CROSS News
CROSS Zlín attended the prestigious ICWIM 8 conference
ICWIM (International Conference on Weigh-In-Motion) is a prestigious international conference dedicated to the weighing of vehicles on the road, where the world leaders in this field take part. The event is organized by ISWIM, Switzerland, which brings together developers, transport experts and road technology manufacturers. After Dallas, Brazil's Foz do Iguaçu and other cities, this year's 8th Conference was hosted in Prague. Of course, CROSS could not miss it as a leading manufacturer of weighing technology.
Expert lectures and workshops from all areas of weigh-in-motion took place in the pleasant atmosphere of the Olšanka Hotel from May 19th to 23rd. Topics ranged from experience in individual installations, through integration into legislation, to administration and use of WIM data. The main program included a lecture by CROSS director Tomáš Juřík, who personally introduced the newly certified OptiWIM system, which is the only technology in the world to use optical fiber technology for dynamic weighing of vehicles.
“Weighing vehicles while driving is a technology that has been available for many years. In the Czech Republic we have been operating it for 15 years, and since 2011 we have been the first country in the world to use it for direct fining. However, we are still waiting for its wider expansion within our road network, but we believe that in the near future we may follow neighboring Hungary, where our system uses 150 WIM stations, ”said Tomáš Juřík, CROSS Zlín Director. CROSS being Zlín’s manufacturer of road transport technology that holds a patented dynamic fiber weighing technology.
When a vehicle is driven over special sensors embedded in the roadway, the optical fiber is loaded, allowing the vehicle to be weighed across the width of the road independently of the actual wheel position during crossing. Visitors could convince themselves of the capabilities of the facility during the accompanying program at the CROSS stand.
In addition to weighing at all points on the road, OptiWIM offers even more new features and advantages. In addition to the axle load, sensors can also obtain information such as the presence of dual tires, vehicle width data and, for example, detect underinflated tires. The new technology also offers the highest possible weighing accuracy. The accuracy of OptiWIM is confirmed by the certificate of the Czech Metrology Institute.
The new technology has earned interest at the conference. CROSS is already recording demand from around the world and the facility should be put into full operation this year.
CROSS Zlín wishes you a Merry Christmas and success in 2020.
19.12.2019 Read article
Brno intersections are learning to “talk” to cars and simplify transport
What is it like when cars can communicate with each other? How is this data used by clever traffic lights, and how do they simplify city transit or reduce waiting in queues? How do modern transport systems work? These questions are answered by the C-ROADS project. We supplied the technology for its latest implementation in Brno. The system where cars communicate on the road and their data continue to use traffic lights and other transport units is called cooperative technologies. How do they work? Road traffic data, smart traffic lights and vehicle communication systems make it possible to control traffic remotely, so that IRS vehicles can be easily driven through city streets, giving priority to public transport at junctions or avoiding road and junction congestion. In addition, the system can alert the driver to cars that are driving through a red light, skidded on a slippery road, or standing on a highway in a queue. The driver will be alerted directly to the on-board unit well away from the incident. Smart cars already exist, but we haven´t been able to use them so far An increasing number of cars equipped with cooperative technologies are making them think about how to use this data to improve traffic in cities, roads and highways. The C-ROADS project is on the European scale in the implementation phase and the Czech Republic is currently the furthest thanks to Cross Zlín. We cooperated on two projects - DT1 and DT2, both of which are linked to the Brno locality, in the first case on the highway and in the second directly in the city. “Both DT1 and DT2 are linked by the same technology. However, both are different in terms of the use of individual systems and procedures, which are logically different on the highway and different in the city. As far as I know, there is no place in Europe today where this technology is now used on the same scale as it is in Brno, ”says Ivo Gajdošík, Chief Projet Officer. In addition to cutting edge technologies, the project also requires a deep network of local road managers. The Brno Project is a unique cooperation between Brno Communications, Brno Public Transport Company, IRS of the South Moravian Region and Directorate of Roads and Motorways CR. All data, which cooperative systems work with, are combined in central systems, whether the technical dispatching of Brno Communications or Directorate of Roads and Motorways CR. Moreover, they are interconnected for the transmission of information. The dispatchers thus have a great overview of the current state of roads and highways in Brno, the situation in the Brno tunnels and the traffic signaling throughout the city. Systems collect data at intersections and in vehicles Directly in the city, data is collected by Road Side Unite (RSU) units, which are located at selected intersections of the main Brno ring road. They also monitor the situation on motorways in the vicinity of Brno. On-road monitoring is also monitored by the On Board Unite (OBU / RVU) on-board units that we installed in the vehicles of the Brno Road Administration and Maintenance Center. These units alert the driver in a timely manner about highway maintenance, lane restrictions, or other situations that may present a potential hazard. Both projects of the cooperative systems are at the moment mainly preparing for big testing, which is planned for the next year in cooperation with car factories. The one in Brno, which is unprecedented in Europe, is unique due to the wide range of testing possibilities. Car factories already have some models equipped with cooperative units, but due to the lack of real testing infrastructure, the SW units have not been functional yet. Testing in the city of Brno should change this situation. Moreover, it is another pre-stage for real use of autonomous vehicles. 25.11.2019 Read article
