[0115] Tm: Microcontroller latency (e.g. 0.05s to 0.2s) i.e. the latency of the processor of the device 114 required to perform calculation and send an alarm or alert

[0116] V: detected speed of vehicle in meters / s obtained by the instance of the application 112 from the server 108 (the server 108 obtains such detected speed from the processor 106) or calculated at the instance of the application 112 from GPS location data obtained from the server 108 and / or obtained by the instance of the application 112.

[0117] The above response distance formula, DR, may be modified further to add a component to consider uplink, downlink of the cloud / internet system and the mobile data transmission latency (telecommunication transmission delays). Such formula may be as follows:

[0118] Equation 2A: DR = (Tmx V) + (TL x V),

[0119] where TL is the “link” latency to be considered for uplink, downlink of the cloud / internet system and the mobile data transmission latency (i.e. telecommunication transmission delays). Just as an example, TL may range from a few milliseconds to several hundred milliseconds.

[0120] The instance of the application 112 may trigger the alarm or alert i.e. send warning at step 524 when Do ≤ Ds + DR,

[0121] Based on the example above, Dsand DR, may be calculated from the abovementioned equations as follows:

[0122] Ds = 5m + 15m + (V x 2.47s) + (V2 / 7.84m / s2), assuming O is 5m, DB is 15 m, TR + Ti + T2 = 2.47s (i.e. 0.05 + 2.12 + 0.3), and 7.84m / s2= (2 x 0.4g) = (2 x 0.4 x

[0123]

[0124] 9.8). DR = (0.1s x V) + (0.1s x V), assuming Tmand TL are both 0.1s, and assuming Dvis not considered

[0125] Other optional considerations for the Mapping Algorithm and the Abnormality check:

[0126] 1 ) For every refresh rate of 0.05s, a set of parameters (detected location data) is received.

[0127] Noting that there may be errors in parameters received. Hence, optionally, there can be an additional check in place, wherein when 2 out of 3 most recent parameters meet the conditions, the alarm or alert is triggered.2) After an alarm or alert is triggered, a further check on whether safety limit or requirement is still breached may be conducted in a predetermined time duration, for instance, at least 1 second after the alarm or alert is triggered. Alternatively, or in addition, when the detector or radar detects a deceleration, e.g. Deceleration lesser than or equal to -3 m / s2) and Ti and T2are both 0 in an oncoming vehicle in the detection zone, the driver of the oncoming vehicle is assumed to have been alerted and is not distracted to notice the road hazard ahead. When such deceleration is detected, the safety limit or requirement (e.g. the abnormality check step 530 in FIG.

[0128] 5) does not have to be checked again to further trigger more alarm or alert or to extend the duration of the alarm or alert. The alarm or alert may also be switched off when such deceleration is detected. In another example, the abnormality check step 530 in FIG. 5 may be delayed for a predetermined amount of time for the vehicle when it is detected that Deceleration ≤ -3 m / s2) and Ti and T2are both 0 for the vehicle.

[0129] 3) It may be configured such that the alarm or alert will stop or deactivate when V becomes lesser than 25 km / h (7 m / s). Other suitable values for such alert deactivation may be set depending on the situation. For instance, V may be lesser than 25 km / h in rainy weather.

[0130] 4) If there is an adjacent vehicle driving close to a detected vehicle behind the TMA or detector 102, which breaches the safety algorithm (i.e. deemed as unsafe), the apparatus or system can be configured such that an alarm or alert is sent to the vehicle in an adjacent lane beside the TMA to warn the driver driving a vehicle in the adjacent lane to be cautious in case the driver of the detected unsafe vehicle behind the TMA cuts into the adjacent lane suddenly. Hence, in addition to alerting unsafe drivers, drivers having the device 114 in vehicles travelling adjacent to a vehicle detected to be unsafe can also receive alerts to take note of the unsafe vehicle. The alert to the driver breaching safety limits and the driver of the adjacent vehicle, which is driving within safety limits, can be different. For instance, road lane information of the TMA does not have to be stated in the alert to the driver in the adjacent vehicle. An example of an alert to a driver breaching safety limits may include a message: “Slow down immediately! Beware of roadworks in the current lane!”. An example of an alert to the driver in the adjacent vehicle may contain “Beware of vehicles filtering from the lane with roadworks!”.In the case that the detector 102 is a radar, the detector 102 can be configured to detect the adjacent vehicle. In an example, the mapping algorithm and safety algorithm will only be applied to vehicles in the designated zone in the rear of the TMA and will not be applied on the adjacent vehicles. In another example where the detector 102 is a radar, the safety algorithm or another algorithm may be used to detect the driving speed of the adjacent vehicle and if the adjacent vehicle breaches safe driving requirements (e.g. unsafe speed is detected), data of such breach may be logged in a database accessible to the detector 102. Such data may be provided or notified to the relevant authorities for follow up actions.

