New detector to detect overheated vehicles

The German industrial sensor maker SICK AG has come out with a Hot Spot Detector that can detect overheated vehicles and components in them before the vehicles enter a tunnel. The detector does the detection with integrated LMS511 laser measurement sensors and sends a warning signal to the control centre. The control centre of the traffic management system then uses an automated diversion process to prevent the vehicle from entering the tunnel. Fire and accident disasters can thus be avoided in time in the tunnel. The detector combines measurement data from thermal imaging cameras and laser measurement sensors to detect overheated vehicles before they enter the tunnel. Overheating on the vehicle, the hot spots, is localised accurately and, if necessary, an alarm is raised. Every vehicle is measured geometrically, with a 3D model generated and the vehicle classified in one of 28 vehicle classes. Infrared cameras measure the temperature from both sides. The temperature values are combined with the 3D data of the vehicle to generate a 3D thermal model. The detector software is capable of automatically detecting different overheated vehicle components such as load, exhaust system, or wheels, comparing them individually with the temperature threshold values designated for each respective vehicle component.