A successful installation of the CrossPark parking system at the airport in Mošnov
CrossPark parking systems are beginning to show their strength inherent in new technologies that improve the entire parking system. A proof of advanced technology is also the victory of CROSS in a public tender worth 8.5 milion crowns for the Mošnov Ostrava airport. On four parking spaces at the airport and a newly built car park in front of the departure hall CROSS now has four fully equipped CROSS APTM payment terminals and a credit card exit terminal, 8 CROSS PT entry terminals, 10 CROSS VT exit terminals. The system is also supplemented by reading the licence plates of vehicles to expedite exit clearance. The whole solution works on a central control server, which also includes a backup system in case of a failure. CrossPark is not just a payment machine with terminals. CrossPark's brain boasts, for example, Booking, which is certainly welcomed by travel agents and their customers. This allows you to generate time-limited parking cards with QR codes, which travel agencies can then offer to tourists and facilitate their parking directly at the airport. The parking card itself can take the form of a paper coupon or be delivered only electronically, eg to a mobile phone. The entryl and exit terminals are equipped with external scanners, where you can just attach the QR code of the respective parking card, whether printed or displayed on the phone screen. This will greatly facilitate and speed up the check-in at the entrance or exit of the parking lot. However, booking can be much wider. 17.9.2019 Read article
2DRoad and MetSalt, new weapons for winter road maintenance
CROSS Zlín has signed an exclusive partnership with the Swedish company MetSense. In the Central European region, it has acquired exclusive representation for the installation and operation of the 2DRoad meteorological camera and other MetSense products. State-of-the-art road monitoring: MetSense Innovative MetSense technology brings a revolutionary way of road scanning and offers a completely new two-dimensional view of the road surface and its properties. The camera can scan the area of the road up to 6 x 6 meters. Compared to other non-intrusive sensors that measure only one point, 2DRoad collects information from 4096 points at the same time. For each of these points, it can recognize up to seven surface types ranging from dry roads to various types of ice. Installations in the Czech Republic "We have several installations in the Czech Republic that we test and the results are great. 2DRoad can also recognize the so-called black ice, that poses the greatest hazards to the driver, "said Jörgen Bogren from MetSense. A great advantage of 2DRoad is that the data is processed in the cloud outside of the device and the evaluation algorithm can be continually updated and updated independently of the weather camera. For more information about 2DRoad please click here. MetSalt active road surface condition sensor MetSalt is a new and unique road sensor for precise road surface temperature measurement and accurate freezing point detection. The sensor is built into a roadway, which continuously measures the road temperature. Its precise freezing point detection is possible thanks to the method of active cooling and reheating of the road surface. Its smart design allows surface temperature to be measured directly on its surface, and it is also equipped with an external probe, which can measure according to the method of installation the surface temperature around the sensor or temperature in road depth. This measurement procedure is independent of the type of chemical spreading material used by road maintenance. Precise information on the freezing point is indispensable for the winter maintenance dispatchers. Thanks to this information, they can reliably evaluate whether the maintenance has been sufficient enough or needs further spreading. MetSalt combined with 2DRoad, provides an unmatched and comprehensive overview of the road surface. For more information about MetSalt plese click here. 8.7.2019 Read article
CROSS Zlín attended the prestigious ICWIM 8 conference
ICWIM (International Conference on Weigh-In-Motion) is a prestigious international conference dedicated to the weighing of vehicles on the road, where the world leaders in this field take part. The event is organized by ISWIM, Switzerland, which brings together developers, transport experts and road technology manufacturers. After Dallas, Brazil's Foz do Iguaçu and other cities, this year's 8th Conference was hosted in Prague. Of course, CROSS could not miss it as a leading manufacturer of weighing technology. Expert lectures and workshops from all areas of weigh-in-motion took place in the pleasant atmosphere of the Olšanka Hotel from May 19th to 23rd. Topics ranged from experience in individual installations, through integration into legislation, to administration and use of WIM data. The main program included a lecture by CROSS director Tomáš Juřík, who personally introduced the newly certified OptiWIM system, which is the only technology in the world to use optical fiber technology for dynamic weighing of vehicles. “Weighing vehicles while driving is a technology that has been available for many years. In the Czech Republic we have been operating it for 15 years, and since 2011 we have been the first country in the world to use it for direct fining. However, we are still waiting for its wider expansion within our road network, but we believe that in the near future we may follow neighboring Hungary, where our system uses 150 WIM stations, ”said Tomáš Juřík, CROSS Zlín Director. CROSS being Zlín’s manufacturer of road transport technology that holds a patented dynamic fiber weighing technology. When