Developing automated visitor monitoring tools for better management of urban nature

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Urban planners, transportation engineers, and park managers lack systematic tools to monitor and predict the usage of urban parks and greenways. Measuring the usage patterns of urban nature is a prerequisite to understanding which factors (e.g., design, program, neighbourhood conditions) are associated with the success of the place. Such monitoring data can contribute to a better understanding of how to improve urban residents' exposure to nature and well-being. WiFi sensing technology became promising in engineering research as most people possess mobile devices. Researchers used the technology in shopping malls, campuses, or public buildings, but it has not been tested at large-scale outdoor sites such as parks and greenways. Researchers have also applied unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, or drones) to traffic monitoring because of their low cost, easy deployment, and broad view scope. My previous works show that UAVs carrying a video camera combine the advantages of human observation and video recording. My long-term research vision is to provide urban forestry planning and design with novel monitoring tools, models, and data, which are informative, cost-effective, and accessible to all. The proposed program has three short-term objectives: 1) Develop reliable and valid visitor monitoring tools in parks and greenways using WiFi sensors, 2) Automate the behaviour mapping process in parks and greenways through the combination of WiFi sensors and UAVs, and 3) Estimate visitor volume and movements using spatio-temporal models. This DG program will train 2 PhD students, 3 MSc students, and 3-6 undergraduate students over the next five years. I will foster a learning environment that encourages a growth mindset, analytical thinking, and peer-to-peer training. Acknowledging that racial, ethnic, and gender diversity is lacking in urban forestry, I will promote an equitable, diverse, and inclusive learning environment by recruiting underrepresented HQP, extend knowledge on mentoring trainees from underrepresented groups, and pursue research that benefits underrepresented communities (regarding Obj.3). Automated visitor monitoring tools and visualizations from this research program can provide city officials and citizens with data to improve their community planning and design. The tools will be affordable, easy-to-implement, and reliable to be used by smaller towns and low-income neighbourhoods with a limited budget, thus increasing the potential impact of the new tools and methods manifold. Understanding who visits urban nature and which social and physical activities they engage in generates knowledge on people-place interaction in public spaces. The tools can also be applied more widely: in post-occupancy evaluations (e.g., measuring the success of the (re)design of urban nature), search-and-rescue operations (e.g., locating victims of disasters in an urban area), and long-term transportation and recreational planning efforts.