Performance assessment of a smart road management system for the wireless detection of wildlife road-crossing

A wireless distributed system for the detection of the wildlife road-crossing events is addressed to prevent the problem of collisions with the approaching vehicles. The system is based on a wireless sensor network architecture deployed along the road sides in order to alert in real-time the drivers about the dangerous presence of deers within a security area determined by Doppler radar modules integrated in the nodes of the wireless network. The system aims at providing the information for the smart management of road signs through their adaptive activation only in presence of real dangers. The performance of the detection has been assessed during a long-term measurement campaign along a road stretch in Trentino, Italy, where the problem of deer road-crossing significantly impacts the driver safety and security.