Computer-Aided Road Inspection: Systems and Algorithms

TL;DR

This paper reviews automated road inspection systems, comparing damage types, imaging technologies, and advanced machine vision algorithms to improve safety and efficiency over manual methods.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive comparison of damage types, imaging systems, and state-of-the-art detection algorithms for automated road inspection.

Findings

Comparison of five common road damage types

Discussion of 2-D and 3-D imaging systems

Introduction of advanced machine vision algorithms

Abstract

Road damage is an inconvenience and a safety hazard, severely affecting vehicle condition, driving comfort, and traffic safety. The traditional manual visual road inspection process is pricey, dangerous, exhausting, and cumbersome. Also, manual road inspection results are qualitative and subjective, as they depend entirely on the inspector's personal experience. Therefore, there is an ever-increasing need for automated road inspection systems. This chapter first compares the five most common road damage types. Then, 2-D/3-D road imaging systems are discussed. Finally, state-of-the-art machine vision and intelligence-based road damage detection algorithms are introduced.