Impacts of fog characteristics, forward illumination, and warning beacon intensity distribution on roadway hazard visibility

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bullough, John D. ; Rea MS
• Description:
  Warning beacons are critical for the safety of transportation, construction, and utility workers. These devices need to produce sufficient luminous intensity to be visible without creating glare to drivers. Published standards for the photometric performance of warning beacons do not address their performance in conditions of reduced visibility such as fog. Under such conditions light emitted in directions other than toward approaching drivers can create scattered light that makes workers and other hazards less visible. Simulations of visibility of hazards under varying conditions of fog density, forward vehicle lighting, warning beacon luminous intensity, and intensity distribution were performed to assess their impacts on visual performance by drivers. Each of these factors can influence the ability of drivers to detect and identify workers and hazards along the roadway in work zones. Based on the results, it would be reasonable to specify maximum limits on the luminous intensity of warning beacons in directions that are unlikely to be seen by drivers along the roadway, limits which are not included in published performance specifications. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Automobiles Construction Industry Environment Lighting Occupational Health Safety Transportation
• Keywords:
  Construction-workers Drivers Environmental Factors Equipment Testing Hazards Highway Work Zones Light Emission Lighting-systems Performance Tests Photometry Safety Equipment Service-industries Signal Devices Signaling Systems Transportation-workers Utility Workers Visual Aids Visual Fields Visual Motor Performance Warning-devices Warning-signals Warning-systems Workers Worker Safety

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• ISSN:
  1537-744X
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  New York ; OSHA Region 2
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  2016
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20048241
• Citation:
  Sci World J 2016 May; 2016:4687816
• Contact Point Address:
  Mark S. Rea, Lighting Research Center, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY 12180, USA
• Email:
  ream@rpi.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2016
• NORA Priority Area:
  Transportation, Warehousing and Utilities
• Performing Organization:
  Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20130901
• Source Full Name:
  The Scientific World Journal
• End Date:
  20180831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:9f0a00d5b1ce321d1b2ee3b6b0ad0cf296397127a6e219f7a5d794eb74fbe6f299e72a39a7dce68ae459c8f37404f34d2f8596e814c417e5fe5be143935f3251
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/203047/cdc_203047_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 165.86 KB ]