Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2017, Computer Science and Engineering

Visual infrastructure, which consists of connected visual sensors, has been extensively deployed and is vital for various important applications, such as surveillance, tracking, and monitoring. However, there are still many problems regarding visual sensor deployment for optimal coverage and visual data processing technology. Challenges remain with the sectoral visual sensing model, the complexity of image processing, and these sensors' vulnerability to noisy environments. Solving these problems will improve the performance of visual infrastructure, which increases accuracy and efficiency for these applications. This dissertation focuses on visual-infrastructure-related technologies. In particular, we study the following problems. First, we study visual infrastructure deployment. We propose local face-view barrier coverage (L-Faceview), a novel concept that achieves statistical barrier coverage in visual sensor networks leveraging mobile objects' trajectory information. We derive a rigorous probability bound for this coverage via a feasible deployment pattern. The proposed detection probability bound and deployment pattern can guide practical camera sensor deployments in visual infrastructure with limited budgets. Second, we study visual-infrastructure-based object recognition. We design and implement R-Focus, a platform with visual sensors that detects and verifies a person holding a mobile phone nearby with the assistance of electronic sensors. R-Focus performs visual and electronic data collection and rotates based on the collected data. It uses the electronic identity information to gather visual identity information. R-Focus can serve as a component of visual infrastructure that performs object identity recognition. Third, we study visual-infrastructure-based object localization. We design Flash-Loc, an accurate indoor localization system leveraging flashes of light to localize objects in areas with deployed visual infrastructure. An object emits a seq (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2022, Civil Engineering

Resilience strategies are important considerations to decision-makers responsible for planning, designing, maintaining, and operating critical infrastructure systems where the consequences of failure in the presence of low-probability extreme events are high. Numerous studies have sought to define and measure resilience as a characteristic of a system; represent performance of systems prior to, during, and after extreme events; and quantify a system's resilience, typically in the form of a score or an index. However, limited progress has been made towards making effective resilience decisions that take into account key tradeoffs. This study seeks to provide infrastructure decision-makers with comprehensive and operationally useful information regarding the resilience of their infrastructure by incorporating the probability of failure of facilities due to extreme events and the corresponding expected losses into a lifecycle cost function that can be optimized to determine the most beneficial balance between resilience to extreme events on the one hand and the cost of resilience strategies on the other. By incorporating both the cost and benefit of implementing resilience improving strategies within an infrastructure system planning, design, and management decision framework, resilience informed decisions can be made by exploring lifecycle cost tradeoffs. The developed framework is operationalized to investigate the facility hardening and system dispersal resilience improving strategies in the contexts of a natural disaster and, separately, an intentional threat aplications. Facility characteristic and damage data from a US Air Force base in Florida hit by a category 5 hurricane in 2018 along with US Department of Defense facility design guidelines in the presence of explosive threats are used to estimate construction cost, operating cost, and probability of failure models. These models are employed in an evaluation designed to illustrate the developed framewor (open full item for complete abstract)

MARCH, University of Cincinnati, 2021, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Architecture

With the ever-increasing threat of water scarcity due to climate change, the way in which humans distribute, manage, treat, and perceive freshwater resources poses great significance when building efficient water infrastructure. In an era of technological breakthroughs in sustainability and green infrastructure, combined with a rise in environmental activism and awareness, developing infrastructure that protects, preserves, and enhances our relationship with water is not only possible but also promising. However, various problems stem from poor water infrastructure, the most pressing including flooding, hard path water systems, stormwater runoff, and combined sewage overflows (COS's). Sustainably improving water infrastructure has a personal incentive to me because problems resulting from inadequate water infrastructure are more prevalent in my home state. For example, throughout the entire US, the worst flooded basement problems are all in Ohio, in order of Toledo, Cincinnati, and Columbus. This research paper proposes that “naturalizing,” or the process of integrating natural water systems into existing industrialized water infrastructure, can be a solution to improving failures in our current water systems, which contribute to the exacerbation of climate change. It is important to state, the traditional denotation of the word architecture refers to designing a building or structure, however for the sake of this paper, architecture applies to a large geographic region, which includes buildings and structures as part of the overall water infrastructure. The master plan involves the naturalization of a 2.25-mile concrete channel of West Fork Mill Creek in Cincinnati, Ohio, which runs along I74. There are eight total sites of intervention within the master plan. The need for the naturalization process is highlighted by a critical analysis of each site's water infrastructure failures. When supporting the argument of naturalizing systems, a series of techniques for (open full item for complete abstract)

