ATSSA Signal May June 2020

American Traffic Safety Services Association 24 Innovation The company’s VR work zone training immerses workers in the environment they’ll face on the job, allowing them to practice proper protocols and real-time decision-making. “With an effective VR experience, an indi - vidual’s brain isn’t able to tell the differ - ence between the real world and the virtual world,” Roy said. “If this is achieved, aworker canactuallybridge their training experiences into real-world applications, which then allows them to act instinctu - ally in live conditions.” Royal Innovations designed its system to be extremely portable. While some VR trainingexperiencesdependonsimulators that are installed permanently in a single location, Royal Innovations’ VR training runs on the simple toolset of a laptop, VR headset, and hand controllers. “For companies with many different loca - tions, this also helps to increase train - ing availability by enabling training on demand rather than having to schedule less frequent—andmore costly—training events,” Roy said. Roy also points to the benefits of higher retention rates and lower costs associ - ated with jobsite injuries, not to mention life-saving potential fromhaving employ - ees inwork zoneswho feel well-equipped for their high-stress work environment. CompanyownersRobandPamRoyfounded Royal Innovative Solutions in 2018 as a sister company to Royal Truck & Equip - ment. They’dbeen seeking away to show their autonomous truck-mounted atten - uator (ATMA) technology without having to transport heavy equipment to events. Afterworkingwithapartner to showcase ATMA through virtual reality, they saw the opportunity touse this technology to improve work zone safety training. Roysaidthecompanyislookingatadditional ways to use VR technologies to improve safety for themenandwomenwhowork in highway construction. Thecompanyrecently launchedaCommer - cial VehiclePre-Trip InspectionVRprogram and is also looking at ways to use VR to educate the driving public. “Some of our customers are using these VR programs at rest stops or work zone safetyawarenessevents togivemotorists an opportunity to experience the danger - ous conditionshighwayworkersdeal with inwork zones,” Roy said. “Throughaware - ness andeducation, theyhope tocreatea positive trend in which drivers are more cautious when approaching an active work zone.” SECOND PLACE Attenuator ImpactManagement System (AIMS) - Pi Variables, Tustin, Calif. Attenuatorsarealsoknownas “crashcush - ions,” and are meant to absorb impacts when cars hit guardrails and other road - side infrastructure. But they only work if they’re in good condition. California-basedPiVariablesdevelopedthe Attenuator Impact Management System (AIMS) to help DOTs and other infrastruc - ture owners better track the condition of attenuators, so theycanberepairedwhen needed tomaintain their safety value. The systemwas inspired by a crash in the BayAreaafewyearsago,whenacarstruck the end of a barrier, causing fatal injury. “The barrier had been struck 11 weeks prior, but no one knew about it,” said Jim Selevan, founder and CEOof Pi Variables. “When we heard of this fatality, it immedi - atelystruckachord, becausewesee these things on the road.” AIMS isbasedaround“dots”—transmitters the size of a deck of cards with a five-year battery life that are placed on attenua - tors. These dots register when a barrier is struck and send a notification via the AIMSappto infrastructureowners, sothey maydispatchan inspector todetermine if a repair is needed to restore the integrity of the crash cushion. This replaces what has been a somewhat haphazard system dependent on calls from law enforcement and the general public to notify DOTs about potentially compromised barriers. It also enables DOTs to learn about what are known as “nuisance” impacts—when drivers hit a barrier while making a turn and drive away without any damage to their car. The attenuator could still be compromised in those cases, but there wasnoway for anyone toknowabout the impact—until AIMS. “Upon impact, [attenuators] shouldat least be inspectedtomakesure theyaresafe for thenextimpact.Ifnooneisnotified,noone canfix them,” saidSelevan, whoworks on traffic safety-related solutions at Pi Vari - ableswithhis two sons, Chief Technology OfficerAdamSelevanandco-founder and Chief Operations Officer Daniel Selevan. AIMS isanexampleofPi Variables’ growing body of work to create Internet of Things (IoT) devices that canhelpsolveproblems on American roadways. The dots run on a mesh network that consumes very low levelsofpower, allowing themto last inthe field for up to five years. These low-cost, cloud-enabled sensors can help not only with notifying DOTs to fix attenuators, but also with overall asset management and tracking. SincepresentingatATSSA’sNPRO, Selevan said the company has been delugedwith requests, and currently has more than a dozen pilot programs lined up. “AIMS is anattempt tohaveavery low-cost infrastructuresensor that fulfills theneeds of safety andefficiencies at theDOT level,” he said. THIRD PLACE Smart Arrow Boards/Work Zone Loca- tion Sensor System – Ver-Mac, Quebec, Canada Smart arrowboards are increasingly avail - able on the market, but Quebec-based Ver-Mac distinguishes its version by look - ing at the arrow board as one piece of a bigger pictureof elements that canmake work zones safer bydeploying connected technologies. Paired with location sensors that can communicate the start, end, and lane closureswithinawork zone, andpowered by Ver-Mac’s JamLogic software, these