Weigh in motion

From the AARoads Wiki: Read about the road before you go
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Weigh-in-motion or weighing-in-motion (WIM) devices are designed to capture and record the axle weights and gross vehicle weights as vehicles drive over a measurement site. Unlike static scales, WIM systems are capable of measuring vehicles traveling at a reduced or normal traffic speed and do not require the vehicle to come to a stop. This makes the weighing process more efficient, and, in the case of commercial vehicles, allows for trucks under the weight limit to bypass static scales or inspection.

Introduction

Weigh-in-motion is a technology that can be used for various private and public purposes (i.e. applications) related to the weights and axle loads of road and rail vehicles. WIM systems are installed on the road or rail track or on a vehicle and measure, store and provide data from the traffic flow and/or the specific vehicle. For WIM systems certain specific conditions apply. These conditions have an impact on the quality and reliability of the data measured by the WIM system and of the durability of the sensors and WIM system itself.

WIM systems measure the dynamic axle loads of the vehicles and try to calculate the best possible estimate of the related static values. The WIM systems have to perform unattended, under harsh traffic and environmental conditions, often without any control over the way the vehicle is moving, or the driver is behaving. As a result of these specific measurement conditions, a successful implementation of a WIM system requires specific knowledge and experience.

The weight information consists of the gross vehicle weight and axle (group) loads combined with other parameters like: date and time, location, speed and vehicle class. For on-board WIM systems this pertains to the specific vehicle only. For in-road WIM systems this applies to the entire vehicle traffic flow.

This weight information provides the user with detailed knowledge of the loading of heavy goods vehicles.[1] This information is better than with older technologies, so, for example, it is easier to match heavy goods vehicles and the road/rail infrastructure. [2](Moffatt, 2017).

Road applications

Weigh in motion location on the A28 motorway (Netherlands)
Axle load sensor

Especially for trucks, gross vehicle and axle weight monitoring is useful in an array of applications including:

  • Pavement design, monitoring, and research
  • Bridge design, monitoring, and research
  • To inform weight overload enforcement policies and to directly facilitate enforcement[3][4]
  • Planning and freight movement studies
  • Toll by weight
  • Data to facilitate legislation and regulation

The most common road application of WIM data is probably pavement design and assessment. In the United States, a histogram of WIM data is used for this purpose. In the absence of WIM data, default histograms are available. Pavements are damaged through a mechanistic-empirical fatigue process[5] that is commonly simplified as the fourth power law. In its original form, the fourth power law states that the rate of pavement damage is proportional to axle weight raised to the fourth power. WIM data provides information on the numbers of axles in each significant weight category which allows these kinds of calculations to be carried out.[citation needed]

Weigh in motion scales are often used to facilitate weight overload enforcement, such as the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's Commercial Vehicle Information Systems and Networks program. Weigh-in-motion systems can be used as part of traditional roadside inspection stations, or as part of virtual inspection stations.[6] In most countries, WIM systems are not considered sufficiently accurate for direct enforcement of overloaded vehicles but this may change in the future.[7]

The most common bridge application of WIM is the assessment of traffic loading. The intensity of traffic on a bridge varies greatly as some roads are much busier than others. For bridges that have deteriorated, this is important as a less heavily trafficked bridge is safer and more heavily trafficked bridges should be prioritized for maintenance and repair. A great deal of research has been carried out on the subject of traffic loading on bridges, both short-span,[8][9][10] including an allowance for dynamics,[11][12][13] and long-span.[14][15][16]

Recent years have seen the rise of several "specialty" Weigh-in-Motion systems. One popular example is the front fork garbage truck scale. In this application, a container is weighed—while it is full—as the driver lifts, and again—while it is empty—as the container is returned to the ground. The difference between the full and empty weights is equal to the weight of the contents.[citation needed]

Use

Countries using Weigh in motion on highways include:

Accuracy

The accuracy of weigh-in-motion data is generally much less than for static weigh scales where the environment is better controlled. The European COST 323[29] group developed an accuracy classification framework in the 1990s.[30] They also coordinated three independently controlled road tests of commercially available and prototype WIM systems, one in Switzerland,[31] one in France (Continental Motorway Test) and one in Northern Sweden (Cold Environment Test).[32] Better accuracy can be achieved with multiple-sensor WIM systems[33] and careful compensation for the effects of temperature. The Federal Highway Administration in the United States has published quality assurance criteria for WIM systems[34] whose data is included in the Long Term Pavement Performance project.

