Much of Japan's social infrastructure, such as roads, tunnels, and railroads, was intensively developed during Japan's period of rapid economic growth, and there are concerns that it will rapidly deteriorate, making its maintenance and management a major issue. The basic method of infrastructure inspection is close-up visual inspection, but the burden of conducting inspections throughout Japan is extremely heavy, and the shortage of inspection technicians due to the shrinking population makes it difficult to conduct close-up inspections on a roving basis. The introduction of a technology that can replace the close-up inspection is urgently needed.

On June 3, 2020, AERO ASAHI CORPORATION and ASTRODESIGN jointly developed a new measurement vehicle "GT-8K" equipped with 8K imaging technology to enhance the sophistication and efficiency of maintenance performance in various infrastructure fields such as roads, railroads, and airports. The GT-8K is the world's first mobile mapping system (MMS) that combines AERO ASAHI CORPORATION 's long-cultivated measurement technology using mobile measurement vehicles with Astrodesign's expertise in ultra-high-definition 8K video technology.

This technology records the inside of tunnels accurately, rapidly, and quantitatively as digital data by including time, position, and shooting direction to each 8K image, with the measurement vehicle running at the same legal speed as a regular vehicle. In addition, the reproducibility of the 8K area sensor camera image power makes it possible to provide managers and inspectors with data that is close to visual sensations that give a sense of the three-dimensionality and depth of the objects being photographed.

The 8K camera (AB-4815) used for inspections is designed to produce high-quality image output and is effective in measurement. Its high-resolution capability enables the camera to identify cracks on the order of 0.1 mm, as well as to reproduce the texture and three-dimensionality of the subject in color images. Therefore, even with image inspection, inspections can be performed with a sensation similar to that of visual inspection, allowing inspectors to take advantage of their existing know-how.

The shutter speed of the camera is increased when taking images, enabling the acquisition of blur-free images even from a moving car body. Furthermore, the camera is less susceptible to the effects of vibrations and shaking of the vehicle body. By handling continuous images from video recording, it is possible to complement shadows of structures and other objects between images, to verify problem areas from multiple images, and to further improve the accuracy of inspections.

8K technology has the potential to be effectively utilized in various aspects of infrastructure maintenance.
We will continue to develop the technology and its implementation in society, targeting urgent issues that are highly demanded by society.