Chetana Rao,1 Erol Tutumluer,1 and Joseph A.
Stefanski2
Coarse Aggregate Shape and Size Properties
Using a New Image Analyzer
REFERENCE: Rao, C., Tutumluer, E., and Stefanski, J. A.,
“Coarse Aggregate Shape and Size Properties Using a New Im-
age Analyzer,” Journal of Testing and Evaluation, JTEVA, Vol.
29, No. 5, Sept. 2001, pp. 461–471.
ABSTRACT: Automation of coarse aggregate shape and size de-
termination using image analysis techniques is described in this pa-
per as an alternative approach to current manual and time-consum-
ing test procedures. A new image analyzer system, referred to as the
University of Illinois Aggregate Image Analyzer (UI-AIA), uses a
three-camera setup to view each aggregate particle from three or-
thogonal directions. Both volume (and therefore weight) and shape
factors can be determined precisely for each particle based on sound
image analysis and geometric principles. In addition, the grain size
distribution of an aggregate sample can be determined. Tests con-
ducted on ten aggregate samples were used to evaluate the perfor-
mance of the laboratory prototype UI-AIA in automating the stan-
dard ASTM D 4791-99, Standard Test Method for Flat Particles,
Elongated Particles, or Flat and Elongated Particles in Coarse Ag-
gregate and ASTM C 136-96a, Standard Method of Test for Sieve
Analysis of Fine and Coarse Aggregates. The accuracy and repeata-
bility of the imaging technique were evaluated for the computed ag-
gregate volumes, percent by weight flat and elongated ratios, and
gradation curves. Results from the new UI-AIA were in very good
agreement with the manual measurements performed in two sepa-
rate laboratories to ensure their exactness. The UI-AIA has scope
for further modifications and improvements.
KEYWORDS: coarse aggregates, shape, size, video imaging, im-
age analysis, flat and elongated ratio, gradation, asphalt concrete
Aggregates constitute approximately 90% by weight of each of
the two pavement surface courses, Portland cement concrete (PCC)
and asphalt concrete (AC). They play a major role not only in the
volumetric design of these layers but also in their strength, stabil-
ity, and performance. Coarse aggregate size and shape properties
have been found to be critical factors influencing permanent defor-
mation and fatigue characteristics of pavements by affecting the
workability, density, stiffness, stability, durability, and permeabil-
ity of the AC mix [1,2]. Cubical and angular particles are preferred
over flat, elongated, or spherical particles. Flat and elongated
(F&E) particles are undesirable since they have a tendency to break
during construction and under traffic loads. If they do not break, the
resulting AC mixtures end up having directionally oriented mate-
rial properties. Aggregate gradation is critical to achieve good
packing and minimal porosity in an aggregate mix. The maximum
Manuscript received 12/6/2000; accepted for publication 4/2/2001.
1
Graduate research assistant and assistant professor, respectively, Depart-
ment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-
Champagne, 205 North Mathews Ave., MC-250, Urbana, IL 61801.
2
Staff engineer, Eres Consultants, a Division of ARA, 505 W. University
Ave., Champaign, IL 61820.
© 2001 by the American Society for Testing and Materials
461
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size of aggregates, the size distribution, and the shape of the parti-
cles determine the packing density that can be derived with an ag-
gregate sample, assuming sufficient compaction is provided. Fur-
thermore, the number of crushed faces in a particle is typically used
to determine “angularity” of aggregates, which in turn controls the
level of internal shear resistance that can be developed in a partic-
ulate medium.
The Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP) has devel-
oped a performance-based system for designing asphalt pavements
to withstand extreme temperature and traffic loads. This system,
called SUPerior PERforming Asphalt PAVEments (SUPER-
PAVE), has three basic elements: asphalt binder specifications,
volumetric mix analysis and design, and a performance prediction
system. SUPERPAVE consensus properties developed under the
SHRP program provide guidance in selecting good quality coarse
and fine aggregates for proper mix designs with long service lives
[3,4]. Guidance is provided on the following: coarse aggregate an-
gularity; fine aggregate angularity; flat and elongated ratios of
coarse aggregate; and clay content. Coarse aggregate angularity is
determined manually by counting the number of fractured faces as
per ASTM D 5821-95, Standard Test Method for Determining the
Percentage of Fractured Particles in Coarse Aggregate. SUPER-
PAVE specifies a required “percentage by weight” of crushed par-
ticles based on the traffic level and depth in the pavement.