System basics of most systems

Sensors

WIM systems can employ various types of sensors for measurement.

The earliest WIM systems, still used in a minority of installations, use an instrumented existing bridge as the weighing platform.[35][36] Bending plates span a void cut into the pavement and use the flexure as the wheel passes over as a measure of weight. Load cells use strain sensors in the corner supports of a large platform embedded in the road.[37]

The majority of systems today are strip sensors - pressure sensitive materials installed in a 2 to 3 cm groove cut into the road pavement. In strip sensors, various sensing materials are used, including piezo-polymer, piezo-ceramic, capacitive and piezo-quartz. Many of these sensing systems are temperature-dependent and algorithms are used to correct for this.[37]

Strain transducers are used in bridge WIM systems. Strain gauges are used to measure the flexure in bending plates and the deformation in load cells. The strip sensor systems use piezo-electric materials in the groove.

Capacitive systems measure the capacitance between two closely placed charged plates.[38]

More recently, weighing sensors using optical fiber grating sensors have been proposed.[39][40][41]

Charge amplifiers

High impedance charge signals are amplified with MOSFET based charge amplifiers and converted to a voltage output, which is connected to analysis system.[citation needed]

Inductive loops

Inductive loops define the vehicle entry and exit from the WIM station. These signals are used as triggering inputs to start and stop the measurement to initiate totaling gross vehicle weight of each vehicle. They also measure total vehicle length and help with vehicle classification. For toll gate or low speed applications, inductive loops may be replaced by other types of vehicle sensors such as light curtains, axle sensors or piezocables.[citation needed]

Measurement system

The high speed measurement system is programmed to perform calculations of the following parameters:[citation needed]

Axle distances, individual axle weights, gross vehicle weight, vehicle speed, distance between vehicles, and the GPS synchronized time stamp for each vehicle measurement.

The measurement system should be environmentally protected, should have a wide operating temperature range and withstand condensation.

Registration plate reading

Cameras for automatic number-plate recognition may be part of the system to check the measured weight against maximum allowable weight for the vehicle and, in case of exceeded limits, inform law enforcement in order to pursue the vehicle or to directly fine the owner.[42]

Communications

Variety of communication methods need to be installed on the measurement system. A modem or cellular modem can be provided. In older installations or where no communication infrastructure exists, WIM systems can be self-operating while saving the data, to later physically retrieve it.[citation needed]

Data archiving

A WIM system connected with any available communication means can be connected to a central monitoring server. Automatic data archiving software is required to retrieve the data from many remote WIM stations to be available for any further processing. A central database can be built to link many WIMs to a server for a variety of monitoring and enforcement purposes.[citation needed]

Rail applications

Weighing in motion is also a common application in rail transport. Known applications are[43]

  • Asset protection (imbalances, overloading)
  • Asset management
  • Maintenance planning
  • Legislation and regulation
  • Administration and planning

System basics

There are two main parts to the measurement system: the track-side component, which contains hardware for communication, power, computation, and data acquisition, and the rail-mounted component, which consists of sensors and cabling. Known sensor principles include:

  • strain gauges: measuring the strain usually in the hub of the rail[44]
  • fiber optical sensors: measuring a change of light intensity caused by the bending of the rail[45]
  • load cells: Measuring the strain change in the load cell rather than directly on the rail itself.
  • laser based systems: measuring the displacement of the rail

Yards and main line

Trains are weighed, either on the main line or at yards.[citation needed] Weighing in Motion systems installed on the main lines measure the complete weight (distribution) of the trains as they pass by at the designated line speed. Weighing in motion on the mainline is therefore also referred to as "coupled-in-motion weighing": all of the railcars are coupled.[citation needed] Weighing in motion at yards often measure individual wagons. It requires that the railcar are uncoupled on both ends in order to weigh. Weighing in motion at yards is therefore also referred to as "uncoupled-in-motion weighing". Systems installed at yards usually works at lower speeds and are capable of higher accuracies.[citation needed]

Airport applications

Some airports use airplane weighing, whereby the plane taxis across the scale bed, and its weight is measured.[46] The weight may then be used to correlate with the pilot's log entry, to ensure there is just enough fuel, with a little margin for safety. This has been used for some time to conserve jet fuel.[citation needed]

Also, the main difference in these platforms, which are basically a "transmission of weight" application, there are checkweighers, also known as dynamic scales or in-motion scales.[citation needed]

International cooperation and standards

The International Society for Weigh-In-Motion (ISWIM, www.is-wim) is an international non-profit organization, legally established in Switzerland in 2007. ISWIM is an international network of, and for, people and organisations active in the field of weigh-in-motion. The society brings together users, researchers, and vendors of WIM systems. This includes systems installed in or under the road pavements, bridges, rail tracks and on board vehicles. ISWIM organises periodically the international conferences on WIM (ICWIM), regional seminars and workshops as part of other international conferences and exhibitions.

