Explained: How acoustic cameras will help Hyderabad Traffic Police curb unnecessary honking

Hyderabad Traffic Police conducted a trial run of using an acoustic camera to identify vehicles that honk unnecessarily on Wednesday.

Hyderabad Traffic Police Joint Commissioner A V Ranganath said that this is the first time acoustic cameras will be used in Hyderabad and India.

"The Acoustic Camera is produced by ACOEM, a german company. It will be integrated with our automatic number plate reading (APNR) system very soon and will be modified to better suit the city's traffic flow." Ranganath told NewsMeter.

"The Acoustic Camera, using its inbuilt sound sensors, will localize the source from where unnecessary honking is originating- especially when there is traffic. Once the source is identified, using the APNR system, we will identify the vehicle and issue challans for honking unnecessarily or continuously," he said.

The software used by the Acoustic Camera will visualize the sound source and provide both acoustic and optical pictures. Using these images, the Hyderabad Traffic Police will ascertain whether the honking was done unnecessarily or not.

Ranganath said that the analysis is done in mere seconds based on sound waves and real-time sound imaging is provided for quick results. He said that acoustic cameras are currently being used for detecting unnecessary honking in several countries such as Israel, Germany, and more.

After conducting more trial runs, the Hyderabad Traffic Police will acquire the cameras within a month.

"Analyzing the data will not be difficult. In addition to this, we will also book those who have air horns in their vehicles," he said.

"Most RTC, private buses, and other heavy vehicles in the Hyderabad Tri-Commissionorate area use air horns," Ranganath said.

However, air horns are not allowed as per the Center's Motor Vehicle Act, Rule 119.

"Bikes and Cars using air horns or horns sounding more than 110 decibels will also be fined heavily," Ranganath said.

This initiative has been taken up in an attempt to make Hyderabad a no-honking city. "The initiative was proposed by Minister KT Rama Rao. He wrote to authorities seeking interest in making Hyderabad a honking-free zone," Ranganath said.

A committee comprising Hyderabad Commissioner CV Anand, Cyberabad Commissioner Stephen Raveendra, and Rachakonda Commissioner Mahesh Bhagawat, along with Ranganath, has been formed.