A breakthrough in the size and capabilities of retroreflectometers is being claimed by Brazilian company Easylux with its new Autonomous Mini model.
Retroreflectometers have been shrinking steadily over the decades, and a current model usually weighs about 8-10kg. However, Easylux’s model cuts the size and weight of the devices to just 2kg – “completely impossible to imagine two or three years ago”, said company founder Eng. Gustavo Felipe Paolillo.
The new model is battery-powered and, once laid on a highway marking line will automatically follow it for as long as its battery lasts or a human intervenes. Tests have shown that it can operate non-stop for five hours. It is being shown at Intertraffic for the first time anywhere in the world.
A major benefit of the device is that it can be put to work on roadways too hazardous for personnel to venture. A road crew can start the machine off and allow it to proceed by itself, although the company is working on a version that can be controlled from a mobile phone.
The size of the device means it frees space in the marking truck for other equipment and it allows it to be moved between sites with minimal effort.
Paolillo hopes to have the device in service in the second half of this year.
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