Bachelor of Arts (BA), Ohio University, 2022, Environmental Studies

The research conducts a detailed analysis of neighborhood change, eviction, and displacement in Cincinnati as a result of recent investment projects under the names of neighborhood improvements, revitalization and green public spaces. I have examined how waves of gentrification have shifted demographic characteristics of residents in the Over-The-Rhine neighborhood of Downtown Cincinnati, and a growing shortage of affordable rental homes for low-income households. Over-The-Rhine is promoted as a success story as it has attracted new developments, businesses and young professionals. However, many old communities of this gentrifying neighborhood have been displaced and evicted during the pandemic. This displacement has affected both residents and small business owners, primarily within the last 15 years. Class, ethnicity, and age of residents/business owners are crucial aspects of this current issue.

MARCH, University of Cincinnati, 2019, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Architecture

The prevailing view towards infrastructure over the last century has been to hide or push to the periphery the systems, creating inefficiencies and disconnects between the public and the infrastructure that ensures their way of life. Instead of dividing, cutting off, and reducing the quality of life in specific areas, infrastructure has the ability to stitch together and improve the social environment of neighborhoods. Infrastructure can provide sustainable alternatives to the community that the inhabitants and organizations individually do not have the technical skills or means to achieve on their own. With a specific focus on the water infrastructure of Cincinnati, this thesis will propose alternate solutions to the city's combined sewer overflow problem that go beyond widening pipes and improving treatment plants. Sited along the Mill Creek neighborhoods that have been negatively affected by past infrastructure elements, these alternate solutions will draw from existing precedents of infrastructure systems as well as researching opportunities to combine different programs together to create unique infrastructure hybrids that respond to the surrounding context and urban fabric. The proposed public infrastructure interventions will collect rainwater so that it does not enter the sewer system, and then using that resource, support supplemental programs and public amenity spaces. This creates a scenario where the infrastructure systems would not be hidden from the public, but rather reveal the processes to the community while also providing new public amenities and services. This understanding of how infrastructure works will also create greater awareness for sustainable living among the population and reduce their impact on the environment. As the existing infrastructure in the country continues to age and near its end of life it is imperative that the next generation of infrastructure improves on the current system, providing benefits for the comm (open full item for complete abstract)

MS, University of Cincinnati, 2013, Engineering and Applied Science: Civil Engineering

Global warming is a result of most of increasing contaminant components in our atmosphere, many of them generated by motor vehicles. It causes harm to human health, not only to individuals but to communities and towns as a whole. Increasing heat, extreme cold, rising sea levels and flood plains damage each habitat's equilibrium. It has been proven that public transit leads to more walking and biking. Surveys report that 63% and 68% of pedestrians and bikers walk at least once a day, respectively. Public transit commuters walk more than car commuters. Walking to those neighborhood destinations accounts for higher frequencies than public transit does. Integration between land use areas, enhancing mixed-use parcels are a complement and support to a public transportation network that includes pedestrians and bikers. Biking infrastructure comparisons have been made among cities and countries; unfortunately, there aren't many studies that compare and analyze characteristics in metropolitan areas. This lack of analysis explains the gap of infrastructure improvements in cities where using bicycles as active modes of transportation is barely at its beginnings. Bicycle infrastructure innovation is often related to Master Plans as those quantify the needs of pedestrians and bikers at different levels (city, region, state). As a result of some studies, there are prioritized lists of pedestrian and bicycle corridors according to need and importance to generate an enhanced and improved master plan. Household travel surveys (HTS) supply multi-level information regarding travel patterns per day. They provide information regarding the purpose of the trips, mode choice, trip length, location of activities and, most importantly for this research, routes taken. A large-scale HTS was been developed for the Cincinnati Metropolitan Area between the months of August 2009 and August 2010. GPS units were given to each participant household member 12 years or older to carry all day (open full item for complete abstract)

MARCH, University of Cincinnati, 2013, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Architecture

Central Parkway is an underutilized thoroughfare in the urban core of Cincinnati that has the potential to transform into a spine of development through urban design interventions. Recent urban development in Cincinnati has focused primarily on reestablishing amenities and pedestrian connectivity within the three core downtown districts, but it has not adequately sustained connectivity between these disparate districts. Urban theorists and practitioners have long analyzed the overall benefits of connecting fragmented urban conditions. By analyzing extensive adaptive infrastructural precedents and drawing upon theories from scholarship in the fields of architecture, urban design, and economics, this project identifies effective design strategies for reconnecting downtown Cincinnati. These strategies will form the basis for a project whose objective is to catalyze environmental, economic, and mobility benefits for the City of Cincinnati.

Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.), Franklin University, 2024, Business Administration

This dissertation examines the impact of inadequate water and electricity supply on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in The Gambia. The research highlights how the scarcity and unreliability of these essential utilities significantly deter foreign investment, particularly in key economic sectors such as manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism. In-depth interviews with government officials and foreign direct investors were conducted qualitatively to assess the direct impacts of such utility shortages on businesses' functionality and investment decisions. These findings show that not only does unreliable utility increase operational costs, but it is also positively related to perceived risk and instability by potential investors. It also points to the critical linkage between sustainable infrastructure development and economic growth, necessitating renewable energy solutions that assure utility reliability improvements and further attract environmentally sensitive investors. Additionally, the study contributes to the existing literature by highlighting gaps in previous research, particularly the importance of infrastructure reliability as a critical driver of FDI, alongside traditional factors like political stability and market size. The report further informs policymakers with practical recommendations, including holistic regulatory reforms in technology upgrades and regional cooperation that build better utility infrastructure for the country. Therefore, The Gambia needs to make up for such deficiencies with more amiable environments for FDI if the country is to achieve long-term economic growth and development. This study points out that addressing utility infrastructure challenges is crucial for attracting foreign investment and imperative for achieving sustainable and inclusive economic growth in The Gambia.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2024, Public Policy and Management

In 2023, 13.5 percent of U.S. households experienced food insecurity. There are notable disparities in who faces food insecurity across socio-demographic groups and region. The recognition of intersecting barriers that exacerbate food insecurity in rural areas has prompted significant federal investments to bolster local food systems and the creation of new initiatives to strengthen rural infrastructure, connect communities with federal resources, and support rural health and well-being. The concept of community food security (CFS) recognizes a broader set of political, social, environmental, and economic factors than traditional conceptualizations of food security and may be a promising framework for informing rural health policy. A core element of the CFS framework is community self-reliance. At present, community self-reliance is considered synonymous with physical food infrastructure; however, extant scholarship demonstrates that the presence of physical food infrastructure is not sufficient, and social factors, including social relationships and networks, are promising mechanisms for supporting food security in rural areas. This dissertation employs a pragmatic research paradigm and the principles of community-engaged research to interrogate CFS in rural communities. I achieve this via three empirical studies, each with a distinct unit of analysis: individual (Chapter 2), group (Chapter 3), and organizational (Chapter 4). Leveraging in-depth, semi-structured interviews, Chapter 2 explores how residents of a rural, high food insecurity region characterize their experiences with food insecurity, resulting in a set of themes that both converge with, and diverge from, the constructs underpinning current food security measurement. For Chapter 3, I conducted focus groups to explore how residents in southeast Ohio conceptualize CFS and how the social and physical components of the local food system, including group-identified community assets, work in concert to (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2006, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2024, Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering

Worldwide urbanization and the concurrent increase in impermeable surfaces, such as parking lots, driveways, sidewalks, and other structures, have led to challenges managing runoff in cities. Improperly managed stormwater poses threats to public health, private property, and the environment. Countries worldwide are adopting the use of nature-based approaches known as green infrastructure (GI) to holistically treat environmental stressors resulting from urban development. GI is designed to mimic the natural, pre-development hydrology of the developed area while concurrently improving runoff quality. There are several GI approaches, including permeable pavements (PP), bioretention cells (BRC), and constructed stormwater wetlands (CSW), which can reduce runoff volume, delay and extend runoff timing, improve discharge water quality, and mitigate peak runoff rates from highly impervious catchments. PPs have been used worldwide for decades, but these systems remain infrequently implemented for stormwater management because of ambiguity related to maintaining their long-term hydraulic functionality due to clogging which reduces the PP surface infiltration rate (SIR) and therefore its performance. Measurements of the SIR can inform the extent of clogging, but at present there is a dearth of guidance on how to incorporate SIR data into dynamic PP maintenance plans. In the first chapter of my dissertation, I conducted a review of existing guidance documents to describe the current state of practice for SIR measurement methodologies, PP maintenance guidance, and the use of SIR outcomes to inform PP maintenance plans. Standard and alternative SIR assessment methodologies were described and compared, and modifications and recommendations were provided to clarify testing methods, streamline testing efficiency, and reduce the burden of SIR monitoring. Suggested modifications included requiring regular SIR testing, shortening the duration of SIR tests, and allowing for usage of mo (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2024, Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering

As catchments become increasingly impervious, urban stormwater pollutant loads, erosional force, and flooding increases. The practice of stormwater management is critical environmental protection that became regulated by the US federal government in the 1970s. With the need to attenuate peak flow rates and reduce the excess stormwater volumes generated from impervious catchments, stormwater control measures (SCMs) were developed such as stormwater detention basins, retention ponds, drainage ditches, and subsurface stormwater detention. Having a variety of SCMs available provides stakeholders with the ability to target specific aspects of stormwater management, including runoff quantity, runoff quality, or other ecosystem services. Regulations have evolved over time to have a greater emphasis on stormwater quality. As such, SCM design has evolved to address pollutant removal in stormwater. Green infrastructure (GI) practices, also called low impact development (LID) SCMs, have gained popularity for stormwater management since the start of the 21st century and incorporate principles of ecological engineering into stormwater management. Examples of GI include a variety of practices that use infiltration through filter media such as rain gardens, bioretention cells (BRCs), and high rate biofiltration (HRBF), permeable pavements, green roofs, and constructed stormwater wetlands (CSWs). The use of GI has benefits in addition to peak flow, volume, and pollutant reduction such as creating habitat for pollinators, cooling urban spaces, and adding attractive green space. Pollutant removal mechanisms vary between GI practices with some systems providing greater sedimentation and treatment of particulates and some providing greater treatment of dissolved pollutants through microbially-mediated transformation, plant uptake, and/or adsorption. Performance of SCMs varies based on design, site characteristics (e.g. topography, soil texture and infiltration capacity, depth to wa (open full item for complete abstract)

MS, University of Cincinnati, 2024, Engineering and Applied Science: Civil Engineering

Roadside incidents are a leading cause of driver fatalities in the United States, with a significant number involving collisions with barriers such as guardrails. Guardrails are the most common safety barriers installed along the roadside to maintain the vehicle's trajectory and shield it from roadside hazards. The functionality of the guardrail heavily relies on its structural integrity and condition. A damaged guardrail might not only fail to perform but also pose a danger when severely deformed. Conventional inspection methods for guardrails are labor-intensive, time-consuming, and prone to human error. These methods face time constraints and fail to provide continuous monitoring, which is critical for prompt maintenance and ensuring road safety. While recent advancements in computer vision have paved the way for automating the inspection and assessment of infrastructure assets, research specifically focused on guardrails has been limited, with existing automated solutions not fully addressing the challenges associated with their inspection. These challenges include the accurate identification and assessment of guardrail damages under varying lighting and weather conditions and the computational demands of real-time processing. This study addresses these challenges by introducing a novel framework utilizing advanced computer vision techniques, like YOLOv8 models and Deep OC-SORT tracker, integrated with camera and GPS systems mounted on a vehicle. This system automates the detection, localization, and severity assessment of guardrail damages. It enhances the accuracy and efficiency of inspections, allows for faster response time for maintenance, and ultimately contributes to safer road conditions. The success of this system serves as a model for similar unaddressed applications in other areas of infrastructure management, demonstrating the potential of artificial intelligence in public safety and asset management.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2024, City and Regional Planning

Transportation infrastructure has generated a wide-ranging socioeconomic impact on society. Evaluating this impact is crucial for transportation planning and policymaking. This dissertation contributes to socioeconomic impact assessments of transportation infrastructure by developing an analytical framework based on a set of quantitative approaches, including structural equation modeling, machine learning, and network analysis. The objective is to provide a systematical and holistic examination of transportation infrastructure's effects on city development. Transportation infrastructures examined in this study include high-speed rail (HSR), highways, and aviation systems. City development involves multiple aspects: ranging from economic growth to urban amenities, from individual city development to city interactions. This dissertation consists of three essays. The first essay untangled the influence mechanism through which transportation infrastructure affects city attractiveness using structural equation modeling. The second essay compared the relative significance of multimodal transportation infrastructure in shaping city attractiveness using machine learning models. The third essay investigated the network effects of transportation infrastructure on human mobility and city interaction by network analysis. The results uncover that transportation infrastructure increases city attractiveness through its role in stimulating the economy and increasing amenity accessibility. Despite economic growth, amenities such as housing, education, and technology also play a significant role in enhancing city attractiveness. The analysis also shows that HSR has a higher importance in predicting city attractiveness than highways and aviation, particularly during the rapid development period of HSR from 2008 to 2018 in China. Moreover, the impact of transportation infrastructure on city attractiveness demonstrates a threshold effect, which is consistent with the law of dimin (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Science in Engineering, Youngstown State University, 2024, Department of Civil/Environmental and Chemical Engineering

