A new rutting measurement method using emerging 3D line-laser-imaging system

Rut depth is one of the important pavement performance measures. Rut depth has traditionally been measured using a manual rutting measurement, which is time-consuming, labor-intensive, and dangerous. More recently, point-based bar systems (e.g., 3, 5 points) have been used by some agencies. However, studies have shown these systems might not be able to accurately measure rut depth because of limited number of sample points. There is a need to improve the accuracy and reliability of rutting measurement. With the advances of sensing technology, emerging 3D line-laser-imaging system is now capable of acquiring high-resolution transverse profile of more than 4,000 points. This provides a great opportunity for developing a reliably and accurately rut measurement method. However, there is no framework to handle this overwhelming amount of 3D range-based pavement data. A framework is proposed in this paper to acquire, process, analyze, and visualize the high-resolution 3D pavement data collected using emerging 3D line-laser-imaging system. The proposed framework includes 1) data acquisition using the sensing system, 2) data processing, 3) data segmentation, 4) data statistical analysis, 5) data visualization, and 6) decision support. A case study carried on Interstate Highway 95 (I-95) near Savannah, Georgia, at highway speed is used to demonstrate of the applicability of the proposed framework. © Chinese Society of Pavement Engineering.