Until recently，About a half-hour north of Portland, Oregon, on Interstate 5.，Drivers of southbound vehicles are also accustomed to ensuring stable placement of items in their vehicles.、Screw on the beverage bottle cap.，And pray in your heart that nothing falls off the road.。Although this description is slightly exaggerated.，But in an area of about 2400 meters between the town of Woodland, Washington, and the center of Los Angeles.，The concrete pavement is really badly damaged.，Finally, Washington State Ministry of Transport(WSDOT)It is listed as a key rehabilitation project for pavement renovation.。

In order to effectively improve the quality of pavement renovation,，Granite Construction Company（Granite Construction）Topcon is used as the supporting equipmentSmoothRideSmooth pavement renovation control system and supporting Topcon intelligent compaction system（IC）Carry out the specific implementation of renovation construction。This pavement renovation has achieved impressive results.，Significantly improved driving experience，This is a big surprise for the public who often drive through the road.，The final result is satisfactory to all parties.。

Interstate 5

Interstate 5(I-5)Founded in 1956，It is the most important high-speed freight corridor connecting the north and south of the West Coast of the United States.。Interstate 5 spans approximately 2250km，The main routes include San Diego、 Los Angeles 、Sacramento、Many major cities in the United States, including Portland and Seattle，It is the busiest commuter road in Western Washington.，More than 27 cars pass through every day.40,000，This makes Interstate 5 right for the area.、The development of the multidimensional economy of the state and the country plays a vital role in its promotion.。

Although traffic is slightly lower near the Washington and Oregon border，However, due to the large number of heavy goods vehicles,，As a result, the road surface is constantly worn.，Causing cracks in concrete surfaces in many areas of the highway、Ruts and potholes。According to Logan, Granite's materials and construction quality manager.·Cantrell introduced，There are serious problems with the structure of this 2400-meter section of pavement.，The government contracted Granite for nearly $8 million in renovation work.。

“Prior to commencement of project construction，The smoothness of concrete in this section of pavement is very poor.。”He said，“The international flatness index isIRIAlthough in‘Acceptable’Within the scope of，But the real driving experience is very poor.，The main reason is that there are some potholes and bulges on the road surface that need to be thoroughly repaired.，It is easy to simply pave asphalt on the damaged concrete to improve the smoothness of the road surface.，However, only the construction of asphalt overlay in this section can not really solve the problem.。”

“SmoothRideThe real beauty of the system，The system can really deal with serious diseases such as potholes and bulges on the road surface.。”

——Logan·Cantrell，Granite Building Materials and Construction Quality Manager

Reduce pavement reflection cracks

Granite Construction Company with WisconsinAntigo（Antigo）Work with a construction company，First, the location of road cracks is determined.。President of Antigo Construction CompanyMatt ShinnersExpress，This process minimizes the risk of reflective cracking after renovation。

“We first adopted it on Interstate 5.T8600 Badger BreakerThe concrete is repeatedly broken by a breaking hammer weighing 540 kg.。The team from Granite Construction, after the crushing work was completed.，A 50-ton pull-type rubber anti-wear roller was used for multiple rolling.，In this process, we take core samples.，To check the depth of the crack。”After the basic work is ready，Granite Construction began work on the asphalt overlay.。Cantrell introduced：“Our construction manager has previously used Topcon's Smart Compaction technology on several other projects in the area.。Because in the recentConExpoLearned at the exhibitionSmoothRideSystem，And consider whether the system is suitableWSDOTA renovation project。”

Behind the scenes

SmoothRideThe system is a full-process solution launched by Topcon in the field of road renovation and construction.，The system is first used onboard.RD-M1 The scanner performs three-dimensional laser scanning of the road surface.，The system can obtain very detailed undulation data of the road surface.，Based on the data, the designer can examine the existing surface in detail for disease formation.，And create a 3 for the existing problemDDigital construction model，The construction design model is directly used for the automatic construction control of milling or paving equipment.。

Cantrell said：“We did the scanning ahead of time.，This is usedSmoothRideData acquisition that the system must complete in advance，It takes about an hour.，We have completed all the road surface scanning and data acquisition work in this section.，And proceed with data processing and design.。SmoothRideThe data collection method of the system is very efficient.，This is particularly important.， Because WSDOTOnly gave us an hour to scan the entire three lanes of the road.。”

This project is the first time that Granite Construction Company has used it.SmoothRideSystem，During this process, the Topcon technical specialist worked with Granite Construction staff to complete everything necessary for the construction.，To ensure the normal use of the system and the smooth implementation of the construction.，It is also Topcon's consistent proposition and practice in the application of construction system solutions to new projects.。

