Pilot Panorama Technology Project for Norwegian Roads

During the summer of 2012, Blom carried out a pilot project for the Norwegian Public Roads Administration (NPRA). The project captured data for approximately 25km of county roads in Sør-Trøndelag and parts of the city centre of Trondheim using BlomSTREET 360-degree panorama technology, powered by CycloMedia.

The objective for the pilot project was to evaluate how NPRA will benefit from the BlomSTREET data capture technology and software solutions in a typical inventory project. The location in Sør-Trøndelag was chosen as a key area with ongoing inventory activities while preparing for a new road maintenance contract.

NPRA has a wealth of experience in equipping cars with advanced camera systems to be used for inspection and inventory projects. The cameras point forward from the survey vehicle and a corresponding imagery management system offers functionality to measure road widths.

Typically objects such as traffic signs, poles and traffic barriers are inspected and documented. The objects are then given a map reference based on the known position of the survey vehicle. This method requires the survey vehicle to stop at every location, which means that considerable time is spent in the field, and subsequently raises associated safety risks; two disadvantages that NPRA wants to resolve.

Ole Jostein Lefstad from NPRA said a major advantage with the BlomSTREET solution is efficiency - the car is able to take full panorama images at 5m intervals while driving at speeds up to 80 km/h. Registration and documentation tasks are completed from the office, which considerably reduces the time required in the field. Just this factor alone should save costs. Another important safety advantage is that survey cars do not need to stop at the side of the road for every required measurement, which could could cause dangerous traffic situations, Lefstad added.

(Photo courtesy: Enea Pestelacci)