Camera and Topography Hazard Warning for Flooded Roads
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current systems fail to effectively alert travelers of impending hazards such as flood waters, ice, or oil slicks on roadways, posing safety risks due to instability and loss of vehicle control.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing cameras and a hazard detection module that combines image data with local topographic information and GPS data to identify hazards and provide warnings to drivers or pedestrians through displays or audio alerts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If hazard detection systems use multiple sensors and complex analysis modules to improve detection accuracy, then measurement precision improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides hazard detection into separate functional modules: image capture module, topographic information module, and analysis module. Each module handles a specific aspect of hazard detection, allowing the system to achieve comprehensive detection accuracy while maintaining manageable complexity through modular design.
Solution Approach 2:
The analysis module serves multiple functions: it processes images from cameras, integrates topographic information, identifies various hazard types (flood waters, ice, oil slicks), and determines hazard characteristics. This multi-functionality consolidates what could be multiple separate systems into a single integrated module.
2Loss of information
If the system processes detailed image data and topographic information to determine hazard characteristics, then information completeness improves, but loss of time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system obtains topographic information in advance and stores it locally. When hazards are detected, the analysis module can immediately compare current sensor data with pre-stored topographic information, eliminating the need for real-time geographic queries and reducing processing time while maintaining complete hazard assessment.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for alerting a driver of a motor vehicle or a person walking along a road or hiking on a trail of potentially dangerous hazards in their path. Hazards may be deep water, ice, oil slicks or other hazards. In the case of a motor vehicle, the system uses cameras mounted on or within the vehicle to detect potential hazards and then analyzes the images combined with the known topography of the location to evaluate the ability of the vehicle to safely traverse the hazard. In the case of a person walking or hiking, the person may use the camera on a personal mobile device to capture images of the hazard and to combine the images with the known topography at the location to evaluate the danger presented by the hazard.