In the 1990s, the first WIM standard ASTM-E1318-09[47] was published in North America, and the COST 323 action provided draft European specifications of WIM[30] as well as reports on Pan-European tests of WIM system. The European research project WAVE [48] and other initiatives delivered improved technologies and new methodologies of WIM. These first tests were done with the combination of WIM systems with video as a tool to assist overloading enforcement controls.[49]

In the early 2000s, the accuracy and reliability of WIM systems were significantly improved, and they were used more frequently for overload screening and pre-selection for road side weight enforcement controls (virtual weigh stations). The OIML R134 [50] was published as an international standard of low speed WIM systems for legal applications like tolling by weight and direct weight enforcement. Most recently, the NMi-WIM standard [51] offers a basis for the introduction of high speed WIM systems for direct automatic enforcement and free flow tolling by weight.

References

  1. ^ DEVINE (1998). "Dynamic Interaction between Vehicles and Infrastructure Experiment (DIVINE project), Final Report DSTI/DOT/RTR/IR6(98)1/FINAL: OECD Scientific Expert Group IR6".
  2. ^ Moffatt, M. (August 2017). "Vehicle mass data for pavement design and asset management. Brisbane, Australia". Presentation at TCA WIM Forum 2017.
  3. ^ Gajda, Janusz; Burnos, Piotr; Sroka, Ryszard (January 2018). "Accuracy Assessment of Weigh-in-Motion Systems for Vehicle's Direct Enforcement". IEEE Intelligent Transportation Systems Magazine. 10 (1): 88–94. doi:10.1109/MITS.2017.2776111. ISSN 1939-1390. S2CID 31144460.
  4. ^ Jacob, Bernard; Cottineau, Louis-Marie (2016). "Weigh-in-motion for Direct Enforcement of Overloaded Commercial Vehicles". Transportation Research Procedia. 14: 1413–1422. doi:10.1016/j.trpro.2016.05.214.
  5. ^ Taheri, A.; OBrien, E. J.; Collop, A. C. (August 2012). "Pavement damage model incorporating vehicle dynamics and a 3D pavement surface". International Journal of Pavement Engineering. 13 (4): 374–383. doi:10.1080/10298436.2012.655741. hdl:10197/7059. S2CID 108816608.
  6. ^ "Expanded CVISN capabilities". Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Retrieved Feb 8, 2012.
  7. ^ Cornu, D.; Stamberg, R.; Kriz, I.; Doupal, E. (2012). One Year 'WIM Direct Enforcement' Experiences in Czech Republic. Wiley. ISBN 978-1-84821-415-6.
  8. ^ Nowak, Andrzej S. (December 1993). "Live load model for highway bridges". Structural Safety. 13 (1–2): 53–66. doi:10.1016/0167-4730(93)90048-6. hdl:2027.42/30400.
  9. ^ O'Connor, Alan; O'Brien, Eugene J (February 2005). "Traffic load modelling and factors influencing the accuracy of predicted extremes". Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering. 32 (1): 270–278. doi:10.1139/l04-092. hdl:10197/2334. S2CID 16871994.
  10. ^ OBrien, Eugene J.; Leahy, Cathal; Enright, Bernard; Caprani, Colin C. (30 September 2016). "Validation of scenario modelling for bridge loading". The Baltic Journal of Road and Bridge Engineering. 11 (3): 233–241. doi:10.3846/bjrbe.2016.27. hdl:10197/9252.
  11. ^ OBrien, Eugene J.; Cantero, Daniel; Enright, Bernard; González, Arturo (December 2010). "Characteristic Dynamic Increment for extreme traffic loading events on short and medium span highway bridges". Engineering Structures. 32 (12): 3827–3835. Bibcode:2010EngSt..32.3827O. doi:10.1016/j.engstruct.2010.08.018. hdl:10197/4045. S2CID 52250745.
  12. ^ Cantero, Daniel; González, Arturo; OBrien, Eugene J. (16 March 2011). "Comparison of Bridge Dynamic Amplifications due to Articulated 5-Axle Trucks and Large Cranes". The Baltic Journal of Road and Bridge Engineering. 6 (1): 39–47. doi:10.3846/bjrbe.2011.06. S2CID 59584590.
