ASPHALT PAVEMENT EVALUATION USING FUZZY SETS

Abstract

A new method of asphalt pavement evaluation using fuzzy sets is proposed. The purpose is to provide a simple, consistent, cost-effective procedure for pavement evaluation. Consistent pavement evaluation is needed for adequate pavement maintenance. The large turnover pending in the pavement engineering field over the next five years will leave many pavement agencies without adequate expertise to evaluate their pavement systems. A computer program, Fuzzy Evaluation of Asphalt Pavement Systems (FEAPS), is presented to facilitate the method. The program uses the fuzzy weighted average operation to combine distress ratings for five different types of pavement distress (roughness, alligator cracks, transverse cracks, longitudinal cracks, rutting). A fuzzy set representing the pavement condition is produced. This final fuzzy set can be translated to a natural language descriptor. A new function for comparing the final fuzzy sets is described, allowing ranking of the pavements. With FEAPS, the user can change the pavement weights reflecting the local expert opinions to allow for differences of interpretation of local pavement distress types.