1. Report on 3-Year Plan for Improving Safety
  2. List of activities
  3. "We are playing a major role in the development of new technologies in the 3-Year Plan for Improving Safety."

Responsible for improving safety NEXCO CENTRAL Group employees

"In the 3-Year Plan for Improving Safety,
It plays a major role in developing new technologies. "

  • Yuzo Kato
    NEXCO CENTRAL
    Technology Development Team Leader, Environment & Technology Planning Department, Technology & Construction DivisionJunichiro Higashi
    We are developing technologies for improving safety in cooperation with various research institutions, companies, and universities.

What theme are you currently working on technology development?

east: Based on NEXCO Central Japan's 3-Year Plan for Improving Safety, the technology development team is actively working on the development of new inspection technologies as an important issue. What I felt strongly among them was that the accuracy of the inspection technology of skilled technicians was extremely high. Therefore, we are developing new technologies in a direction that follows human inspection. For example, the development theme is to inspect the inside of concrete, places where it cannot be seen directly, and places where close-up viewing is not possible without using an aerial work vehicle.
In addition, inspections by humans often require lane regulation and road closures, which takes time. Therefore, we are working on the development of equipment that can perform inspection work while traveling. We believe that if the progress of damage can be grasped by supplementing inspections by humans and continuously measuring cracks in concrete, repairs can be made at a more appropriate time and this will contribute to the maintenance and management of Expressway.
In addition, we are working to quantify the progress of deterioration using equipment, such as the support force of anchor bolts for hanging and fixing a jet fan or the like to the ceiling of the tunnel. By objectively evaluating the numerical values, the ranking of deterioration status will be clear and it will be easier to prioritize repair plans.

What kind of technology are you working on besides the inspection technology?

Status of visualization of brain activity (ΔCOE: change in brain oxygen consumption)
Visualizes changes in oxygen consumption in the driver's brain. During acceleration, the state of sedation (blue state) does not consume much oxygen, and when it slows down, it changes from green to red, indicating that brain activity consumes a lot of oxygen due to tension.

east: In collaboration with the University of Tokyo Institute of Industrial Technology and Brain School Co., Ltd., we conduct technical research for traffic safety measures from the perspective of brain science. This is because a device called brain function near infrared analysis measurement method fNIRS (Efnils) is attached to the head of the driver like headgear, and through the change in oxygen consumption of the brain, Expressway It is to visualize the brain activity when driving.
For example, when you are decelerating, your brain is activated and the amount of oxygen exchange increases. This is displayed in red and yellow in the right figure. When accelerating, brain activity decreases and oxygen consumption also decreases, shown in blue in the right figure. It is known that there is a difference in brain activity due to acceleration and deceleration. As research progresses and brain activities can be analyzed in detail, it is possible to objectively evaluate whether signs and information boards are easy to see and understand, and more effective traffic safety measures It becomes possible to carry out.

We are also researching a system (vector) that controls the speed of the driver and controls the speed of the driver by controlling the blinking of light-emitting devices installed on the side of the road to make it appear as if the light is running. The This system has been found to be effective in preventing a drop in speed with sag * by appropriately setting the traveling speed of light, Out-bound We are also studying whether it is possible to reduce the speed on hills. With such a system, we are conducting research to support safe and comfortable driving at a higher level.
* Sag: on the road Out-bound From the slope In-bound Change point to the slope.

Status of visualization of brain activity (ΔCOE: change in brain oxygen consumption)
Visualizes changes in oxygen consumption in the driver's brain. During acceleration, the state of sedation (blue state) does not consume much oxygen, and when it slows down, it changes from green to red, indicating that brain activity consumes a lot of oxygen due to tension.

Please tell us your thoughts on the work of technology development.

east: We have an enormous amount of data on deterioration of structures accumulated through inspections, Expressway There is knowledge about civil engineering technology cultivated by construction. We are exploring the possibility of new technology development while providing a place to conduct experiments such as bridges and tunnels by combining this with the advanced technology that research institutions and private companies are working on.
Going forward, step by step through the various research reports, going to the manufacturer's research presentations, collecting information, and matching with our efforts to improve safety thinking about. Safe and secure Expressway To maintain this, we are firmly aware that the role we play is very important and will continue to work on development.

List of activities

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