Exploring Applications for Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) and Unmanned Ground Systems (UGS) in Enhanced Incident Management, Bridge Inspection, and Other Transportation Related Operations: Final Report

Kamga, Camille; Sapphire, Joah; Cui, Yu; Moghimidarzi, Bahman; Khryashchev, Denis · 2017 · ROSA P / City University of New York. University Transportation Research Center

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Summary

This report, commissioned by the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) and conducted by the University Transportation Research Center, evaluates the feasibility, costs, and benefits of deploying Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) and Unmanned Ground Systems (UGS) for transportation operations. The study aims to identify potential deployment opportunities for NYSDOT, specifically focusing on enhanced incident management, bridge inspection, roadway mapping, and traffic monitoring. The research synthesizes a literature review of existing applications, regulatory frameworks, and technological specifications, alongside demonstrations conducted at the 2016 ITS-NY Annual Meeting. The methodology primarily involves a comprehensive review of case studies from various institutions, including California State University, Michigan Technological University, and several state Departments of Transportation. The report analyzes specific UAS hardware, such as the DJI Inspire 1 and Phantom 2, detailing their technical specifications, flight parameters, and photogrammetric accuracy. It also examines the regulatory environment, summarizing the Federal Aviation Administration’s Part 107 rules for small UAS operations. For UGS, the report focuses on Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CAVs), reviewing communication technologies like Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) and Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I), as well as sensor characteristics and levels of automation. Key findings indicate that UAS offer significant advantages over traditional methods in several areas. For roadway mapping, UAS surveying is as accurate as conventional methods but requires substantially less time and provides superior imagery due to proximity to the subject. In structural inspections, particularly for bridges and confined spaces, UAS reduce costs, eliminate the need for bridge closures, and minimize safety risks for inspectors. In traffic incident management, UAS can document accident scenes 80% faster than traditional methods, reducing roadway occupancy time and the risk of secondary collisions. However, limitations include short battery lives (20–30 minutes for multi-rotors), susceptibility to inclement weather, and the inability to perform hands-on tasks like cleaning or physical testing. Regarding UGS, the report highlights that CAV technology can reduce human error, which contributes to nearly 90% of traffic crashes, and improve public transit efficiency through better coordination and reduced delays. The significance of this report lies in its provision of a strategic framework for NYSDOT to integrate automated systems into its operations. It concludes that UAS and UGS can enhance safety, reduce operational costs, and improve data collection efficiency. The report recommends further exploration of these technologies for near-term deployment, particularly for incident response and infrastructure inspection, while noting the need to address regulatory compliance and technical limitations such as weather dependency and battery constraints.

Key finding

Using unmanned aerial systems to document highway accident scenes decreases the time spent on the roadway by 80% and the time spent taking measurements by 65% compared to traditional methods.

Methodology

review

Provenance

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