The Central Lake Erie Basin has been encountering escalating challenges in stormwater management, marked by shifting precipitation patterns and intensified weather extremes due to climate change. Consequently, conventional drainage systems, entrenched in gray infrastructure, have been exacerbating downstream urban flooding, prompting urgent exploration of alternative solutions. Low Impact Development (LID), particularly Green Infrastructure (GI) emerges as a promising avenue to mitigate flooding and enhance stormwater resilience. Since many sustainable stormwater management projects falter due to numerous factors including insufficient community involvement, inadequate consideration of local conditions, and limited resources for maintenance, this study engaged the community extensively to incorporate community input in decision-making for stormwater management. Out of the seven GIs, stakeholders preferred to explore permeable pavement and rain gardens. This study employed a comprehensive approach to evaluate the effectiveness of rain gardens and permeable pavement in stormwater management within the Town of Willoughby. By integrating climate data from Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP) Phases 5 and 6 datasets with hydrological modeling, the research investigated the impacts of evolving precipitation patterns and climate trajectories on stormwater management practices. The developed PCSWMM model encompassed 54 sub-catchments, with permeable pavement applied to 46 of the sub catchments in the parking lots of commercial buildings and public spaces. Additionally, rain gardens were implemented in 35 sub-catchments with one rain garden allocated per residential house. Through rigorous analysis, the research evaluated GI's capacity to address evolving precipitation patterns and climate trajectories, providing nuanced insights into its potential implications for sustainable stormwater management practices. GI measures such as permeable pavements and ra (open full item for complete abstract)

MS, University of Cincinnati, 2024, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Information Technology

We are witnessing a profound transformation within the automotive industry, propelled by the mass adoption of Electric Vehicles (EVs). As this transition unfolds at a rapid pace, it unveils security gaps within the emerging infrastructure, necessitating urgent attention and solutions. This thesis investigates the resilience to cybersecurity threats of a new standalone branch of EV charging application, which we propose terming "Fleet Charging Infrastructure" (FCI). We conducted a case study on one of the emerging leaders in EV fleet charging in the US market, Electrada. To start the study, we analyzed Electrada's operation, the structure of their charging infrastructure, and the importance of internal processes that guarantee a 99% uptime commitment to their customers. Our research questions focused on characterizing FCI, identifying cybersecurity threats specific to it, and devising strategies for enhancing its resilience against cyberattacks. The study utilized STRIDE and DREAD frameworks for threat modeling and prioritization, along with well-established industry frameworks like NIST IR8473 and CIS CSC for threat mitigation planning. As a result, we succeeded in outlining the key processes within FCI, enumerating major components and dataflows, and establishing distinctive features that later allowed us to identify 27 unique threats, propose mitigation actions for each threat, and develop a 3-step mitigation strategy plan for FCI operators based on their resource availability. Our findings highlight the distinctiveness of FCI as a standalone branch of EV charging applications, due to the uniqueness of internal processes, components, motivations, and goals compared to other iterations of EV Charging.

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2024, Cross-Cultural, International Education

This research study focuses on exploring the parental struggles that parents of children with disabilities go through when trying to access special education for their children in the educational system of Kenya. The study documents the perspectives of parents through analysis of data anchored within their struggles and experiences as they navigate the system of education to access quality education for their children with disabilities. Based on a phenomenological approach, the study focuses on a sample of eight parents of children with disabilities. Hogan's (2019) Social Model of Disability and Medical Model of Disability help frame the study within the discussion of the experiences of parents of children with disabilities. The findings of this study are presented through specific themes, describing the personal challenges and experiences of these parents followed by an analysis of the same themes. These findings underscore systemic challenges in special education, cultural and societal attitudes and educational outcome and well-being issues faced by parents and their children with disabilities.

