A sensor based decision support system for the HAZMAT transportation risk
Résumé
A hazardous material (HAZMAT) is a substance that can produce a heavy danger for men, the goods and the environment, because of the physical or chemical properties of the substance, or for the nature of the reaction that the material is susceptible to produce. The development of the transport infrastructures, the rise of the transport capacity and of the traffic, multiply the risks of accidents. The effects of the transported hazardous materials are added to the usual consequences of transport accidents. The project aims at providing the HAZMAT transportation problem actors with knowledge of the position and content of HAZMAT vehicles circulating on the highways. Different methods are used for tracing vehicles. The most used are GSM localisation, GPS localisation and radio techniques. The common problem with electronic devices is their not mandatory character. The common point between all the HAZMAT vehicles circulating into European Union space is the mandatory orange plate, prescribed by ADR agreement. Our solution is constituted of optical sensors installed at sensible points like the tollbooths at the entrances and the exits of the highways or city limits, allowing to know the exact number of HAZMAT trucks moving on the network, as the type of transported material. This article will begin with the presentation of the HAZMAT problem and the European regulation concerning road transportation for hazardous material; it will continue with the presentation of a model of an intelligent transportation system and a possible integration of the HAZMAT detection sensor in such architecture. Some already existing localization and tracing systems and a prototype using optical recognition of the mandatory orange plates installed on HAZMAT vehicles will be presented and evaluated.