  13. ^ González, Arturo; OBrien, Eugene J.; Cantero, Daniel; Li, Yingyan; Dowling, Jason; Žnidarič, Ales (May 2010). "Critical speed for the dynamics of truck events on bridges with a smooth road surface". Journal of Sound and Vibration. 329 (11): 2127–2146. Bibcode:2010JSV...329.2127G. doi:10.1016/j.jsv.2010.01.002. hdl:10197/2138. S2CID 56078933.
  14. ^ Nowak A.S; Lutomirska M; Sheikh Ibrahim F.I (2010). "The development of live load for long span bridges". Bridge Structures. 6 (1, 2): 73–79. doi:10.3233/BRS-2010-006.
  15. ^ Micu, Elena Alexandra; Obrien, Eugene John; Malekjafarian, Abdollah; Quilligan, Michael (21 December 2018). "Estimation of Extreme Load Effects on Long-Span Bridges Using Traffic Image Data". The Baltic Journal of Road and Bridge Engineering. 13 (4): 429–446. doi:10.7250/bjrbe.2018-13.427.
  16. ^ Lipari, Alessandro; Caprani, Colin C.; OBrien, Eugene J. (October 2017). "A methodology for calculating congested traffic characteristic loading on long-span bridges using site-specific data". Computers & Structures. 190: 1–12. doi:10.1016/j.compstruc.2017.04.019.
  17. ^ Weigh-in-Motion Technology (PDF). Austroads. 2000. ISBN 085588553X.
  18. ^ "Weigh In Motion | Wegen en verkeer". wegenenverkeer.be. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  19. ^ "Bell tolls for expressway toll booths on provincial borders". www.ecns.cn. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  20. ^ Hang, Wen; Xie, Yuanchang; He, Jie (November 2013). "Practices of using weigh-in-motion technology for truck weight regulation in China". Transport Policy. 30: 143–152. doi:10.1016/j.tranpol.2013.09.013.
  21. ^ a b c "Weigh-In-Motion System Market by Type (In-Road, Bridge Weigh, Onboard), Vehicle Speed (Low, High), Component (Hardware, Software & Services), End Use Industry (Highway Toll, Oil & Refinery, Logistics), Sensors, function and Region-Global Forecast to 2026". www.marketresearch.com. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  22. ^ "Giornata di controlli del sovraccarico dei mezzi pesanti con il nuovo sistema di pesatura dinamica".
  23. ^ "Road Bureau - MLIT Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism". www.mlit.go.jp. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  24. ^ "Meer data, minder schade". Verkeerskunde (in Dutch). Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  25. ^ Gajda, Janusz; Burnos, Piotr; Sroka, Ryszard (2016). "Weigh-in-Motion systems for direct enforcement in Poland" (PDF). Proceedings of the ICWIM7: 7 International Conference on Weigh-in-Motion & PIARC workshop, Foz do Iguaçu, 2016. International Society for Weigh-In-Motion: 302–311.
  26. ^ "Weigh-in-Motion Technology".
  27. ^ "Abu Dhabi can now weigh in heavy trucks while on the move to keep roads safe".
  28. ^ "Virtual Weigh Stations and Weigh-in-Motion (WIM) Technology in Maryland and New York". FHWA. Retrieved 2021-10-13.
  29. ^ "Action 323". COST. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
  30. ^ a b Jacob, Bernard; O'Brien, Eugene J.; Newton, W. (2000). "Assessment of the accuracy and classification of weigh-in-motion systems. Part 2: European specification". International Journal of Heavy Vehicle Systems. 7 (2/3): 153. doi:10.1504/IJHVS.2000.004831. hdl:10197/4072. ISSN 1744-232X. S2CID 52574966.
  31. ^ "EUROPEAN CO-OPERATION EUCO-COST/323/6/97". wim.zag.si. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
