LCMS-2 Measurements of the Quality of Road Markings

Abstract

The assessment of the structural and functional pavement condition is nowadays a fully machine based non-destructive procedure in which equipment covers all the data input required for a modern PMS approach. A LCMS (Laser Crack Measurement System) is a high-resolution transverse profiling system based on 3D Sensors capable of real time continuous measurement of condition data in a single run. One of the images produced by a LCMS is the intensity image, which expresses the reflective properties of the pavement surface. As quality control of road marking often retro-reflectometers are used. A limitation of retro-reflectometers is that they can only measure for instance a single edge marking at any time whereas the road surface can have multiple markings. The LCMS captures the reflective properties of the surface over the total width of a lane and as such can measure the reflective properties of all road markings at any transverse location. This paper discusses the results of the correlation of the retroreflectometer measurements with the reflective properties measured by the LCMS-2. This first time study resulted in a very promising correlation showing that the LCMS-2 collected data is very useful in rating the quality of road markings and predicting the need for maintenance.