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Peachtree Corners Adds Smart Lighting Solutions at Town Center and Curiosity Lab

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High-tech lights at local park

Smart lighting solutions create a safer, cleaner and more connected environment across Curiosity Lab and Peachtree Corners Town Center

Peachtree Corners recently partnered with Juganu, a leading provider of “smart lighting” to deploy a fully digitized and connected lighting system throughout Town Center and in other locations around the city. This marks Juganu’s first full smart city lighting deployment in the United States.

The innovative lighting solution eliminates the need for multiple devices on one light pole. Instead, multiple systems are unified in a single fixture. Each smart city fixture includes energy-efficient and high-quality LED lighting, environmental sensors to monitor air quality and an IoT (Internet of Things) framework that can be used for additional applications as needed. It also leverages a security camera that features AI and edge computing for enhanced capabilities. In addition, each light fixture includes a wireless access point to provide free public Wi-Fi.

High-tech smart light in front of playgound
photo credit: Curiosity Lab

“Juganu’s smart lighting solution adds to our city’s goals of improving safety and quality of life for our residents while providing the efficiency of multiple smart city solutions in one sleek unit,” said Peachtree Corners city manager Brian Johnson. “This adds another element of security and safety to our Town Center, with bright lighting and security cameras that can be accessed if an incident occurs.”

Johnson added that the city is also excited that the new system allows them to offer free public Wi-Fi across Town Center, providing greater connectivity for PTC residents and guests.

“Juganu’s solutions bring our city one step closer to being fully connected,” he said, “and we are thrilled to be the company’s first full deployment in the U.S.”

Expanding the project

There are currently 16 Juganu lighting units in use across Town Center’s playgrounds, four at the dog park and six at the Curiosity Lab Innovation Center. As the project expands, these high-tech lighting solutions will be used throughout Town Center’s parking lots, storefronts and parking deck, as well as in the parking lot at Curiosity Lab. In total, 80 units will be in use across the city.

High-tech light in front of dog park
photo credit: Curiosity Lab

“Peachtree Corners — and Curiosity Lab — was the perfect choice for Juganu to have our first full-scale deployment,” said Shayne Rose, Juganu VP North America, Smart Cities. “Between their bustling Town Center and, of course, the real-world smart city testing environment at Curiosity Lab, these are two unique locations that allow us to showcase and demonstrate how our smart city lighting solution brings additional elements of connectivity, safety and environmental monitoring to our customers.”

Rose shared that Curiosity Lab has been extremely supportive throughout the process, including leading the efforts with Georgia Power, to ensure all communities across the state have access to Juganu’s systems, even if they lease their lighting infrastructure. They’re excited to see how their smart lighting solution improves residents’ lives as the full project is deployed.

To learn more about Juganu’s smart city lighting solutions, visit juganu.com.

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Tech

May Mobility Offers Autonomous Driverless Rides in Peachtree Corners

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self-driving, multi-colored vehicle from May Mobility in service in Peachtree Corners, GA

Peachtree Corners marks May Mobility’s third driverless operation in the US and first commercial driver-out deployment

May Mobility, a leading autonomous vehicle (AV) technology company, recently announced the launch of its first commercial driver-out autonomous transportation service in the City of Peachtree Corners.

The company has transitioned its Peachtree Corners service to driverless operations, marking May Mobility’s third driverless deployment in the United States, following successful demonstration deployments in Sun City, Arizona and Ann Arbor, Michigan.

In partnership with Curiosity Lab, T-Mobile and the City of Peachtree Corners, May Mobility has been offering public rides in its autonomous Toyota Sienna Autono-MaaS (mobility-as-a-service) to visitors of Peachtree Corner’s Curiosity Lab — one of the country’s first smart city environments powered by real-world connected infrastructure and T-Mobile’s 5G — since September 2024 with safety drivers in place.

