Skip to main content

Smooth sailing for paving with Topcon’s SmoothRide

Topcon Positioning Group’s new road scanning solution SmoothRide can gather highway asset data at highway speeds with no need for lane closures, crash trucks or escorts. SmoothRide is a vehicle-mounted resurfacing solution for paving and milling projects. It uses a combination of core Topcon technologies designed to deliver the smoothest surface possible, while efficiently managing the quantity of material for each project.
April 14, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
Topcon’s Jörg Velten with the RD-M1 scanning unit

7300 Topcon Positioning Systems’s new road scanning solution SmoothRide can gather highway asset data at highway speeds with no need for lane closures, crash trucks or escorts.

SmoothRide is a vehicle-mounted resurfacing solution for paving and milling projects. It uses a combination of core Topcon technologies designed to deliver the smoothest surface possible, while efficiently managing the quantity of material for each project.

With the new RD-M1 scanning unit, the system maps the existing surface elevations - with many more points captured versus what can be expected with traditional tools. This provides more accurate data needed to confidently estimate materials, as well as to form the basis of the final design surface.

The workflow consists of a vehicle-mounted road scan, existing and finish surface design, and machine control using GNSS with sonic tracker sensor guidance.

Once the road information is gathered, operators can use Mobile Master Office point data processing software to recreate the existing surface. Magnet Office with Resurfacing is then used to digitally create a high-resolution model of the required finished mat.

The resurfacing module allows operators to create a design using specific regulatory requirements such as minimum thickness, desired cross-slope, and overall smoothness.

The information is then passed onto a paver or milling machine to allow for variable depth paving to where it is required - with the result being a much smoother road as well as faster completion times, explained Jörg Velten, Topcon Construction’s European support manager.

All videosAll show news

Related Content

  • Conquer technology interoperability gaps with DCW’s productivity-focused and digitally-connected platform
    July 14, 2022
    Digital Construction Works is all about the “transformative power of digital.” It is designed to be a leading integrator of construction technology services… a power that will help to deliver your projects smoothly, on time, and on budget. DCW’s mission is to “create innovative solutions to complex challenges by understanding the pressure firms are under to increase productivity, reduce risk… and deliver reliable, efficient project results.” Are you connected?
  • Infrastructure stays strong on the road to recovery
    July 1, 2021
    After more than a year of uncertainty, the road industry is coming back stronger than ever before thanks to new ways of working and increased investment – because building new infrastructure lays the foundation for a more resilient and economically robust world.
  • Road recycling
    September 27, 2023
    Easier to operate, thanks to the increasing use of GPS, and greener to run because of biofuels are two of the more innovative technologies being integrated into machine design by major road recycling equipment manufacturers.
  • Bentley's iTwin Experience, Capture and IoT
    November 24, 2022
    Bentley Systems has launched iTwin Experience, iTwin Capture and iTwin IoT to improve the performance of its digital twin analysis platform iTwin.