Flir launches TrafiBot Dual AI camera to enable improved traffic flow, safety...

01 Oct 2024

...and Teledyne Flir Defense wins contracts worth $47 million to supply unmanned ground systems for U.S. DoD.

Thermal imaging camera and sensor developer Flir has announced the launch of its TrafiBot Dual AI multispectral camera system, specified for “interurban traffic intelligence”. This closed-circuit traffic camera is designed to improve safety in tunnels and on bridges where drivers are most at risk for hitting unseen objects or being trapped by vehicle fires.

The TrafiBot Dual AI offers a fast thermal core and 14-bit early fire detection for road tunnels, an artificial intelligence system to maximize detection performance, and a traffic data collection system for use along interurban roadways, as Flir states, “without sacrificing imaging resolution or data loss due to bandwidth restrictions”.

The camera utilizes three Flir proprietary AI models simultaneously, developed and trained from millions of images collected across the world. One model identifies and classifies fallen objects while the other two classify vehicles on thermal and on the visual stream, including unusual objects such as e-scooters and vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists.

Combined with the Flir’s patented 3D world tracker, TrafiBot Dual AI can detect incidents within a scene. As vehicles enter its field of view, the camera anticipates vehicle speed and trajectory, even if tracked objects become obscured by other objects. TrafiBot Dual AI can also detect sudden lane changes and wrong-way drivers.

“Intelligent traffic management systems have made great strides during the past decade, and today traffic management teams require more immediate, accurate traffic data to alert first responders, save lives, and get vehicles moving again,” said Stefaan Pinck, Vice President, Business Development, Flir. “TrafiBot Dual AI provides that capability through a combination of proprietary AI models 3D world tracker and its early fire detection capabilities.”

“Flir has gone in the right direction by integrating its own traffic intelligence experience dating back more than 30 years within its AI algorithm, an experience unmatched by anyone else in the industry,” said Gil Marques, President of Tacel Ltd., one of Canada’s leading suppliers of advanced traffic management systems and traffic control devices.

The camera is designed to integrate with Flir Cascade, a new software package that can collect and organize data from TrafiBot Dual AI. It also provides a state-of-the-art intelligent incident filtering system to ensure only the relevant incidents are shown to the traffic operator. If an incident is detected, a short, 4K-resolution color and/or a thermal video clip of the scene is flagged for the traffic management team for immediate review.

Flir Defense wins $47 M US defense contracts

Teledyne FlirDefense has been awarded two five-year requirements contracts worth up to $47 million in total to provide and support nearly its entire range of ground robots to the United States government. The contracts were awarded by the U.S. Army Contracting Command in Detroit and will be administered by the Robot Logistics Support Center.

The first contract, valued at up to $32 million, will support sustainment of the Man-Transportable Robotic System and Common Robotic Systems-Heavy fielded robots. This contract is available to all Department of Defense units and includes spares and repair services.

The second contract, valued at up to $15 million, will support sustainment of the TFD FirstLook 110, SUGV 310, PackBot, and Kobra 725 ground robots. This contract is available to all U.S. government agencies and includes the purchase of all robotic systems listed as well as training to fulfill foreign military sales and customer requirements for robots, training or parts.

“These new funding vehicles are critically important in maintaining both DoD and Federal government readiness to address threats solved with the help of ground robots,” said Tung Ng, vice president of Unmanned Systems North America at TFD. “Whatever the job may be, our men and women in uniform know they can depend on all our robotic platforms to help them perform missions more safely and effectively. We are honored by their trust.”

The two contracts span nearly the full portfolio of Flir Defense’s unmanned ground systems – from the six-pound throwable FirstLook to the man-portable PackBot, relied on by the U.S. military for bomb disposal since 2001, up to the 525-pound Kobra/CRS-H robot used for remote CBRN detection, larger ordnance disposal, and other heavy-duty tasks.