Sealed-Crack Detection Algorithm Using Heuristic Thresholding Approach

Sealed cracks are frequently observed on the road pavement due to pavement crack sealing. A sealed crack is a type of road surface distress, whose assessment is essential in pavement management system. In this paper, the state-of-the-art in automated pavement surface crack detection is presented. An algorithm is also developed to automatically detect sealed cracks in pavement surface images. The algorithm steps are elaborated with case study samples. Moreover, in image segmentation step, a method is developed based on a local minimum approach. The proposed algorithm is tested through various pavement surface images collected in an exhaustive case study. The evaluation is conducted with respect to the performance and robustness perspectives. The experimental results indicate that the developed algorithm has high accuracy and can consistently detect sealed cracks in different environments.