Chicago kicks off the Array of Things project

The first data-collecting sensors as part of a delayed but major roads project have been stationed atop traffic light poles in Chicago. The US city installed two nodes containing computers and sensors including low-resolution cameras as well as air quality sensors, according to a report in the Chicago Tribune newspaper.
September 12, 2016 Read time: 2 mins

The first data-collecting sensors as part of a delayed but major roads project have been stationed atop traffic light poles in Chicago.

The US city installed two nodes containing computers and sensors including low-resolution cameras as well as air quality sensors, according to a report in the Chicago Tribune newspaper.

It is part of the Array of Things project that was supposed to start in 2014. Array is a collaboration between the University of Chicago, Argonne National Laboratory and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. AT&T is the internet provider. The project is backed by $3.1 million from the National Science Foundation.

System software will analyse images to count pedestrians and vehicles and release the data for free on the city of Chicago's Data Portal and the Plenar.io portal. But the portals are still undergoing development, according to the article. The initial objects are to establish traffic and pedestrian patterns, detect flooding during adverse weather and analyse air quality.

However, there could be up to 80 nodes positioned around the city by the end of the year, according to comments by Charlie Catlett, director of the Urban Center and Computation and Data at the University of Chicago and Argonne and a leader of the project. Upwards of 500 could be collecting data by the end of 2018.

Rights groups have expressed concern over ‘big brother is watching you’ issues and the city recently finalised a privacy policy covering some details of how data will be used. The Tribune article noted that there remains issues over what access law enforcement organisations would have to the data.

Highway & Network Management

Related Content

  • SafeZone from Siemens ITS delivers safer roads in Sussex, UK
    May 18, 2018
    Two SafeZone average speed schemes installed by Siemens in Brighton and Hastings, UK, are recording almost 100% speed compliance. The cameras have been deployed along the seafronts at Brighton and Hastings. The schemes use a combination of visible and invisible infrared lighting which is more sensitive to the effects on local residents and the environment. It’s the first time such schemes have been installed in the county. “Using a collection of cameras along Brighton seafront on Marine Parade and a furt
    Read More
  • Data sharing for sustainable urban mobility around the globe
    July 27, 2020
    The International Road Federation (Geneva) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBSCD) are co-leading a new work stream on data sharing within the Sustainable Mobility for All (SuM4All) initiative led by the World Bank. This new piece of work looks specifically at addressing the issue of policy-making for enabling data sharing.
    Read More
  • Testing: new tech, old problems and business moves
    August 21, 2020
    In this issue’s materials testing news, there’s a glimpse of how artificial intelligence could improve quality and efficiency in concrete construction, we look at what works best for fixing cracks and two established equipment manufacturers change hands.
    Read More
  • Mega city transport in Mexico
    June 13, 2012
    Rapid urban growth is resulting in massive mega cities with major transport needs and Mexico City is one of the world’s largest – Mike Woof reports Mexico City is a vast, sprawling metropolis and one of the world’s largest cities, resulting in huge problems for its inhabitants, particularly with regard to infrastructure. Measuring population size is an inexact science for large cities as suburban areas can add to the figures considerably, especially in developing nations where unplanned expansion is as comm
    Read More

Highlighted Content