Fixed/Mobile Collaborative Traffic Flow Detection Study Based on Wireless Charging of UAVs

Accurate traffic flow detection plays a critical role in intelligent traffic control systems. However, conventional fixed video detection devices often face challenges such as occlusion and overlap in high-density traffic scenarios, which leads to distortions in vehicle detection. To address this issue, it is essential to obtain precise vehicle data as a reliable reference for managing traffic flow during peak periods. In this paper, we propose an intelligent detection scheme using an improved YOLOv8n target recognition algorithm combined with a ByteTrack multi-target tracking algorithm. A collaborative unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) collaborative detection framework is also established, integrating UAVs and fixed detection devices to work in tandem. Such a multi-UAV collaborative data acquiring system is designed for efficient, continuous, and uninterrupted operation, employing a three-drone rotational detection strategy. UAVs offer additional flexibility and coverage in obtaining vehicle data. However, limited power could be an essential challenge to the system’s wireless physical link stability and safety. To overcome power limitations during UAV collaboration, a wireless charging (WC) system is introduced, enabling automatic constant current–constant voltage (CC-CV) switching and preventing damage from accidental data link disabling. This collaborative traffic data acquiring and transmission system ensures a stable power supply for UAVs during high-density traffic periods, supporting their reliable UAV collaborative wireless data link. Experimental results show that the collaborative detection architecture combined with wireless charging can achieve high detection accuracy, with the recognition accuracy remaining between 0.95 and 0.99.