Vaisala Thermal Mapping
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Product Spotlight www.vaisala.com Vaisala Thermal Mapping Ice prediction systems for improved deployment of resources and increased driver safety Key benefits Coldest parts of a network prioritized Thermal Mapping allows authorities to identify which sections of the road or runway are likely to freeze first with the thermal profile, giving statistically accurate surface temperatures throughout the network. This enables authorities to be proactive with resource allocation to maintain safe driving conditions. The information can also be used to design maintenance routes to enable selective treatment application. Greater understanding of dangerous stretches For road and airport authorities, deploying winter resources in a timely and accurate manner is imperative to prevent snow and ice-related incidents. Road and runway surfaces may form ice at different rates throughout a network due to topography, land use, heat islands, sky view factor, and construction materials — with temperatures varying up to 10°C/18°F within the same region. Measuring road surface temperature is key to creating models that predict which sections of a road network will form ice, yet road and airport authorities often do not have the capability to measure this. When combined with weather station data, Thermal Mapping provides a network-wide view of forecast (or actual) road surface temperatures. Vaisala’s Thermal Mapping service allows authorities to identify sections of a road or runway network that could become dangerous in winter weather conditions, allowing for fewer disruptions in services during winter months. Resources can then be allocated to critical sections of the network to help prevent vehicle accidents and maintain safe surface conditions. Thermal Mapping data can be combined with traffic, accident, and other weather data to provide authorities with a deeper understanding of why certain parts of a road network are more accident-prone. This enables highway engineers to take proactive steps to mitigate risks on dangerous stretches of roads. Forecast & time-step thermal maps Access to a dynamic network-wide map that displays minimum road surface temperature and a time-step view shows how road network temperatures vary overnight. Vaisala’s Thermal Mapping allows users to see data no matter where they are and helps to deliver forecasts in a more effective fo

Thermal Mapping at a glance Why Vaisala? Applications • Ice prediction system Create a more accurate ice prediction system for road and airport authorities. Road surface temperature, as well as additional forecasting information, is used to create a model that can help identify sections of the road network where ice will form. Vehicle-mounted infrared thermometers detect the spatial variation of road surface temperature. Air temperature is not a good indicator of road surface temperature, which is why Vaisala deploys infrared thermometers to take direct surface measurements. • Optimal...