Case Study: Using Radios To Backhaul Intersection Data
Western Systems Partnered With The City Of Everett, Washington To Install Intuicom Broadband Radios
Background
A Growing Industrial Business Area
Everett, Washington’s industrial business area, led by the aviation giant, Boeing, is facing rapid growth, with new developments and an influx of
businesses setting up shop. Boeing alone has over 30,000 employees in the area and with companies like Amazon and FedEx recently moving in – traffic has significantly increased.
The Challenge
Bridge the Data & Communication Gap
The growing local economy has created an ever-increasing burden on roadways and intersections. As traffic increases, so does the need for data.
For the city of Everett, utilizing fiber cable wasn’t an option to bring back controller and camera data at a major thoroughfare in the heart of their
industrial business area. This created a challenge for the city – how can we backhaul data to our traffic management center without using fiber?
The Solution
Western Systems Provides Intuicom Radios
Working closely with the city, Western Systems created a custom solution utilizing Intuicom 5.8 GHz Broadband Radios. This solution provided an efficient and
cost-effective way to bring back intersection data to their public works building.
The thoroughfares receiving the radios included hills and many sharp curves, which provided a limited line of sight. To ensure a successful and fully functional system, the Western Systems team did a complete field analysis to determine the best placement for the radios.
The unobtrusive radios were installed to existing infrastructure and used power of Ethernet (POE), reducing the need to add a separate power cable. The radios jump back on to the city’s fiber network at the end of the corridor, sending the data directly to their traffic management center.
Outcome
More Data Leads to Informed Decision Making
A total of 16 Intuicom radios were installed throughout the corridor. The city can now bring back every IP addressable device, including controllers, cameras, video detection and more at its very busy and growing industrial business area. With more data at the city’s fingertips, traffic engineers are able to make real-time adjustments and see exactly what is happening on the road.