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2024, Civil Engineering (Engineering and Technology)

In the field of transportation engineering, there has been a shift towards implementing Connected Vehicle (CV) Technology as a means of improving transportation systems. This approach is becoming increasingly important due to limited space, high delay on roadways, and significant crashes. The CV technology is expected to be the most effective solution for making transportation systems more functional and safer, as it enhances drivers' decision-making abilities and helps to control traffic flow. To assess the impacts of CV technology, simulations and closed-course testing have been conducted. In addition, some pilot studies have been carried out in urban settings, where the goal is to achieve "zero deaths." However, a comprehensive understanding of the applications of Connected Vehicles in rural settings is necessary, as driver behavior can be unpredictable and location-dependent. This research aims to evaluate the performance of four CV applications in a rural environment: Red Light Violation Warning (RLVW), Pedestrian in Signalized Crosswalk (PEDINXWALK/ PEDPSM), Curve Speed Compliance (CSPDCOMP), and Speed Compliance in work zones (SPDCOMPWZ). There were no work zones in the study area hence analysis on SPDCOMPWZ was not included in this study. Though the research had four CV applications but each driver had only three applications installed in their vehicle. Hence the study obtained 4 different groups for all 3-paired CV applications. The study analyzed the impact of these applications on drivers' behavior and their reactions to evaluate the performance of CV applications. The analysis focused on drivers' speeds since speed happens to be one of the primary traffic parameters that can provide in-depth information on driver's behavior on the road. The driver's speed is analyzed once they receive a warning or trigger prior to a potential violation of these specific traffic rules; 1.Running red-light, 2. Conflict/ potential crash between vehicle and pedestri (open full item for complete abstract)

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2023, Engineering and Applied Science: Civil Engineering

This dissertation explores the potential of utilizing Autonomous Vehicle (AV) technology in the field of transportation asset assessment, inspection, and evaluation. To harness this potential, the study presents a comprehensive framework for developing real-time, lightweight infrastructure evaluation models. As case studies, the dissertation focuses on addressing two critical road and roadside deficiencies: shoulder drop-off and pavement marking retroreflectivity degradation. For each task, data from several road sections is obtained using an AV development platform and standard measuring equipment such as a surveying-grade laser scanner for the first task and a handheld retroreflectometer for the second. Based on the comprehensive field data collection, the study evaluates multiple AI driven approaches for each task. The research demonstrates three automated algorithms for shoulder drop-off assessment using LiDAR data. A method based on moving window filtering and an LSTM neural network exhibited the highest accuracy and best inference time. Additionally, the correlation between pavement marking reflectivity and LiDAR intensity is investigated. A robust end-to-end AI solution is proposed for automated marking extraction and retroreflectivity prediction. The proposed solution is finally evaluated on its robustness to driving speed, scanning lane and direction, and wet road conditions.

MS, University of Cincinnati, 2023, Engineering and Applied Science: Civil Engineering

Infrastructure-to-vehicle communication is an essential part of an intelligent transportation system. Bluetooth low energy (BLE) is one of the emerging Internet of things (IoT) technologies that can enable the exchange of data at low-cost and low-energy consumption. This study evaluated the application of IoT technologies, in particular BLE beacons, as infrastructure-to-vehicle (I2V) communication devices to support connected and automated vehicle operation in a real-world setting. An autonomous vehicle development platform built on a Lexus RX450h car was used to perform the evaluation. The testing program included two controlled-environment experiments and two real-world validation experiments. The controlled-environment experiments were used to select the BLE beacon settings to be considered. Furthermore, the validation experiments were performed in two different settings including an urban road and an interstate highway. In the urban road experiment, beacons were attached to ten different traffic signs using the selected configurations. The study evaluated the ability of the connected and automated vehicle to receive the beacon message far enough to take appropriate action while driving at road's speed limit, taking into consideration road geometry, and accounting for both dry and wet road conditions. Furthermore, beacons were attached to a side barrier in the interstate highway experiment to evaluate the ability of the autonomous vehicle to detect the beacons successfully using the selected configurations. The results showed that with the correct configurations, all traffic signs were repeatedly detected from a distance far enough for the vehicle to take the needed action. The highest performance configurations were further evaluated based on battery life. Accordingly, the optimal configuration was suggested to be used in real life. The study revealed promising results and indicated that the BLE beacon technology can be a reliable solution to develop infrastruct (open full item for complete abstract)