[0131] 5) When a detected vehicle breaches the safety algorithm, an on-site warning in the form of sound, light and / or a notification to an application of a device held by a user (e.g. smartphone or beeper device) may be given to alert people (e.g. in the case of roadworks, the onsite workers) at the vicinity of the TMA so as to alert them of potential approaching danger. A sound warning can be produced by a speaker or horn. Warning lights may be installed at the vicinity of the TMA for light warnings. Such speaker, horn and / or warning lights may be controlled by the processor 106.

[0132] Figure 7 shows an example of the server 108 or its processor 128, the device 114 and the processor 106 of the detector 102 described with reference to Figure 1.

[0133] The server, device or processor may comprise a processing unit (or processor) 702 for processing software including one or more programs for running one or more computer / server / device applications to enable a backend logic flow or the method or methods for carrying out the steps as described with reference to the earlier Figures.

[0134] Furthermore, in the case of a server, the processing unit 702 may include user input modules such as a computer mouse 736, keyboard / keypad 704, and / or a plurality of output devices such as a display device 708. The display device 708 may incorporate technologies like LCD, LED, OLED, and the like. It may also be a touch screen capable of receiving user input. In the case of the device 114, such device can be a smartphone or vehicle built-in device with a touch screen.

[0135] In the case of a server, the processing unit 702 may be connected to a computer network 712 via a suitable transceiver device 714 (i.e. a network interface), to enable access to e.g. the Internet or other network systems such as a wired Local Area Network (LAN) or Wide Area Network (WAN). In the case of a server or device, the processing unit 702 may be connectedto one or more external wireless communication enabled devices 734 via a suitable wireless transceiver device 732, e.g. a WiFi transceiver, Bluetooth module, Mobile telecommunication transceiver suitable for Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM), 3G, 4G, 5G telecommunication systems, and the like. Through the computer network (i.e. internet) 712, the processing unit 702 can gain access to one or more storages i.e. data storages, databases, data servers and the like connectable to the computer network 712 to retrieve and / or store data in the one or more storages.

[0136] The processing unit 702 may include a microprocessor 718, a Random Access Memory (RAM) 720 and a Read Only Memory (ROM) 722. In the case of a server, the processing unit 702 may also include a number of Input / Output (I / O) interfaces, for example I / O interface 738 to the computer mouse 736, a memory card slot 716, I / O interface 724 to the display device 708, and I / O interface 726 to the keyboard / keypad 704.

[0137] The components of the processing unit 702 typically communicate via an interconnected bus 728 and in a manner known to the person skilled in the relevant art.

[0138] The programs may be supplied to the user of the processing unit 702, or the processor (not shown) of one of the one or more external wireless communication enabled devices 734, encoded on a data storage medium such as a CD-ROM, on a flash memory carrier, Solid State Drive, or a Hard Disk Drive, and are to be read using a corresponding data storage medium drive of a data storage device 730. Such computer or application programs may also be downloaded from the computer network 712. The application programs are read and controlled in its execution by the processor 718. Intermediate storage of program data may be accomplished using RAM 720.

[0139] In more detail, one or more of the computer or application programs may be stored on any non-transitory machine- or computer- readable medium. The machine- or computer- readable medium may include storage devices such as magnetic or optical disks, memory chips, or other storage devices suitable for interfacing with a general purpose computer. The machine-or computer- readable medium may also include a hard-wired medium such as that exemplified in the Internet system, or wireless medium such as that exemplified in the Wireless LAN (WLAN) system and the like. The computer program when loaded and executed on such a general-purpose computer effectively results in an apparatus that implements the steps of the computing methods in examples herein described.Figure 8 illustrates an example of the detector 102 comprising the processor 106 for alerting one or more intruders, which can be a user (i.e. driver) of a vehicle, a person / animal, or an object, partially or fully entering a designated zone. The detector 102 comprises an image sensor 806 (or camera) for capturing images in real time. The image sensor 806 can be comprised in a camera, for instance, a video camera. Examples of the image sensor 806 include complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) or charge-coupled device (CCD) image sensor.