For characterizing coarse aggregate shape properties, shape fac-
tors are calculated from the maximum, intermediate, and minimum
sizes, i.e., the length, width, and thickness, respectively. The three
orthogonal dimensions are measured and the following shape fac-
tors are obtained: flatness, the ratio of the intermediate to the min-
imum dimension; elongation, the ratio of maximum to the interme-
diate dimension; and flat and elongated (F&E) ratio, the ratio of the
maximum dimension to the minimum. For aggregate mixtures to
be used in AC pavements with a design life of more than 106 equiv-
alent single axle loads, SUPERPAVE specifies that the F&E parti-
cles with greater than 5:1 ratio be not more than 10% “by weight.”
ASTM D 4791-95, Standard Test Method for Flat Particles,
Elongated Particles, or Flat and Elongated Particles in Coarse Ag-
gregate is the procedure adopted for determination of the percent-
ages of flat, elongated, or F&E particles in coarse aggregate. A
manual caliper is used to perform this test. A rotating arm of the
caliper is pivoted about a point chosen so that the two ends of the
arm bear dimensional ratios of 2:1 or 3:1 or 5:1 from a fixed point.
Each particle in a sample is manually tested using this caliper to ex-
amine if the particle bears a maximum-to-minimum dimension in
the chosen constant ratio.
Gradation is obtained from sieve analysis results; percent pass-
ing by weight is graphed with sieve sizes following ASTM C 136,
Standard Method of Test for Sieve Analysis of Fine and Coarse
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462 JOURNAL OF TESTING AND EVALUATION
Aggregates. To specify gradation for aggregates in asphalt mix-
tures, SUPERPAVE uses a modified version of ASTM C 136. The
particle size is expressed as the sieve size raised to the power of
0.45 (0.45 power gradation chart) to define a permissible gradation.
The use of image analysis techniques for shape and size analysis
has recently emerged as an attractive and viable option over the use
of the current labor-intensive test procedures. Attempts have been
made to develop and evaluate image analysis systems as alterna-
tives to the manual test procedures [5–10]. A number of such video
imaging systems developed for determining aggregate properties is
currently available either commercially or as prototype machines
found in research laboratories. Based on sound image analysis
techniques, these systems are generally fast and efficient. They also
provide additional benefits of automation and elimination of the
subjectivity associated with multiple operators performing tests
across several laboratories [8].
The development and performance evaluation of an aggregate
image analysis system, referred to as the University of Illinois Ag-
gregate Image Analyzer (UI-AIA), is described in this paper. The
new UI-AIA essentially characterizes the particle shape and size
per SUPERPAVE specifications, i.e., determines the percentage
weight of flat and elongated particles in an aggregate mixture and
develops its gradation curve. The highlights of the system compo-
nents and image acquisition tasks are presented first. Then, the im-
age analysis approaches employed for aggregate volume, flat and
elongated ratio, and gradation determination are explained. The ac-
curacy and repeatability of the imaging technique are evaluated for
the computed aggregate volumes, percent by weight flat and elon-
gated ratios, and gradation curves by comparing the results to the
manual measurements performed following the ASTM D 4791-95
and C 136-84a procedures.
Review of Available Image Analysis Systems
In the last decade, there have been a growing number of appli-
cations incorporating video-imaging techniques. The use of an
imaging system primarily involves acquiring images of the parti-
cles and then “processing” them using analysis tools. A computer
algorithm analyzes the image to obtain the desired information: di-
mensions, shape, texture, angularity, and gradation depending
upon the capabilities of the image analysis algorithm used. Among
the basic concepts that have been used for pattern recognition and
shape characterization are fractal dimension analysis [11,12], two-
dimensional (2-D) to three-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction mod-
els based on stereology or geometric probability [9], and model
shape of choice [8]. Principles of “Hough Transforms” have also
been used to characterize the shape and angularity of an aggregate
particle [13,14]. Image analysis techniques have been utilized for
quantifying the surface areas of aggregates [15]. Recent work by
Sukumaran and Ashmawy [16] involves the estimation of aggre-
gate angularity based on how much the particle shape deviates
from a circle. “Erosion and dilation” techniques in image analysis
have also been utilized to capture fine aggregate angularity and sur-
face texture characteristics [17].
