Highway officials to road-test device for traffic warnings

FAYETTEVILLE -Brett Schaefer had little more than an idea when he met late last fall for lunch with Alan Meadors, planning and research division engineer for the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department.

Schaefer, now the chief executive officer for Fayetteville startup Visualogistic Technologies, wanted togauge the need for a new kind of early-warning system for motorists. He had no design team, no capital and no product, but he had a rough outline in his head of a digital system that could collect traffic data while also warning motorists of various delays they might encounter on state highways.

Today, nine months after that meeting, the company has its first customer.

Visualogistic Technologies has agreed to produce 12 units for the Highway Department as part of a pilot program.

Th at initial order is scheduled to be delivered and placed on a stretch of road in Little Rock within a month.

“I didn’t know we would be on the interstate this fast,” Schaefer said. “I don’t think anybody knew it. We were extremely surprised to have the blessing so fast.”

Schaefer developed the concept after he was involved in an accident on a stretch of road where construction stalled traffic. He was rear-ended because the driver behind him didn’t have enough warning that traffic was not just slowed,but stopped.

Encouraged by his meeting with Meadors, Schaefer assembled a team of engineers to develop his concept into a working, marketable product.

What the team built is a device that marries the technology used in cameras and a digital, color-coded message board that alerts drivers of road conditions. Each device updates in real time, making it more effective than manually updated roadside message boards.

In addition to monitoring traffic conditions and alerting drivers of danger zones, the solar-powered device also collects traffic-related data.

Rather than string cables across a busy stretch of road, the devices count traffic, log speeds and capture other information that the Highway Department can use when planning projects.

Schaefer, whose team was busy pitching to potential investors during ARK Challenge Demo Days on Thursday, came back to Meadors with a prototype.

“We have money in our budget for equipment, and we decided to give this system a try,” Meadors said. “Even if it doesn’t work for its intended [early-warning] purpose, we’ll be able to get speed and other traffic data that makes it valuable.

“When he pitched it, I thought it was an innovative solution that made me [wonder], ‘Why didn’t I think of that?’ It took somebody outside the business to think outside the box on this. If it really works, it will be a low-cost solution.”

Meadors estimated the initial investment for the pilot project between $30,000 and $36,000.

Each of the 12 units will be spaced out over a quarter of a mile near the Interstate 30/ Interstate 430 interchange in Little Rock.

After an initial two-week period, Meadors said, his team will change spacing and possibly look at other locations to monitor.

To cover every mile of interstate, Schaefer said, would require between 2,000 and 3,000 devices.

The product would benefit not just commuters and the Highway Department, but he also envisions trucking companies could use the data to develop the most efficient routes for commercial drivers.

Micah Hale, a civil engineering professor at the University of Arkansas, introduced Schaefer and Meadors.

Hale was impressed by Schaefer’s vision and believed that if the product could be developed beyond concept, there would be a market with highway departments.

“I thought Brett had a good idea, and the Highway Department might be interested if he was able to get it developed. He’s done it,” Hale said.

“I think you’re looking at a way to reduce the number of collisions and save lives. I think there is a lot of data the Highway Department can use. I think this has the chance to be a popular tool.”

Business, Pages 23 on 09/09/2013

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