[0140] Figures 8 to 10 illustrates an example of the detector 102 of Figure 1.

[0141] With reference to Figure 8, the detector 102 may comprise a detection module 850 configured to monitor the designated zone and detect one or more intruders (including any person, object and / or vehicle) partially or fully entering and residing within the designated zone. The detection module 850 is configured such that the designated zone extends or project in a direction away from the detection module 850 to reach a predetermined distance away from the detection module 850. As such, the designated zone will appear elongate in shape and will be useful, in the case of road safety warning, for detection along a length of a road or a road lane, which is typically long and having the width of the road or road lane. The detection module 850 may be a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensor, a radio detection and ranging (RADAR or radar) sensor, an ultrasonic sensor or the like. The detection module 850 can also be made up of different types of sensors or a plurality of sensors, such as a combination of LiDAR sensor and a radar sensor or a plurality of radar sensors (short range and long range). The detection module 850 may have an antenna, a transmitter, a receiver and a digital signal processing (DSP) module. The processor 106 is configured to execute instructions stored in a memory (e.g., RAM, ROM) to operate the detector 102 to receive, from the detection module 850, data (or input) relating to one or more intruders detected in the designated zone; and to send a signal to alert the users (or drivers) of the one or more intruders detected in the designated zone. The processor 106 comprises a Digital Signal Processing (DSP) module. Optionally, a signal may be sent to devices carried or worn by individuals residing close to or in the vicinity of the designated zone. The data relating to the one or more intruders detected in the designated zone may indicate, but not limited to, at least one or more of speed, distance from the detection module 850, position in the designated zone, shape and / or type of the intruder (e.g. shape of a person, car, truck, motorbike etc.), orientation of the intruder (e.g. a reversing vehicle, aforward moving vehicle etc.), and object or vehicle trajectory (e.g. avehicle moving along straight or curved path, etc.) with respect to the detector 102.The image sensor 806 is mounted to the detection module 850 such that the designated zone extends in a direction away from the detector 102, and the image sensor 806 is mounted to the detector such that the direction of extension of the designated zone is aligned at a predetermined angle with respect to a direction of view of the image sensor. When this predetermined angle is zero degrees, which is preferred, the mounting of the image sensor 806 to the detection module 850 in the manner described will align the direction of extension of the designated zone and the direction of view of the image sensor 806 to face or focus in the same direction. In this arrangement, if the image sensor 806 and the detection module 850 are moved, they will move together to face or focus in the same direction. In the case of road safety warning, this same direction that they face or focus can be along the length of a road or road lane, or in the direction pointing at a center of an intruder (e.g. vehicle or object) captured in the images captured by the image sensor 806.

[0142] The detector 102 comprises a motor 807 for moving both the image sensor 806 and the detection module 850 to align the direction of extension of the designated zone with a point of interest in the captured images of the image sensor 806. For road safety warning application, the point of interest can be a point in a road or lane, such as a center of a road lane, a center of a plurality of road lanes (e.g. in the case that a few road lanes are to be monitored), a point in the road or road lane that is along an axis parallel with lane and / or road markings, or a center of a vehicle or object captured in the images of the image sensor 806.

[0143] The detector 102 may optionally comprise a display 800, which can be a LCD monitor, LED monitor, and the like, and optionally the display 800 may be a touchscreen. This display 800 can be for displaying a graphical user interface for a user to control and / or manipulate the settings of the motor 807, the detection module 850 and / or the image sensor 806. The display 800 can be configured to display the images captured by the image sensor.

[0144] The detector 102 may also comprise one or more user control mechanisms (not shown in Figure 8) for controlling and / or manipulating the settings of the motor 807, the detection module 850 and / or the image sensor 806. The one or more user control mechanisms may be used to control movements of the motor to align the direction of extension of the designated zone with the point of interest. In the case that the display 800 is a touchscreen, the one or more user control mechanisms may be graphically displayed on a screen of the display 800 to enable a user to control movements of the motor 807 via the touchscreen.

