Paving Artificially Intelligent, with Temperature Control, thickness, leveling and compaction

by thain Blog, Road Constructionon Posted on

Paving Artificially Intelligent

with Temperature Control, thickness, leveling and compaction

The construction of roads does not depend more on the accumulated experience of the workers, be the workers on production of materials, on operations of machinery, be it the surveyors, almost of all those who are involved in a complete process of construction of a road.

“The technological evolution applied to the segment already allows us to obtain optimum performance even with a less experienced team”

New technologies with human machine interfaces (HMI), ultrasonic sensors, infrared sensors, satellite technology, artificial intelligence and telemetry are helping a lot in road works. In the past the operators guided the steps of the machines, “Today, the machines guide the steps of the operators”.
The futuristic and spooky portraits of Artificial Intelligence (AI) that dominate movies and books and influence the collective imagination do not go beyond mere fiction. But, in the real world, AI is changing our daily lives, and overwhelmingly, through ways that improve human health, safety and productivity. Contrary to what we see in the cinema, there are no armies of robots with superhuman capabilities in the closest horizon, despite being many critics who faced a myriad of problems and threats led by this unprecedented evolution. And, despite the fact that the potential for an abusive use of AI technologies must be recognized, addressed and debated, along with numerous emerging ethical issues, their greatest potential lies, among a set of diverse fields, in making the driving of vehicles are safer, help children and adults to learn, to improve – and to extend – the quality of life of humans. Actually, the use of AI beneficial applications in schools, in our homes, in hospitals and in construction, is added at an accelerated pace: the large universities devote more and more time and resources to their study and technology and research companies , they are allocating resources and giant investments in their exploitation.
Between great hopes, fears and challenges or threats, the impact that AI will have in different areas of our existence is not science fiction. For good and for evil, but believing that it will be more for good, the rapid march of Artificial Intelligence has no return. The AI and the Internet of Things (IoT) have already arrived and are here to stay. Also, the Building Information Modeling (BIM), deals with how to use digital technology in the design, construction and management of assets for life. In this way, this model presents an organized and classified information on the cartography, the linear information for the tracing of roads and railways, the bridges, the structures and walls, the tunnels, the environment, the treatments of the land and the planning of work, as well as other services affected by water, electricity and gas. In addition, this organized system allows a more uniform, coherent, versatile and more comprehensible information.

Optimizing Road Infrastructure: The Life Cycle, BIM Methodology, and Enhanced Project Management

In the life cycle of a road infrastructure, it is necessary to highlight a series of stages beginning with the initial phase, which is also the shortest. Then follows the decision-making phase and work in the different disciplines. Likewise, all deliveries must be perfectly defined and the rules of implementation, well established. In all these stages it is necessary to have a database, feed it and adjust it, so that it is used by all the protagonists involved in the life cycle of the work. It is a project that becomes construction and ends in operation and maintenance. Then, we must also consider the uses of the BIM methodology in the different phases. In construction, we can talk about the use of the model, for a better-defined project, a reduction in costs due to better planning and the consistency of the model, the traceability of changes and the improvement of communication. The operation and maintenance phase stand out for the unification of the information and access to the real data of the state of each infrastructure project and its elements. In addition to the traceability in the decisions and the evolution of the state of the infrastructure, as well as the improvement in management.

Streamlining Road Management with BIM: Centralized Data and Collaborative Efficiency

A BIM System in Road Management consists of a software that puts at the disposal of the infrastructure manager all the necessary information, from the position and status of each inventory item or road, as all projects, files and activities associated, as well as any related information. A BIM system integrates all the information in a conveniently designed common space. Having all the centralized information and using it in all phases of any project allows us to optimize costs, manage information more effectively, and facilitate the emergence of relationships between modules and files, which ultimately facilitate the work of any manager. Likewise, a system of these characteristics allows the different actors involved in the conservation and operation of roads to work in a coordinated manner, from those responsible for public administration and workers of the concession companies, each of whom can access their information, but also sharing the resources that everyone needs.

In short, the BIM in linear infrastructures allows a greater control of the elements and a better reality seen in the initial phase, that of the project, to be later exposed in the final phases.

