IMAGE PROCESSING AS A METHOD FOR DETERMINING ROAD SNOW ACCUMULATION

• Snowfall often causes limitations for road transportation and large efforts are devoted to snow removal. Snow that falls on a road surface often melts due to the surface being warmer than the air under some circumstances. Melting of snow can also be induced by use of road salt. Consequently, snow measurements by precipitation sensors along roads may indicate thicker snow depths than are actually present on the roads. A method for determining the onset time of snow accumulation on roads based on a combination of precipitation measurements and image processing is presented. The method detects whether the snow accumulates rather than melts. It can be used to calculate accumulated snow depth, a more accurate measurement than using precipitation sensors alone. The method was tested over one winter and showed potential to improve the description of snow accumulation in a road network, which could lead to more efficient planning of snow removal.

Ämnesord

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Geovetenskap och miljövetenskap -- Annan geovetenskap och miljövetenskap (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Earth and Related Environmental Sciences -- Other Earth and Related Environmental Sciences (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Winter road maintenance; Snow ploughing; Image analysis

Publikations- och innehållstyp

vet (ämneskategori)

ovr (ämneskategori)