[0145] With reference to Figures 9A and 9B, in one example, the detection module 850 is a radar and has a radar Field of View (FOV) 954. The radar FOV 954 is represented by the shape of anellipse with a center A in a schematic top view of the detection module 850. The main lobe or main beam of the detection module 850 defines the radar FOV 954. The maximum width and length of the elliptical shape of the radar FOV 954 are shown in Figures 9A and 9B. In the present example, there is one designated zone 956 located within the radar FOV 954 and extended in a direction away from the detection module 850. The designated zone 956 is substantially rectangular in the top view of the detection module 850 and has a substantially longer length compared to its width. The size of the radar FOV 954 is much larger than the size of the designated zone 956. The detection module 850 is configured to detect and track one or more intruders (including objects and / or vehicles; objects include people and / or animals) in the designated zone 956. The designated zone 956 is elongate and is useful for detection of one or more intruders (including objects and / or vehicles; objects include people and / or animals) in a road or road lane. As an example, for road safety warning application, the length of the designated zone 956 may be set between 50 to 300 metres. The width of the designated zone 956 may be the width of the vehicle, which the detection module 850 is mounted on, or smaller than or equal to the width of a road or road lane. In the present example, the longitudinal axis of symmetry 953 of the designated zone 956 extends along the direction of extension of the designated zone 956. Hence, the portion of the axis 953 in front of the detection module 850 is representative of the direction of extension of the designated zone 956 and can be used in the calculation to align with a point of interest 955. The point of interest 955 is captured in the real time images of the image sensor 806. Figure 9A shows a view in which the direction of extension of the designated zone 956 is not aligned with the point of interest 955. Figure 9B shows a view in which the direction of extension of the designated zone 956 is aligned with the point of interest 955. The motor 807 is controllable to rotate to move the detection module 850 and the image sensor 806 together to align the direction of extension of the designated zone 956 with the point of interest 955.

[0146] In Figures 9A and 9B, the designated zone 956 comprises, for instance, two elongate rectangular detection areas 951 and 952. Such rectangular zones are good for straight roads. In other examples, the designated zone 956 can be shaped like a triangle or a segment of a circle or ellipse. The detection module 850 may be located at the apex of the triangle or the central pointed edge of the segment of the circle or ellipse to cover roads with bends in the rear of the vehicle, which the detection module 850 is mounted on. The designated zone 956 may also have a bent rectangular shape or other suitable shapes depending on the shape of the road or lane.

[0147] In road warning application, the designated zone 956 may be configured to have a width equal or smaller than the width of a road lane or a road (preferably smaller than the width of the roadlane or road), and may have a minimum width that is 75% to 100% of the width of the vehicle mounted with the detection module 850. The parameters for monitoring and detection of one or more intruders (including objects and / or vehicles; objects include people and / or animals) in these areas 951 and 952 can be different. For example, the parameters can be the sizes of these detection areas 951 and 952, the speed of an object or vehicle to trigger sending of a signal to alert a user in the areas, the distances of these detection areas or the object or vehicle away from the detection module 850, both the speed of the object or vehicle and the distances of the object or vehicle away from the detection module 850, etc. Furthermore, the alerts sent to users can be different between the detection areas 951 and 952. Different alerts can indicate different level of urgency and different level of traffic accident risk to a user (or driver) of a vehicle. Hence, when a vehicle is in the designated zone 956, different kinds of alerts can be sent depending on the speed and / or distance away from the detection module 850 (i.e. danger level) of the vehicle inside the designated zone 956. Noisy and / or flashy alerts can be sent for higher danger or unsafe level.

