Sun Glare Detection and Visualization

Abstract

Presence of sun glare while driving can be both annoying and potentially dangerous. This paper presents a method for calculating the presence of sun glare on roads. A plug-in for QGIS that can be used to visualize the results and perform analysis on the data is also presented. By calculating the sun's position relative to a point on the road and checking whether or not the surrounding terrain is occluding the sun, the system can calculate the visibility of the sun. Having established visibility of the sun, road data is analyzed to determine if the sun will be a distraction to the driver at any given time. The results of the glare detection are written to a shapefile and returned to the plug-in for visualization and examination. Experiments on the validity of the glare detection have been conducted, and these show that the system is able to correctly detect sun glare. Obtained results can be used to assess the safety of present or future roads, and the system can be a useful tool for evaluating potential safety measures.