Measurement of International Roughness Index by Using Z-Axis Accelerometers and GPS

Abstract EN

The International Roughness Index (IRI) is a well-recognized standard in the field of pavement management.

Many different types of devices can be used to measure the IRI, but these devices are mainly mounted on a full-size automobile and are complicated to operate.

In addition, these devices are expensive.

The development of methods for IRI measurement is a prerequisite for pavement management systems and other parts of the road management industry.

Based on the quarter-car model and the vehicle vibration caused by road roughness, there is a strong correlation between the in-car Z-axis acceleration and the IRI.

The variation of speed of the car during the measurement process has a large influence on IRI estimation.

A measurement system equipped with Z-axis accelerometers and a GPS device was developed.

Using the self-designing measurement system based on the methodology proposed in this study, we performed a small-scale field test.

We used a one-wheel linear model and two-wheel model to fit the variation of the Z-axis acceleration.

The test results demonstrated that the low-cost measurement system has good accuracy and could enhance the efficiency of IRI measurement.