[0148] Figure 10 shows how the detection module 850 of the detector 102 of Figures 8, 9A and 9B can be mounted to a vehicle 1020 or to a truck-mounted attenuator. In the example of Figure 10, the vehicle 1020 is a truck and the rear view of the truck is shown. The detection module 850 is mounted on top of the vehicle 1020. Specifically, the detection module 850 is mounted on top of the roof, at a highest point of the vehicle 1020, and at a central location on top of the vehicle. The detection module 850 in Figure 10 is orientated such that the direction of view of the image sensor 806 and the direction of extension of the designated zone by the detection module 850 are at the rear of the vehicle 1020. A center line 1023 is drawn in Figure 10 to illustrate the central location on top of the vehicle 1020, which the detection module 850 is mounted. The image sensor 806 and the detection module 850 can be configured to be rotatable 360 degrees (or limited to a range of rotation angles) by the motor 807. They can be rotated such that the direction of view of the image sensor 806 and the direction of extension of the designated zone 956 in Figures 9A and 9B face or focus in a predetermined direction. As the direction of extension of the designated zone 956 can be adjusted, there is no need to adjust the positioning of the vehicle 1020 during the setting up of the detector 102 for operation. The motor 807 can be controlled to move manually by a user or by a machine.

[0149] The term “vehicle” in the present disclosure refers to a manned or unmanned vehicle of any type that can travel on land. For example, a land vehicle such as a car, truck, tank, electric scooter, motorcycle, bicycle, electric bicycle etc.Examples of the present disclosure may include the following features. Reference numerals of the elements in the figures of the present disclosure that are examples of the features discussed are provided in brackets.

[0150] An apparatus (e.g. 108) for road hazard and safety alerts, the apparatus comprising a processor (e.g. 128, 702) configured to execute instructions in a memory to operate the apparatus to:

[0151] receive road hazard location data from a detector (e.g. 102, 106, 850) deployed at a road hazard location;

[0152] send the road hazard location data to one or more devices (e.g. 114) residing or to be resided in a vehicle (e.g. 116, 122, 124, 404, 406, 408, V1, V2), wherein each of the one or more devices is installed with an instance of an application (e.g. 112) configured to receive the sent road hazard location data and the instance of the application is configured to obtain location data of the device installed with the instance of the application; and

[0153] receive travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles detected by the detector,

[0154] wherein if the location data of the device installed with the instance of the application matches with a location indicated by the location data of one of the one or more vehicles detected by the detector, and

[0155] the detected travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle with matching location is determined to be unsafe according to an algorithm,

[0156] the device installed with the instance of the application triggers an alert to notify an operator of the vehicle.

[0157] The above determination step to check whether “the location data of the device installed with the instance of the application matches with a location indicated by the location data of one of the one or more vehicles detected by the detector” and the algorithm to determine safety or unsafe status may be executed at the apparatus (which may be a server like 108 of Figure 1), at the device installed with the instance of the application, or at the detector. The detector may be connected to a processor (e.g. 106) capable of enabling it to perform its functions.

[0158] If the apparatus is a server like 108 of Figure 1, the apparatus may send the travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles detected by the detector to the one or more devices so that the device can execute the above determination step and the algorithm.

[0159] If the apparatus is a server like 108 of Figure 1, the apparatus may receive location data of the device from the instance of the application. This is needed if the above determination stepand the algorithm are to be executed by the apparatus or by the detector. The apparatus will need to send the location data of the device to the detector if the above determination step and the algorithm are to be executed by the detector.

[0160] If the location of the device installed with the instance of the application is within a predefined distance of the road hazard location, the device installed with the instance of the application may trigger a pre-warning alert.

[0161] The alert and / or the pre-warning alert may be an audio output from a speaker of the device and / or a visual alert on a display of the device.

[0162] The instance of the application may be configured to display a map (e.g. 300) on a display of the device showing the road hazard location (e.g. 302) indicated by the road hazard location data.

[0163] The instance of the application may be configured to provide a user interface for a user to enter a destination (e.g. 310) and show a route (e.g. 304) for travelling from a current location (e.g. 308) of the device to the destination on the map.

[0164] The instance of the application may be configured to display one or more alternative routes for travelling from a current location of the device to the destination that is not obstructed by the road hazard.

[0165] The instance of the application may be configured to display a boundary (e.g. 306) marking out a predefined area surrounding current location of the device on the map.

[0166] When the speed and / or location data of one of the one or more vehicles is deemed to be unsafe (e.g. in comparison with predefined data), a camera (e.g. 126) residing at the road hazard location may be activated to capture images and / or videos of possible vehicle nearmiss or crash events. Capture images can include taking static photographs. The videos may or may not include audio. The camera may optionally have a microphone for capturing audio for the video.

