People Counting Data Explained: U-Turn Traffic

At SenSource, we’re all about accuracy. So many of your operational decisions are based on traffic counts and traffic flow, so those numbers must be accurate.

Today we’re going to talk about a specific scenario that can affect your numbers and how we combat it. We’re talking U-turn traffic.

A U-turn in the people counting world is similar to what you’d picture while driving. You’re heading in one direction and for whatever reason turn around and go back the way you came.

With people counting sensors, this type of foot traffic is usually seen at the entrance to a building. Someone begins to enter, then turns around, leaves, and doesn’t commit to entering the space.

Why is it important?

In order to keep your traffic data as pure as possible, you don’t want it inflated with false entry and exit counts.

In a U-turn scenario, the sensor detects a person, but they never truly enter your space. You wouldn’t want that count included in traffic reports or used to make critical decisions.

How does it work?

As soon as a person enters the device’s field of view, it begins tracking and maintains a track until the person exits the field of view. Typically this looks like a person entering at a doorway, proceeding into the space, and being counted as an entry count as they exit the field of view and commit to entering the building.

However, for a U-turn, the person enters the field of view, stays within range, and exits the same way they came in. The guest never committed to entering the building and therefore shouldn’t be included as an entrance or an exit count.

A few real world examples of when this may happen…

• Using a library door counter, a visitor enters the doorway, realizes they forgot their books, turns around, and exits to return to their car. You’ll capture that true in-count when they return and fully enter the library.
• Using a customer counter, a shopper steps into a store, takes a quick look around, and leaves uninterested. You don’t want to include this count because they never entered and engaged with your shop.
• Using a space utilization sensor, a student enters a meeting room and realizes it’s the wrong one and turns around and exits. Capturing this count would skew your space occupancy and make the meeting room appear busier than it is.

I hope this gives you an idea of how we at SenSource are committed to providing you with the most accurate traffic data set. And how even very specific scenarios like U-turn traffic are taken into consideration. If you have any additional questions feel free to leave a comment on the video or fill out our contact form.