The University of Toledo University Transportation Center

Focus Area: Infrastructure Utilization

Principal Investigator:

Eddie Y. Chou, Ph.D., P.E.
Professor and Director of Infrastructure Systems Research Laboratory
Department of Civil Engineering
College of Engineering
The University of Toledo
MS 307
2801 W. Bancroft
Toledo, OH 43606
Phone: (419) 530-8123
Fax: (419) 530-8116
ychou@utnet.utoledo.edu

Project Dates: 05/01/2008 to 05/30/2009 --no cost extension to 04/30/2010

Project Year: Year 2

UT-UTC Designation: UTUTC-IU-5

Abstract:

Transportation is critical to the global economy and plays a particularly vital role in this region’s economic growth. Transportation informatics is an emerging interdisciplinary area with focus on innovative use of information technologies for transportation purposes. The goal is to ensure safe and efficient movements of passengers and freights through speedy processing of complex information for on-time decision making.

A group of UT faculty members with diverse expertise related to transportation informatics have worked together to collaborate on research. Image analysis, pattern recognition and decision making for transportation applications have been identified as an area of common interest. Several members have been engaging in research using imaging technologies, including applications for transportation facility inspection purpose. The demands for automated inspection, monitoring, and pattern recognition for transportation applications are ever increasing, partly driven by homeland security concerns, while the costs of imaging technologies have becoming more affordable. Some technologies developed for military or medical applications could be suitable for civilian transportation used. The research group’s vision is to develop a self-sustained, externally funded research area in transportation informatics at UT to develop a functioning prototype system to automatically process, store, analyze, and extract information from images for the purpose of inspection, monitoring, and detection of transportation facility.

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