Worcester Tests Out New Device That Detects Potholes
WORCESTER (CBS) - Worcester is testing out a new device that maps out where potholes and other poor road conditions are in the city.
WPI graduates designed the machine, which uses a sensor to measure dips, holes and cracks in the road.
"We're doing something they call in the robotics world sensor fusion to build a 3D map of the environment as the vehicle is traveling around," Roadgnar cofounder and CEO Daniel Pelaez said.
Worcester Public Works Commissioner Jay Fink says the technology could help the city decide if a road needs to be repaved or just repaired.
The goal would be to mount it on a trash truck or bus. "Mount in on something that covers those roadways anyway in the normal course of duties with an extra sensor, then at the end of the day you can collect that data," Fink said.
Worcester is testing out the technology before rolling it out. The WPI inventors hope it will be used in other cities in the future.