A good example of the use of this type of technology is the construction in China of intelligent highways based on 5G and AI. This intelligent 5G highway is for autonomous vehicles and traffic tracking based on Artificial Intelligence (AI), through a mobile operator. The urban-scale system under construction will be able to support transport services coordinated by the mobile network, such as intelligent toll stations that will be able to eliminate the current identifiers and human operators (porters). In addition, the operator also plans to collect traffic information in real time and make forecasts supported by Artificial Intelligence using the data, as well as offering support to autonomous vehicles.

New technologies existing in the market, in the construction and conservation of pavements

As a response or recommendation of existing technology in the market, to solve the problems referred to in the introduction, let’s talk about solutions for the monitoring and control of the temperature of the asphalt mass, the monitoring and control of thickness and leveling of the asphalt binder and of the monitoring and control of the compaction index of the asphalt layer in the different types of roller compactors. With the solutions detailed below, the prevention and improvement of the efficiency of the two most important factors in the life of a road are made, which are the segregation “figure 1” and the International Index of Roughness (IRI) “figure 2 and 3 “

Figure 1. Example of segregation

Figure 2. IRI scale

Figure 3. Example of an IRI> 3m / KM

Monitoring and control of the temperature of the asphalt mass

Smart paving with real-time thermal visualization for asphalt paving in the present and in the future, allows the optimization of processes and documentation in road construction.

The perfect temperature of the paving material is an extremely important factor in the construction of roads and determinant for the quality of the road. Therefore, the exhaustive thermal visualization of the paving process provides valuable information on the quality of the material and offers completely new optimization opportunities. The infrared (IR) scanner method is a system that creates a thermal profile of the roadway in a clear and simple way and also, in real time. The high-precision infrared temperature scanner creates an exhaustive thermal profile of the extended layer with a total width equal to the width of the asphalt paver and, if desired, can be used as proof of paging and supply temperatures. In this way, the fully automatic display of the temperature offers the possibility of quickly identifying the specific points that may be affected by the thermal segregation to react immediately.

Additional high-performance sensors can be positioned on the pavers where desired, further measuring the temperatures of the material right where the temperature plays a decisive role, whether in the bucket, in the lower layer or in the mixer. This multiple measurement provides numerous highly accurate data. In this way it is possible to know the temperature of the material supplied in real time and, if necessary, document it. Thus, the temperature differences of the paving material can be seen throughout the process, so that if necessary, it can be reacted immediately by taking the appropriate measures.

These technological solutions are an important element for the interconnected work of the future and contribute in a decisive way to the longevity of the road. Its development and its daily use in projects from all over the world are just one more proof that digitization 4.0 is already part of the daily routine of every project.

Characteristics and advantages of the solution - temperature measuring infrared

The unique infrared technology of the scanner offers the decisive advantage that it measures the temperature of the asphalt surface and the material with great precision. In addition, its measurement capacity of a width of up to 13 m makes it technically superior to the camera-based solutions available in the market.

The fundamental capacity of the solution is given by three functions: the highly accurate data recording with a cloud solution, its connection with open interfaces for the current asphalt and process logistics systems and a scalable reporting system in detail. With the automatic measurement of the temperature displayed in a human machine interface (HMI), self-explanatory temperature profiles show new possibilities for optimization and the best thing is that it does not involve extra work for the team in charge of the extended works. In addition to the exhaustive display and documentation of temperature measurements, the definitive advance is the fact that the system allows interconnection with the finisher, which is the “cornerstone” for the work of the future.

Characteristics of the solution:

  • Highly accurate measurement of material temperature for the identification of thermal segregation
  • Modular design with individually combinable and expandable components
  • Open interfaces for logistics and optimization solutions providers
  • Detailed thermal profile of the extended asphalt layer
  • Real-time recording and analysis of temperature values
  • Cloud solution for easy management of data

Advantages of the solution:

  • Optimization of the paving process by monitoring all relevant temperatures in real time
  • Display of the thermal properties of the material (thermal segregation)
  • Perfect adaptability for the equipment of all types and models of finishers
  • Registration of extremely large pave widths

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