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Sunday , 24 March 2024

Weigh-In-Motion: Weighing a vehicle while it moves

Says Kishore, ?WIM is gaining ground because a static scale takes much-much more space. A dharamkanta is about a 15-20mtr long platform which has to have the capacity to take the longest truck / trailer (about 20-22mtrs long) with multi axles. Quite often, that much space is not available. Also, it takes at least three to four minutes to weigh it as compared with the 15-20 seconds taken by Low Speed WIM. WIM at toll plazas do away with all these difficulties. WIM @ Toll scales need to be robust and must be built to last the heavy overload on commercial vehicles in India. Else, the scales may break within 1-2 years?.

Since overloading creates the most problem on the highways, the NHAI as well as some State Highway Authorities like MPRDC, GSRDC, etc., have empowered the concessionaires to charge overloaded vehicles for the next category or a percentile of the base fare. The most important parameters to judge a prudent Weigh in Motion Product are:

? Accuracy of Weighment at 5-8 km/hr speed

? Ease of Maintenance ? As the Load Cells & mountings are to be periodically cleaned to clear debris, grime, dust, etc.

? Certification of Weighing-In-Motion (and not just the load cells) by OIML (an International Certifying Agency entrusted to certify any Weighing Equipment) ? a requirement according to NHAI rules.

? Robustness of the Weigh Scale as most of the Commercial Vehicles are grossly overloaded, much beyond the certified limits

? IP Rated Load Cells which are not affected by water accumulation: The ordinary WIM Scales have to be shut down during heavy rains as any water accumulation in the scale might damage the load cells which are susceptible to getting short circuited.

VaaaN Infra?s Weigh-In-Motion, ?smartWeigh?, is manufactured in Europe with the India specific Built & Design.

Today, VaaaN is implementing close to 200 Weigh-In-Motion scales and has been the preferred choice of several top concessionaires for their key projects. smartWeigh is ?Built to Last? with the robust design to endure heavy overload on commercial vehicles in India (typically overloaded by more than 50%). The scale has been designed with unique ?I? shape to prevent lane closure during routine maintenance preventing traffic blockages at the Plaza. The Load cells are 400% overload safe, thus ensuring longevity.

Built to withstand heavy overload on commercial vehicles in India, smartWeigh weighs 2.2 tons and can weigh commercial vehicles easily with an error percentage of only 0.5% at 5-8kmhr. It can easily be integrated with any Toll Management System. The company produces it own load cells.

?VaaaN Infra?s smartWeigh is triple OIML certified which means that not only its load cells but its indicator as well as the scale as a whole is OIML certified for Dynamic weighing. It has a high tensile steel compact platform the size of 4020mm X 1270mm which is fixed in the Toll Lane. The weight of each individual axle of a vehicle passing over the platform is recorded and then collated to provide the GVW which is recorded in the computer. The recorded weight is tamperproof and cannot be manipulated. The speed of the vehicles passing on the WIM should be around 5-10kmph. Its software enables the integration for weight based tolling. It also enables to keep data of the vehicle including speed, acceleration, type, axle numbers, plate, etc., of the vehicle. ?Software may be customised according to the customer?s requirements and is also easily integrated with any System,? claims Kishore.

Kishore feels strongly that the investment in constructing roads must be maintained at any cost. ?Overloaded vehicles damage the pavements. It costs anywhere between five to ten crore to develop one kilometre of road depending on whether there are two lanes, four lanes or six lanes. Since thousands of kilometres are being built, the investment runs into billions of dollars.? The damage due to overloading goes into different layers. It starts with rutting ? when the cracks come up. If the damage goes to the sub-layers, it costs huge money.

He adds, ?Overloading not only causes huge damage to the infrastructure, it also causes accidents on the highways as often, the overloaded trucks roll over since their load is unevenly distributed. It is very important to ensure that the overloading does not happen.?

 

The robust design of smartWeigh helps it to endure heavy overload on commercial vehicles. It has been designed with a unique ?I? shape to prevent lane closure during routine maintenance. Its load cells, 400% overload safe, are in the traffic island and thus, it is easy to maintain and has enhanced longevity.

 

At every toll plaza there are, on an average, 10-12 lanes ? five to six lanes in either direction. The government is trying to equip every lane with WIM equipment so that before the truck reaches the toll booth, the toll operator is already aware of the weight of the vehicle. The penalty for overloading is charged right there. But many feel that by charging a penalty and letting the driver move on, the government gives him the licence to kill as he might kill someone ahead. It is felt that he must not be allowed to move with additional stuff at all on the road. Now when private investors maintain the plazas, they are reluctant to allow the drivers to go ahead after paying a penalty. But there is no law on overloading. Some states do not allow a driver to go ahead if his vehicle is overloaded by more than 20% of the permissible limit. In such a case, if the driver returns, he might lead to accidents. So, it has been decided to create border check posts to handle such cases. This is expected to make the enforcement process holistic. The process cannot be focused or isolated in different locations, it has to be nationwide. It has to have participation of state governments as well as the national highways.

Gujarat was the first state to come up with the border check-post concept and it made a huge difference to its revenue which increased by thousands of crores. In Maharashtra too, a company called Sadbhav infrastructure is implementing such enforcement at the border check post. ?We are providing them the technology,? says Kishore. ?This programme of offloading at the border check post and paying for the extra goods will take about five to ten years to take proper shape, it cannot happen immediately. The check posts already have warehouses where the driver can offload his extra goods. We are also insisting with the concessionaires to provide offloading facilities at the toll plazas?.

What is needed at present is sufficient guidelines for the WIM Technology. The government should define the specifications and parameters on technology, operational aspects, etc., more clearly in the contracts so that no chaos arises at the toll plazas.

?The penalty has to be heavy and the entire process must be carried out gradually ? in a well thought out manner so that it can be implemented properly. With a lighter penalty, the attitude of the truckers is that they can get away with overloading by paying a paltry penalty. The ultimate focus should be to not let anyone get away on the highway with overloading,? avers Kishore.

 

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