This platform, which combines computer vision techniques with geolocation and ICT, is part of DONDE, an R&D project that studies and validates mobility, location, and video processing technologies to offer new services to the public. Specifically, this system has applications in the areas of civil and road safety, according to the researchers. “Through traffic cameras, it can automatically detect the presence of a driver traveling the wrong way, recognize the danger, locate it, indicate which security officer could respond most quickly, and alert nearby drivers,” says Professor Antonio Berlanga of the Applied Artificial Intelligence Group (GIAA) at UC3M. In emergency management, this system can accelerate decision-making and reaction times.
The platform's main functionality is that it allows users to know what is happening and exactly where. And it doesn't require building expensive and complex infrastructure, because cities usually already have cameras and other types of sensors that can be integrated into the system, the researchers explain.
For example, with the implementation of this platform, someone who notices a dangerous situation caused by a specific object (a manhole without a grate, a cornice that could fall, etc.) could photograph that object and locate it using their mobile phone's GPS, then send the photo to the appropriate maintenance services so they can intervene as soon as possible.
The team has developed a demonstrator using different scenarios in the Abertis Smart Zone, which the company has at its Barcelona facilities. Thanks to this demonstration, the technical feasibility of this 'intelligent' system, capable of understanding what is happening, has been verified. Until now, visualization systems depended on an operator constantly monitoring the camera feeds to detect safety incidents. In contrast, this platform empowers the sensors (the cameras) to process what they see and report what, when, and where an incident occurred. “Given the sheer volume of images that need to be viewed in control centers, it’s beneficial to have a tool that highlights the images of those points where the intelligent system has already detected a potential issue,” explains Professor Berlanga. The
DONDE project, which received funding from the Strategic Action for Telecommunications and the Information Society of the Avanza 2 Plan of the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade, was developed by a consortium coordinated by Abertis Telecom with the participation of the GIAA (Grupo de Investigación y Agrícola de Autores de la Universidad) and Solusoft, a company located in the Leganés Tecnológico Science Park, just 100 meters from the UC3M Science Park. The Science Park serves as a hub for innovation, where the University participates within a productive business area designed to facilitate collaboration between UC3M researchers and companies. The consortium's experience has been very positive, according to its members, as it has led the three entities to design, based on the identified needs, a common service platform with which both companies and public administrations can offer new services to citizens to improve road and civil safety.
