A Study of Implementation of IP-S2 Mobile Mapping Technology for Highway Asset Condition Assessment

The national highway infrastructure is continually deteriorating and in need of reconstruction and repairs. This is revealed by national highways poor grades in the 2005 and 2009 ASCE report cards. As major arteries for the flow of goods and people in the United States, poor highways can lead to fatalities, economic distress, and frustration among motorists. Prior to performing maintenance, state DOTs need to assess damages and determine what highway assets need to be repaired. Data collection techniques have not been standardized in the United States, but most state DOTs make extensive use of manpowered collection crews. Manpowered crews’ data collection efforts are time consuming, costly, and potentially unsafe. Mobile mapping enables DOTs to determine the condition and location of assets while increasing safety for surveyors. Positioning and visual recognition of assets is an important aspect while inspecting numerous dispersed assets along highways. This paper presents a preliminary study of Topcon’s IP-S2 Mobile Mapping system. Two separate but interrelated projects were conducted. The first project’s primary objectives are: (1) to measure the time it takes to collect data using the IP-S2 method versus the traditional method; and (2) to measure the accuracy of the data using the IP-S2 method versus the traditional method. These tests were conducted at two variable speeds: slow and highway.