Rear view of multi-colored, self-driving car from May Mobility on the road in Peachtree Corners
photo courtesy of May Mobility and City of Peachtree Corners

Now passengers will be able to ride the service without anyone behind the wheel. The service zone includes eight pre-determined stops along Technology Parkway at popular destinations such as hotels, restaurants, retail shops, office spaces, the Innovation Center at Curiosity Lab and Peachtree Corners City Hall.

“Peachtree Corners will be our third driverless operation, and we are excited to debut our first publicly available driverless service in the City of Peachtree Corners,” said Edwin Olson, CEO and founder of May Mobility. “This launch reinforces the importance of working with cities and communities everywhere to solve real transportation challenges.”

About the vehicles

May Mobility’s vehicles are equipped with its patented Multi-Policy Decision Making (MPDM) technology that leverages in-situ AI reasoning models to continuously learn and adapt to new, complex and even unpredictable driving conditions to create a safer, more comfortable ride.

In doing so, MPDM solves the industry’s biggest challenge — adapting to unexpected, dynamic conditions or “edge cases,” and allows the company to scale quickly and efficiently to new environments.

“Curiosity Lab’s real-world, smart city ecosystem has provided May Mobility with a unique environment to both continue to develop and improve their operations over the past six months, which has only further prepared the May Mobility team for its third driver-out operation and first commercial operation in the U.S.,” said Brian Johnson, Peachtree Corners city manager.

Up-close look at a sensor on the multi-colored, self-driving car from May Mobility on the road in Peachtree Corners
photo courtesy of May Mobility and City of Peachtree Corners

“T-Mobile’s 5G is a key staple of our ecosystem and the driver-out transition, as it provides May Mobility with low latency, high bandwidth connectivity for a smoother rider experience and enhanced safety operations.”

“This will continue to be important as we work toward expanding the route towards Town Center to provide additional means of transportation for city residents and visitors,” he continued. “It is incredible to see how the May Mobility team has been able to achieve driver-out operations within six months of the initial launch in our city, and we look forward to having our residents and visitors experience it for themselves.”

The details

May Mobility’s driverless operations in Peachtree Corners are open to the public Monday through Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., with each vehicle accommodating up to five passengers at a time.

Riders will be able to easily book trips to any of the service’s eight stops on-demand through the May Mobility app, powered by transit tech company Via, available in the App Store and Google Play. The app guides users on how to book a ride and access the vehicle, answers questions and more.

Up-close look at the rooftop sensor on the multi-colored, self-driving car from May Mobility on the road in Peachtree Corners
photo courtesy of May Mobility and City of Peachtree Corners

May Mobility is working with the City of Peachtree Corners on future expansions and has plans to launch autonomous vehicles in other parts of metro Atlanta in partnership with Lyft later this year.

Additional driverless operations in the U.S. will be announced throughout 2025.

May Mobility extended its leading portfolio of AV use cases with its recent announcement at CES 2025 of a partnership with Tecnobus, an established European electric minibus manufacturer, to introduce a new AV minibus platform able to seat up to 30 passengers, including wheelchair accessibility.

For more information about May Mobility, visit maymobility.com.

For more about the City of Peachtree Corners and Curiosity Lab, visit cityofpeachtreecornersga.gov and curiositylabptc.com.

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City of Peachtree Corners

Peachtree Corners and ConnVAS Collaborate on Intelligent Crosswalk Technology

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Pedestrian Crossing and One Way signs in a suburban neighborhood. There are power lines overhead and trees in the background.

Live pilot in Georgia smart city showcases groundbreaking advancements in pedestrian safety and roadway technology 

Peachtree Corners — one of the nation’s first smart cities powered by real-world connected infrastructure and 5G — has announced a collaboration for a pilot project with ConnVAS, an innovator in advanced traffic and pedestrian safety solutions.

The pilot launched outside of Pinckneyville Middle School, addresses the safety challenges of busy crosswalks by testing how real-time, AI-driven detection can reduce accidents and create a safer environment for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers by activating alerts, even when pedestrians do not activate crosswalk signals.  

