Smart streets: AI, robotics for smart traffic management

Indian born Engineer Vaibhav Ghadiok has architected, what is said to be the the first autonomous traffic management platform in the world. The 36-year-old is a leading figure in the field of robotics with multiple inventions and patents to his name. He is the executive vice-president of engineering at Hayden AI (Silicon Valley, USA), where he is using his expertise in AI and robotics to enhance transit systems across the world.

His latest work has applications in building smarter cities and modernising and optimising traffic management that will have an impact on millions of people. He is currently working with major US state governments to implement this technology with plans to expand globally.

Ghadiok says, “Our technology will improve the efficiency of public transportation, reduce carbon emissions and make cities more sustainable and connected. This will have a massive positive impact on millions of lives by improving the human experience.”

Ghadiok leads a team of 30 talented scientists and engineers that has architected a camera-based perception platform that can be deployed in city fleets such as transit buses and garbage trucks for automated traffic and parking management. The perception system builds a rich 3D semantic map of its environment identifying objects such as lane lines, parking meters, traffic signs, fire hydrants, sidewalks and crosswalks. With each successive pass it refines this map and updates it. Armed with this map and running deep-learning-based computer vision algorithms, the system automatically detects violations such as illegally parked vehicles in bus lanes. Reducing such violations allows buses to move faster.

This technology enables effective enforcement addressing one of the major criticisms of past bus lane programs. Improved bus speed leads to faster commute times and increased ridership. As cities such as Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai reconsider adopting dedicated bus lanes, technology developed by Ghadiok will play a key role in their successful implementation.
Hayden AI bridges the innovation gap in traffic management by combining artificial intelligence with mobile sensors that have the ability to see and reason in 3D. It is leading the way in creating smart solutions for cities of the future. Its autonomous traffic management platform enables innovative cities to improve urban mobility and enhance the quality of life of communities by making traffic flow safer and more reliable.