Air traffic controllers at Canada’s Ottawa International Airport can now “see” traffic on the airport surface in the southwest area of the airport using a computer vision-based airport surface detection (ASD) system installed by Searidge Technologies. The Searidge system detects aircraft, vehicles, people and other objects using a network of digital-imaging sensors coupled to computer-vision technology. The system will be used for 12 months to deliver real-time views of the southwest area. So far, it has worked accurately in low-visibility conditions, including rain, fog and snow flurries. It can also provide alarms for runway incursions. Searidge said that the surface detection system can replace radar for complete airport ground surveillance “at a fraction of the cost of a radar-based system.”