a vehicle is driven over special sensors embedded in the roadway, the optical fiber is loaded, allowing the vehicle to be weighed across the width of the road independently of the actual wheel position during crossing. Visitors could convince themselves of the capabilities of the facility during the accompanying program at the CROSS stand. In addition to weighing at all points on the road, OptiWIM offers even more new features and advantages. In addition to the axle load, sensors can also obtain information such as the presence of dual tires, vehicle width data and, for example, detect underinflated tires. The new technology also offers the highest possible weighing accuracy. The accuracy of OptiWIM is confirmed by the certificate of the Czech Metrology Institute. The new technology has earned interest at the conference. CROSS is already recording demand from around the world and the facility should be put into full operation this year. 4.6.2019 Read article
Overloaded vehicles are weighed using an optical sensor. Unique technology has received a certificate
Demanding testing of the new OptiWIM product has been completed by CROSS Zlín, a manufacturer and supplier of road transport technologies. Its patented dynamic fiber weighing technology has received a certificate for its type. The certification was preceded by three separate tests. The first simulated the load in normal operation. For this purpose, a pilot installation was prepared on the D1 motorway near Kroměříž. Through the sensors embedded in the aluminum console on the road surface, cars of varying speed and weight passed over for a few days, with the measured mass deviation of within a tolerance of up to 5% compared to the results of certified mobile scales commonly used by the Czech Police or Customs. The second part of the testing was carried out in a specialized laboratory, where electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) of the switchgear and the whole equipment was measured. The testing was completed with temperature tests, which were carried out in a special chamber with adjustable temperature from -40 ° C to 80 ° C. The functionality of the system was tested throughout the temperature range. “Testing was very challenging for everyone involved. For example, workers in special overalls were moving in the chamber and placed certified weights gradually over the entire length of the console. Just this process has been going on for more than a week, ”says Vladimír Kašík, product manager at CROSS Zlín. The certificate obtained is valid in the European Union. Thanks to this, OptiWIM is classified as a proven measuring device. Of course, when inserting the sensors into the road, we must pay attention to the parameters of the road, we must check the ripple of the top layer of asphalt or its possible cracks and after installation, the system must calibrate in place for the required accuracy. If the investor decides to use the system for automatic fining, the Czech Metrology Institute will also carry out the verification, ”added Vladimír Kašík. Certified OptiWIM was officially presented at this year's ISWIM international conference, but won the first prize a year earlier at the world's largest Intertraffic trade fair in Amsterdam, where it won the Innovation Award in the transport infrastructure category. "OptiWIM's long-term internal testing was underway, and its results were so convincing that we believe that optical fibers will fully replace today's dynamic weighing technologies with piezo-polymer or silicon sensors in the future," said CROSS director Tomas Juřík. Sensor life is estimated to be 10 years. CROSS has already had a great interest in this new product from a number of countries. Currently, the system is being validated for a further 5 sites, with live installations in the winter of this year. 4.6.2019 Read article
CrossPark will allow its users to find their parked vehicles
Marking management has never been more effective. The variable and universal CrossPark parking system has another optional extension, that is, special units of parking cameras with a system of automatic number-place recognition. Cameras instead of sensors The camera system for detection of occupancy rate combined with information boards make parking lot navigation easier. The current solution meant that every parking place needed to have ultrasound or optical sensors installed. These sensors can now be replaced by camera units that monitor four parking places at the same time. “Cameras replacing the sensors have other key benefits; they can be used to identify license plates or monitor the current situation at a particular parking place,” said Libor Sušil, Marketing Manager of CROSS. Find My Car The Find My Car feature allows the clients to quickly find the position of the parked car by putting the license plate number into the payment terminal. When the car is found, a sensor on the closest camera unit will start blinking, the way to the car can also be lightened in larger parking lots. The new feature will be appreciated by both the owners of indoor parking lots and the visitors themselves – the drivers. The feature gives accurate information of the capacity available and leads the clients right to available parking places. Higher safety in the parking lot Apart from finding the car, the new technology also secures higher safety in the parking structure. The parked car is observed by the camera at all times and the technology has software for the automatic detection of bad parking, accidents or the triggering of a car alarm. The system can be completed with a classification of cars for e.g. a place reservation for a particular license plate, VIP places, a database of residents for free parking and other upgrade features. Unique technical solution The camera unit is placed on a console beneath the ceiling of the parking lot. Apart from the algorithms for non-standard situations, it also works as a security camera with continuous video recording. The unit has two specially designed cameras and diode signaling with seven color options. One unit’s consumption is only 3 W and the equipment meets the IP65 Protection Standard. 7.2.2019 Read article