[0167] The captured images and / or videos of the camera may be stored in a database. The database may be configured to store the deployment time of the detector and the location data of road hazards. Captured images and / or videos may be analysed later to gain a better understanding of near misses or accidents, which can help prevent future incidents. For instance, thealgorithm may be adjusted based on this analysis to improve near miss or accident prevention. Data collected from the detector (e.g., a radar) may be cross-referenced with the images and / or videos to ensure consistency and / or accuracy in detected vehicles and / or detected incidents. Additionally, this data can be used to analyse near misses, accidents, and driving habits to further enhance the algorithm.

[0168] The apparatus may be operable to:

[0169] obtain data relating to weather at the road hazard location; and

[0170] taking into consideration the weather data, adjust the algorithm so that the determination of whether the travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle is unsafe will be accurate based on the weather.

[0171] The detector may be a radar.

[0172] The detector may be mounted on a vehicle deployed to reside at the road hazard location.

[0173] The road hazard may be roadworks.

[0174] The detector may be configured to communicate with the apparatus, including sending the road hazard location data and / or the detected travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles to the apparatus through a telecommunications network.

[0175] The apparatus may be operable to:

[0176] receive data relating to vehicle type of the detected vehicle; and

[0177] taking into consideration the vehicle type, adjust the algorithm so that the determination of whether the vehicle is unsafe will be accurate for the vehicle type. The database may be configured to store the received vehicle type data.

[0178] If the location data of the device installed with the instance of the application

[0179] matches with a location indicated by the location data of one of the one or more vehicles detected by the detector, and

[0180] the detected location data of the vehicle indicates the vehicle is travelling in a lane adjacent to another vehicle determined to be unsafe by the algorithm, the device installed with the instance of the application triggers an alert to notify the operator of the vehicle to take note of the unsafe vehicle.

[0181] A method for road hazard and safety alerts, the method comprising:receiving road hazard location data from a detector deployed at a road hazard location;

[0182] sending the road hazard location data to one or more devices residing or to be resided in a vehicle, wherein each of the one or more devices is installed with an instance of an application configured to receive the sent road hazard location data and the instance of the application is configured to obtain location data of the device installed with the instance of the application; and

[0183] receiving travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles detected by the detector,

[0184] wherein if the location data of the device installed with the instance of the application matches with a location indicated by the location data of one of the one or more vehicles detected by the detector, and

[0185] the detected travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle with matching location is determined to be unsafe according to an algorithm,

[0186] the device installed with the instance of the application triggers an alert to notify an operator of the vehicle.

[0187] A device (e.g. 114) for road hazard and safety alerts, wherein the device is residing in a vehicle and the device comprising a processor (e.g. 702) configured to execute instructions in a memory to operate the device to:

[0188] receive road hazard location data; and

[0189] receive travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles detected by a detector deployed at the road hazard location,

[0190] wherein the device is installed with an instance of an application (e.g. 112) configured to receive the road hazard location data and the instance of the application is configured to obtain location data of the device,

[0191] wherein the instance of the application is configured to trigger an alert to notify an operator of the vehicle where the device is residing if the location data of the device matches with a location indicated by the location data of one of the one or more vehicles detected by the detector, and the detected travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle with matching location is determined to be unsafe according to an algorithm.

[0192] The device may be a mobile device such as a smartphone or a device placed in or integrated with the vehicle where it resides.The device may receive the travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles detected by a detector deployed at the road hazard location from the apparatus or receive directly from the detector through means like a telecommunication network. The device may also receive road hazard location data from the apparatus or from the detector directly through means like a telecommunication network.

[0193] In the specification and claims, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the term “comprising” has the non-exclusive meaning of the word, in the sense of “including at least” rather than the exclusive meaning in the sense of “consisting only of’. The same applies with corresponding grammatical changes to other forms of the word such as “comprise”, “comprises” and so on.

[0194] While the invention has been described in the present disclosure in connection with a number of embodiments and implementations, the invention is not so limited but covers various obvious modifications and equivalent arrangements, which fall within the purview of the appended claims. Although features of the invention are expressed in certain combinations among the claims, it is contemplated that these features can be arranged in any combination and order.

