Detection, Monitoring & Machine Vision

A poll carried out by the European Machine Vision Association (EMVA) reveals that machine vision companies have overall positive business expectations for 2013 business in Europe. In a quick survey conducted by the association in October, 56 per cent of the participants expect their own business to grow above five per cent next year, and another 13.3 per cent think their sales will increase up to five per cent. Only eight per cent of the participants expect their company’s business to decline in 2013. Asked

Drivers in Malta can soon expect to see improvements in traffic management, with the launch of an intelligent traffic management project to control traffic systems on arterial roads. Austin Gatt, Malta's transport and communications minister, has revealed the launch of the new intelligent traffic control project on the island's major urban routes within the coming months. The system will work to control traffic flow via new variable message signs, CCTV cameras and traffic light optimisation.

Spanish telecommunications provider Telefónica and US-headquartered smart parking solutions supplier Streetline have joined forces to offer telematics-enabled smart parking services that allow cities to optimise parking management, while reducing vehicle traffic. The companies have reached an agreement to jointly market M2M (machine to machine) products designed to target the growing smart parking market, initially in Europe and Latin America. The solution will be part of the Telefónica Smart City platform

Video surveillance, access control and licence plate recognition could soon be available to a broader user base. Montreal-headquartered security industry and IP solutions provider Genetec has entered into a strategic multi-year alliance with Microsoft to develop powerful Windows Azure-based hosted security solutions including video surveillance, access control and licence plate recognition (LPR) as a service. The new cloud-based security solutions will be built on Microsoft's Windows Azure cloud-computing

Motorists using the M90 in Scotland will face the country’s first variable speed limits in three weeks time when a new traffic control system is launched on the road north of the Forth Road Bridge. The intelligent transport system, which goes live on 4 December on the M90 northbound, has been installed as part of construction of the Forth Replacement Crossing, which is due to open in four years time. Speeds will be automatically lowered by traffic sensors under the road surface when they detect congestion,

SQLstream’s Ronnie Beggs discusses with Jason Barnes the potential and pitfalls of using social media for traffic monitoring and management. cataclysmic events such as hurricanes and tsunami have challenged perceptions of what constitutes robust traffic management infrastructure in recent times. Presumptions that only fixed systems could offer high levels of unbroken service, accuracy and communication bandwidth, have been taught some hard lessons by nature. In many respects wireless systems now represent t

Qatar’s Public Works Authority (Ashghal) is in the final phase of preparing an ITS master plan, while smart transport solutions have already been integrated in the traffic system in the country, with the aim of implementing a fully integrated Intelligent Transport System (ITS) before the FIFA World Cup 2022. Plans include special lanes for buses, more advanced surveillance cameras, a dedicated radio station to raise traffic awareness and special operation rooms to deal with accidents and other emergencies.