An AI-driven computing system

The pilot utilizes ConnVAS’s MAGIC (Multi-Access Generic Infrastructure Controller), AI-driven edge computing system, which incorporates cameras mounted on RRFB poles (Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon) to monitor pedestrian and vehicle movement, V2X transceivers for real-time vehicle-to-infrastructure communication and an integrated audio-visual alert system.

ConnVAS AI-driven tech used for safe crosswalks
photo courtesy of City of Peachtree Corners and ConnVAS

When the system detects a pedestrian or cyclist using the crosswalk, crossing outside of the crosswalk lines or a vehicle approaching the crosswalk, each of its technologies work together in real time to immediately activate alerts to both the users of the crosswalk and incoming drivers — even if the pedestrians did not press the crosswalk buttons.

The system also continually collects anonymous data such as felonies, near-misses and pedestrian and vehicle counts for ongoing analysis of crosswalk usage and traffic.  

“Peachtree Corners is dedicated to implementing technology solutions that address real-world safety challenges for our residents,” said Brandon Branham, executive director of Curiosity Lab.

“The ConnVAS system provides an innovative solution to common safety hazards such as pedestrians crossing outside of designated areas, failure to press crosswalk buttons and drivers failing to detect pedestrians or cyclists in time,” he continued.

One Way and Pedestrian Crossing signs in a suburban neighborhood with power lines overhead and trees in the background. Logos from city of Peachtree Corners, ConnVAS and Curiosity Lab are on top of the image
photo courtesy of City of Peachtree Corners and ConnVAS

“By integrating advanced AI detection and real-time alerts, this ConnVAS pilot enhances safety in an area where our residents need it the most today, while also generating actionable insights that can guide our development of smarter, more responsive infrastructure in the future. We are excited to be continuing the pilot program to continue to gain insights in how we can improve our city for our residents.”  

Collecting data and observing patterns

Preliminary results from the pilot program that were extracted from a midweek 72-hour period, show distinct patterns that can better help city managers ensure roadways are safe and efficient for VRUs (vulnerable road users) and drivers.

At the pilot location, ConnVAS reported over 220 pedestrian crossings for more than 70 crossing events, with only three false alarms. The system consistently and successfully activated flashing beacons and audio alerts in real time, ensuring those crossing the road and oncoming drivers were promptly warned.

Additionally, traffic data collected by the system is being used to evaluate the technology’s impact and will aid city officials in making informed decisions about improving road safety and urban planning in specific locations.  

Pedestrian crossing sign with lights in a suburban neighborhood
photo courtesy of City of Peachtree Corners and ConnVAS

“The pilot we are conducting in Peachtree Corners has been instrumental in refining our technology and demonstrating its impact in a real-world environment,” said Danny Frydman, founder and CEO of ConnVAS. “Through continuous testing and data analysis, we’ve been able to improve the accuracy of our system’s AI detection, ensuring faster and more reliable activation of alerts. This has directly enhanced the safety of the area by addressing critical challenges, including missed warnings for pedestrians and cyclists or delayed driver awareness.”

“The insights gained from this pilot are helping us evolve the software to adapt to complex traffic scenarios and create safer, smarter intersections everywhere,” Frydman added. “We hope to scale this solution throughout the city as the pilot and technology continues to develop.”

Evaluating features

The ConnVAS pilot in Peachtree Corners is continuing to evaluate various features, including autonomous operation features that eliminate the need for manual button presses and reduce false alarms, cyclist-friendly designs and V2X connectivity to communicate with connected vehicles to alert drivers of crosswalk activity.

Additional capabilities such as dynamic illumination based on pedestrian location are also being explored to further enhance VRU safety. 

About ConnVAS

ConnVAS is an innovator in advanced traffic and pedestrian safety solutions. At the core of ConnVAS solutions is the ConnVAS MAGIC — an AI-driven edge computing traffic detector. The MAGIC stands at the heart of ConnVAS enhanced RRFB, intelligent signalized intersection and traffic analytics solutions.

