A new high-tech robot has joined the Craigieburn Road Upgrade on the front line to make the job of surveyor’s line marking the road easier and safer.
Major Road Projects Victoria (MRPV) has welcomed the new state-of-the-art three-wheeler to the team, which will help surveyors complete work more safely without the strain of bending over to mark dots on the road next to live traffic and allow the line marking of the road to be carried out more efficiently.
The robot – about the size of a domestic lawnmower – will ensure surveyors on the project continue to have the best equipment, and the flexibility to respond to the evolving challenges of road construction.
Dubbed the ‘TinySurveyor Terra’ – a medium, fast and compact robot - is equipped with advanced GPS and automation technology to deliver precise, reliable measurements faster than traditional methods and can autonomously paint extremely precise points, with accuracy of between 1 and 3 centimetres.
MRPV and construction partner Fulton Hogan have invested in the surveying technology, which saves surveyors countless hours of manual work and minimises risks to human safety on site.
On the Craigieburn Road Upgrade, the robot has been completing surveying activities in a around a 5th of the time that it would normally take to do the job on foot.
This has helped keep surveyors out of the elements and away from live traffic – getting the job done more efficiently, a major factor of its use is that the surveyor is more situational aware, without the need to constantly look down to the screen attached to the survey device.
The TinySurveyor Terra has been online since July with other similar type robots to hit the beat later this year on other road projects, including the nearby Sunbury Road Upgrade.
The new robot has been implemented as part of Major Road Projects Victoria’s Craigieburn Road Upgrade and still requires the essential input of surveyors to ensure the robot’s safe and appropriate operations.
The Craigieburn Road Upgrade as already made excellent progress this year, with the construction of new intersections wrapping up at Hume Highway and Mickleham Road and works continuing on new westbound lanes.
Once complete, the Craigieburn Road Upgrade will benefit road users by improving traffic flow and travel times, enhance connectivity across Craigieburn, make it easier for people to walk or cycle across the area.
The Craigieburn Road Upgrade works are scheduled to be fully complete in 2025.