Airborne traffic surveillance systems

TLDR

Timely highway traffic information is crucial for DOT and agencies, especially during incidents, and an aerial view provides the best perspective, with unmanned aircraft offering low‑cost, low‑risk video delivery. ATSS, funded by the Florida Department of Transportation, aims to realize airborne traffic surveillance, and this paper details the University of Florida team’s implementation from the ground up. The system uses unmanned aircraft equipped with video cameras and sensors, digital video encoding, and transmission of multimedia streams over FDOT’s microwave IP networks to deliver low‑cost, low‑risk traffic surveillance.

Abstract

Timely information about highway traffic conditions is very important for the Department of Transportation (DOT) and other relevant agencies. Such live information would be very important when traffic incidents or accidents occur. An aerial view is the best for traffic situations, particularly over highways. Unmanned aircraft equipped with video cameras and/or other sensors may be able to deliver the necessary information through video images with relatively low operational costs and risks to human life. ATSS (Airborne Traffic Surveillance System), a project funded by the Florida Department of Transportation, attempts to make this vision a reality. This paper describes how the University of Florida research team implemented a system for ATSS from the ground up, using unmanned aerial vehicles, digital video encoding, and transmission of data and multimedia video streams over FDOT's microwave IP networks.