  32. ^ Union, Publications Office of the European (1999-06-18). "COST 323 : Post-proceedings of the Second European Conference on weigh-in-motion of road vehicles, Lisbon, 14th to 16th September, 1998". publications.europa.eu. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
  33. ^ O'Connor, Tom; O'Brien, Eugene J.; Jacob, Bernard (2000). "An experimental investigation of spatial repeatability". International Journal of Heavy Vehicle Systems. 7 (1): 64. doi:10.1504/IJHVS.2000.004519. hdl:10197/3985. ISSN 1744-232X. S2CID 56218933.
  34. ^ Walker, Debra; Cebon, David (2012). Jacob, Bernard; McDonnell, Anne Marie; Cunagin, W. (eds.). "The metamorphosis of LTPP Traffic Data" (PDF). Dallas, Texas: International Society for Weigh-in-Motion.
  35. ^ Moses, Fred (1979). "Weigh-in-Motion System Using Instrumented Bridges". Transportation Engineering Journal of ASCE. 105 (3): 233–249. doi:10.1061/TPEJAN.0000783.
  36. ^ Richardson, Jim; Jones, Steven; Brown, Alan; O', Eugene; Brien, N.A.; Hajializadeh, Donya (2014). "On the use of bridge weigh-in-motion for overweight truck enforcement". International Journal of Heavy Vehicle Systems. 21 (2): 83. doi:10.1504/IJHVS.2014.061632. hdl:10197/7058. S2CID 73594148.
  37. ^ a b Burnos, Piotr; Gajda, Janusz (2016-12-15). "Thermal Property Analysis of Axle Load Sensors for Weighing Vehicles in Weigh-in-Motion System". Sensors. 16 (12): 2143. Bibcode:2016Senso..16.2143B. doi:10.3390/s16122143. ISSN 1424-8220. PMC 5191123. PMID 27983704.
  38. ^ Cheng, Lu; Zhang, Hongjian; Li, Qing (2007-08-17). "Design of a Capacitive Flexible Weighing Sensor for Vehicle WIM System". Sensors. 7 (8): 1530–1544. Bibcode:2007Senso...7.1530C. doi:10.3390/s7081530. ISSN 1424-8220. PMC 3814867.
  39. ^ Bin, Ma; Xinguo, Zou (May 2010). "Study of Vehicle Weight-in-Motion System Based on Fiber-Optic Microbend Sensor". 2010 International Conference on Intelligent Computation Technology and Automation. IEEE. pp. 458–461. doi:10.1109/icicta.2010.631. ISBN 978-1-4244-7279-6. S2CID 15539612.
  40. ^ Batenko, Anatoly, et al. "Weight-in-motion (WIM) measurements by fiber optic sensor: problems and solutions." Transport and Telecommunication 12.4 (2011): 27-33.
  41. ^ CN103994809A, 王强, "一种基于光纤光栅高速动态的汽车动态称重方法", issued 2014-08-20 
  42. ^ "British systems catch overloaded trucks. See how they work". Trans.INFO. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  43. ^ Buurman, Gerlof and Zoeteman, Arjen. "A vital instrument in asset management", European Railway Review, Issue 3, 23 August 2005.
  44. ^ "ARGOS® – a high accurate wayside train monitoring system" (PDF). Unece. 2012.
  45. ^ Gotcha Monitoring Systems "Longer life for track and rollingstock", =EurailMag, Issue 22, September 2010.
  46. ^ "In Motion Aircraft Weighing Equipment - Runweight". Trakblaze. Retrieved 2021-10-13.
  47. ^ ASTM-E1318-09 (2009). "Standard Specification for Highway Weigh-in-Motion (WIM) Systems with User Requirements and Test Methods". West Conshohocken, PA, USA: ASTM International.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  48. ^ WAVE (2002). "Weigh-in-Motion of Axles and Vehicles for Europe, General report". LCPC, Paris, France.
  49. ^ van Saan, H., van Loo, H. (2002). "Weigh-in-Motion projects in Netherlands". Orlando, Florida, USA, 3rd Int. Conference on Weigh-in-Motion.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  50. ^ OIML R134 (2009). "Automatic instruments for weighing road vehicles in motion and measuring axle loads". International Organization for Legal Metrology, Paris, France.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  51. ^ NMi (2016). "NMi WIM standard - Specifications and test procedures for Weigh-in-Motion Systems". Dutch Metrology Organisation, Dordrecht, The Netherlands.

External links