Cantrell said：“This is a new experience for us.，Every link in the construction of the project is accompanied by Topcon professional technicians.，This is so great.。Will we adoptSmoothRideSuch a solution，Largely depends onWSDOTWill there be additional incentives for future projects?，To significantly improve the smoothness of the road surface.，It is very important for us to do this well.。”

  

Extraordinary Paving Experience

With the 3 of the projectDIntroduction of Digital Construction Model into TopconRD-MCThe variable paving control system controls the automatic operation of the paver，Paver screed can automatically rise and fall to realize high-precision paving of asphalt。RD-MCThe paving system is based on the undulation of the paved road surface.，The initial paving surface will vary slightly in thickness from area to area.，O as to make the necessary thickness corrections in the undulating area，To ensure the structural strength and smoothness of the pavement after compaction.。

Cantrell continued.：“Used during constructionSmoothRideThe real beauty of the system，Is that the system can actually repair and correct bumps and potholes in the pavement。Because the construction design of pavement construction is based on pavement scanning.，Therefore, any bad area of the road surface will be effectively and pertinently corrected.，Finally, we got a very good road repair effect.，This unique treatment significantly improves the smoothness of the road and the driving experience.，Meanwhile, the service life of the pavement is greatly prolonged.。”

Intelligent compaction of pavement

Anyone who has experienced the construction of asphalt pavement paving will have experience.，Even the effect of paving is very good.，If the compaction link is not properly controlled，Will seriously damage the paving effect and lead to quality problems.。Problems caused by over or under voltage include, but are not limited to, material segregation、Surface cracking and spalling。Granite Construction was fully aware of these issues early on.，And by virtue of its long-standing good reputation andWSDOTWait for customer satisfaction.，They are fully committed to ensuring that these problems do not affect the construction projects they are responsible for.。Of course，One of the effective solutions they have adopted is to use a kind ofSmoothRideIdeal complement to system applications，The Topcon Smart Compaction solution mentioned earlier。

“This year，We have been using the Topcon Smart Compaction System across the state.，Let many different staff members have practical experience in various types of projects.。”

——Logan·Cantrell，Granite Building Materials and Construction Quality Manager

Intelligent compaction is based on such a concept.：That is, in the process of asphalt rolling，The more timely the acquisition of road information，The better the performance of the roller operator.。The intelligent compaction system is equipped with a temperature sensor to detect the temperature of the asphalt surface in the compaction process in real time.，And on the screen in the cab with intuitive numbers.、Display it graphically.。In this way，The operator can confirm in real time that the compaction area has been completed and that it is to be completed。According to Cantrell,，The intelligent compaction system has produced an impressive improvement in the performance of the company's operators.，And the whole compaction process can be evaluated and measured in real time.。

Cantrell continued to add.：“This year，We have been using the Topcon Smart Compaction System across the state.，Let many different staff members have practical experience in various types of projects.。Our ultimate goal is to try to improve our performance.WSDOTStandard of work and reduction of deviation，That is to maintain the continuity of construction and the consistency of quality.。This is also the key factor that most directly affects our performance and bonus.。Generally speaking，Differences caused by the coordination of different jobs，Previously, our operation deviation index increased by about 0..5%，If the index can be improved to 1%，You're guaranteed a full bonus.。Now we use Topcon's leading construction technology.，Our operation index is raised to 1..25%And 2%Between the range of，This makes us really see the progress.。This is entirely due to our use of the Topcon Intelligent Compaction System.，No doubt about it，This is very helpful for us.。”

Technological change

Cantrell introduced：“The situation is similar to the application of any new technology，Especially some experienced construction contractors.，Often hesitant to use an intelligent compaction system in the beginning。However，Only when the system is actually used，Their attitude began to change.。People will initially object to anything that takes them out of their comfort zone.，Change is difficult in any industry.。”

The Woodland Construction Site on Interstate 5SmoothRideThe combination of the and the intelligent compaction system achieves Granite's goal，Familiarize yourself with the solution，While better positioning them.，For the possibility of future project incentives。Cantrell said，This improvement must have caught the attention of some people.。

Interstate 5 via TopconSmoothRideAnd intelligent compaction system，Helped Granite Construction achieve the desired results for this project，And will help them get bonus incentives for more construction projects in the future.，This obvious improvement process has indeed attracted the attention of fellow practitioners.。Cantrell continued to introduce.：“This project is great for us.，After the project is completed，IRIThe flatness index is improved by nearly 300%，And we can get about 80 after this work is done.%YesIRIFlatness improvement bonus，This has never happened before.，The results are very shocking.。We really like Topcon.SmoothRideSystem，We also seeWSDOTAdjustments and changes to the acceptance criteria specification，O that the variable milling and variable paving system can be promoted in more projects.IRIIndicators。This is a great opportunity for both of us.，This also allows more practitioners to see more directly.SmoothRideThe impact and changes brought by the system to the industry。