Providing edge computing solutions that include AI detection, V2X communication and diverse interfaces, ConnVAS enhances the safety and efficiency of the transportation environment.

For more information, visit connvas.com.

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Smart City and Innovations

Opsys Collaborates with Curiosity Lab and City of Peachtree Corners to Launch Solid-State LiDAR Technology

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Technology with lights and camera to monitor traffic near the pedestrian bridge in Peachtree Corners

Curiosity Lab and Opsys showcased the technology live at Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona

The City of Peachtree Corners — one of the nation’s first smart cities powered by real-world connected infrastructure and 5G — recently collaborated with Opsys, developer of the world’s most advanced pure solid-state scanning LiDAR sensor, to launch and deploy the company’s Advanced LiDAR Technology Opsys Sensors (ALTOS) Gen 2 LiDAR at Curiosity Lab.

This marks Opsys’ first real-world deployment of the ALTOS, the company’s first deployment with a municipality and the company’s first deployment in the United States.

The ALTOS Gen 2

As a pure solid-state LiDAR, the ALTOS Gen 2 has no moving parts, enabling best-in-class performance with high resolution and extreme reliability with a 4D point cloud from the device’s specific field of view.

The pure-solid state characteristics make the unit more robust, avoiding mechanical failures associated with moving components and allowing the unit to have 24/7 operation and pass a 50g shock and full vibration test. The ALTOS Gen 2 brings a simple, customizable design to market that can be used for different applications and unique shapes with a low-power consumption, without sacrificing performance.

“The ALTOS Gen 2 represents the future of smart city technology,” said Rafi Harel, chief executive officer of Opsys. “This collaboration with Peachtree Corners and Curiosity Lab gives us the unique opportunity to showcase the reliability and efficiency of our pure solid-state LiDAR technology in a real-world environment, which will soon improve safety and traffic management for cities across the globe.”

“As our first real-world deployment and first U.S. deployment, we are looking forward to working with Peachtree Corners as our test and demo site to then launch into the U.S. market,” he continued.

Flexible design and cutting-edge technology

Opsys’ new technology boasts a higher partial differential equation (PDE) and a larger array than other models, which gives the unit improved detection range and a higher resolution of objects. The improved optics reduce unwanted light, while improving uniformity and enhancing illumination. In addition, the unit’s optimized ASIC/processor allows for advanced processing of data, as well as lower power dissipation and cost.

“Opsys’ technology was extremely easy to calibrate and deploy in our city,” said Brandon Branham, executive director of Curiosity Lab. “The simple, yet flexible design made it easy for set up, without the need of special custom cables or proprietary connectors. The device behaves like a normal network device which also made it easy for us to integrate into our single-pane-of-glass, smart city management systems.”

“By adding this cutting-edge technology into our infrastructure, we’re able to enhance safety and operational efficiency for our community while showcasing scalable solutions that other cities and industries can easily adopt,” Branham added.

Location and Details

The ALTOS Gen 2 LiDAR units are deployed in the City of Peachtree Corners at the intersection of SR 141 and Town Center Boulevard. Here, the ALTOS Gen 2 units provide precise, real-time data on traffic flow and pedestrian movements, offering significant enhancements to urban safety and traffic management.

Its ability to operate continuously while supporting PoE (power over ethernet) and auxiliary power make it adaptable for different municipal implementations and ideal for use across various industries including intelligent traffic systems (ITS), smart factories, robotics and public safety applications such as perimeter security and healthcare.

 Smart City Expo World Congress, Barcelona

Opsys debuted the technology at the Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona November 5-7 in the Curiosity Lab booth. This included a demo with live LiDAR feed from the Peachtree Corners intersection. Representatives of Curiosity Lab and Opsys were also available for interviews at Booth D40 Hall 3 in the USA Pavilion.

For more information about Opsys, visit opsys-tech.com.

For more about the City of Peachtree Corners, visit peachtreecornersga.gov.

To learn more about Curiosity Lab, visit curiositylabptc.com.

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