Claims

Claims1. An apparatus for road hazard and safety alerts, the apparatus comprising a processor configured to execute instructions in a memory to operate the apparatus to:receive road hazard location data from a detector deployed at a road hazard location;send the road hazard location data to one or more devices residing or to be resided in a vehicle, wherein each of the one or more devices is installed with an instance of an application configured to receive the sent road hazard location data and the instance of the application is configured to obtain location data of the device installed with the instance of the application;receive the location data of the device installed with the instance of the application; andreceive travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles detected by the detector,wherein if the location data of the device installed with the instance of the application matches with a location indicated by the location data of one of the one or more vehicles detected by the detector, andthe detected travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle with matching location is determined to be unsafe according to an algorithm,the device installed with the instance of the application triggers an alert to notify an operator of the vehicle.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein if the location of the device installed with the instance of the application is within a predefined distance of the road hazard location, the device installed with the instance of the application triggers a pre-warning alert.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the alert and / or the pre-warning alert is an audio output from a speaker of the device and / or a visual alert on a display of the device.

4. The apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the instance of the application is configured to display a map on a display of the device showing the road hazard location indicated by the road hazard location data.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the instance of the application is configured to provide a user interface for a user to enter a destination and show a route for travelling from a current location of the device to the destination on the map.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the instance of the application is configured to display one or more alternative routes for travelling from a current location of the device to the destination that is not obstructed by the road hazard.

7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 4, 5 or 6, wherein the instance of the application is configured to display a boundary marking out a predefined area surrounding current location of the device on the map.

8. The apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein when the speed and / or location data of one of the one or more vehicles is deemed to be unsafe, a camera residing at the road hazard location is activated to capture images and / or videos of possible vehicle near-miss or crash events.

9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein the captured images and / or videos of the camera are stored in a database.

10. The apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the apparatus is operable to:obtain data relating to weather at the road hazard location; andtaking into consideration the weather data, adjust the algorithm so that the determination of whether the travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle is unsafe will be accurate based on the weather.

11. The apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the detector is a radar.

12. The apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the detector is mounted on a vehicle deployed to reside at the road hazard location.

13. The apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the road hazard is roadworks.

14. The apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the detector is configured to communicate with the apparatus, including sending the road hazard location data and / or the detected travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles to the apparatus through a telecommunications network.

15. The apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the detected travelling speed and location data of the vehicle are used to calculate a safe braking distance value, which can be used to determine whether it is unsafe.

16. The apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the apparatus is operable to:receive data relating to vehicle type of one of the one or more detected vehicles; andtaking into consideration the vehicle type, adjust the algorithm so that the determination of whether the vehicle is unsafe will be accurate for the vehicle type.

17. The apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein if the location data of the device installed with the instance of the applicationmatches with a location indicated by the location data of one of the one or more vehicles detected by the detector, andthe detected location data of the vehicle indicates the vehicle is travelling in a lane adjacent to another vehicle determined to be unsafe by the algorithm, the device installed with the instance of the application triggers an alert to notify the operator of the vehicle to take note of the unsafe vehicle.

18. A method for road hazard and safety alerts, the method comprising:receiving road hazard location data from a detector deployed at a road hazard location;sending the road hazard location data to one or more devices residing or to be resided in a vehicle, wherein each of the one or more devices is installed with an instance of an application configured to receive the sent road hazard location data and the instance of the application is configured to obtain location data of the device installed with the instance of the application;receiving the location data of the device installed with the instance of the application; andreceiving travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles detected by the detector,wherein if the location data of the device installed with the instance of the application matches with a location indicated by the location data of one of the one or more vehicles detected by the detector, andthe detected travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle with matching location is determined to be unsafe according to an algorithm,the device installed with the instance of the application triggers an alert to notify an operator of the vehicle.

19. A device for road hazard and safety alerts, wherein the device is residing in a vehicle and the device comprising a processor configured to execute instructions in a memory to operate the device to:receive road hazard location data; andreceive travelling speed and / or location data of one or more vehicles detected by a detector deployed at the road hazard location,wherein the device is installed with an instance of an application configured to receive the road hazard location data and the instance of the application is configured to obtain location data of the device,wherein the instance of the application is configured to trigger an alert to notify an operator of a vehicle where the device is residing if the location data of the device matches with a location indicated by the location data of one of the one or more vehicles detected by the detector, and the detected travelling speed and / or location data of the vehicle with matching location is determined to be unsafe according to an algorithm.

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