New gadget to calculate accurate vehicle speed in crashes

A state of the art laser scanner is helping Hertfordshire Police collect essential data which can be used to calculate the speed of impact of vehicles involved in road traffic collisions.

The RIEGL VZ-400, purchased from 3D Laser Mapping, is being used to build highly accurate virtual 3D models of vehicles after their involvement in a crash. These computer generated simulations can then be compared to models of the same type of vehicle, prior to damage, to help estimate the speed of impact and other factors that may have impacted on the incident.

"While conventional measurement methods still work by using the RIEGL laser scanner, we collect more accurate data, much faster and more safely," said PC Matthew Hollingsworth a forensic collision investigator at the Beds, Herts and Cambs Collision Investigation Unit. “With the laser scanner there is no need to touch the vehicle which may have sharp edges or be contaminated with vehicle fluids such as oil and battery acid.

"Not touching the vehicle also helps to preserve other evidence, so that forensically a vehicle can still be analysed. This is significant as it allows the Collision Investigator to obtain essential data without having to wait for a Forensic Examination to be completed."