To date, among the most promising image analysis systems to
perform the SUPERPAVE tests are WipShape™ [9] for F&E ratio
determination and the VDG 40™ for rapid gradation analysis [8].
The need to automate manual testing and at the same time comply
with the testing standards for F&E ratios led to the development of
the WipShape image analysis system. Two cameras positioned in
perpendicular directions take pictures of aggregate particles mov-
ing on a conveyor belt and the images are processed at an approxi-
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mate rate of 1.6 s per particle. The WipShape system employs a
triggering mechanism and an image acquisition and processing
software program. Determination of the 3-D shape, i.e., volume, of
each particle is achieved from the two camera views by the use of
weighting factors and statistical techniques to compute the F&E ra-
tios by percent weight.
The VDG 40 uses a single camera to grab an image of the parti-
cles as they fall from a vibrating hopper [8]. Apparent volume for
gradation and F&E coefficients are first obtained based on the as-
sumption that the thickness of the particle is the same as the width
of the particle, i.e., the intermediate and the shortest lengths are the
same. The total weight of the sample is measured and the specific
gravity is known. The volume is then calculated based on an ellip-
soid of revolution and the flatness is determined as the ratio of the
assumed volume to the actual volume. The shape factors deter-
mined this way are, however, applicable to the entire sample but
not to each individual particle. VDG 40 imaging-based gradation
results are often found to be in good agreement with the manual
sieve analysis results.
University of Illinois Aggregate Image Analyzer
The development of the University of Illinois Aggregate Image
Analyzer (UI-AIA) was envisioned to overcome some of the short-
comings of the previously discussed systems, primarily the as-
sumptions made in the reconstruction of the 3-D shape from only
one or two views. An accurate computation of volume for each par-
ticle is very critical in obtaining good results from image analyses
for the F&E ratios and gradation, as stated in a recent publication
[10]. Figure 1 illustrates the advantage of using three cameras for
computing volume accurately. Although the two regular-shaped
solids have identical top and side views, their volumes can vary by
up to 50%. Therefore, the use of at least three cameras to obtain
three orthogonal (front, top, and side) views is essential in estab-
lishing an accurate 3-D shape of each particle.
The research efforts in this study have focused mainly on pro-
viding the following capabilities in the newly developed UI-AIA
device: (1) accurate determination of the longest, the intermediate,
and the shortest dimensions from three images, (2) accurate recon-
struction of the 3-D shape and hence the volume using the three
views of the aggregate particle to determine percent by weight
F&E ratios and perform particle size distribution/gradation analy-
sis, and finally, (3) establishing a measure/index for particle angu-
larity (or roundness) through processing of the collected aggregate
images. The UI-AIA results presented in this paper will primarily
be on volume, gradation, and F&E ratio determinations.
Figure 2 shows the laboratory prototype UI-AIA. The main com-
ponents of the system are:
1. A conveyor belt moving at 76 mm/s (3 in./s) to transport ag-
gregate particles one by one from the bin, each particle posi-
tioned at a minimum separation distance of 254 mm (10 in.),
2. An infrared and a fiber optic sensor to trigger the cameras
(one working at a time depending on the size of each particle)
as the particle moves into the field of view of the cameras,
3. Three progressive scan-type cameras to capture sharp images
of the moving particle from the front, top, and side views.
Once triggered, the three synchronized cameras capture the
images within a span of 0.1 s in succession,
4. A single frame grabber board used for data acquisition and a
computer (a Pentium II PC with 350 MHz in this prototype),
and finally,
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FIG. 1—Three-dimensional views of two regular shaped solids.
5. Three fluorescent lights fixtures, a cloth curtain (swings
slightly as the particle passes), and a box cover behind the
cameras to provide an adequate black background to collect
sharp images.
Image Acquisition and Image Processing
The National Instruments LabVIEW™ data acquisition software
and the image analysis tools in its IMAQ Vision library were used
to create user-programmed functions for capturing and analyzing
aggregate images. The IMAQ Vision package provides built-in
functions exclusively for scientific imaging applications and al-
lows high-quality gray scale and binary image display, image pro-
cessing, shape matching, blob analysis, gaging, and measurement
[18]. A virtual instrument (VI) program was developed to capture
images with appropriate time lags between cameras such that each
particle falls within the field of view of the corresponding camera
when the image is grabbed. The image size used was 640 by 480
pixels. A typical set of three orthogonal views of a particle is shown
in Fig. 3. The image analysis procedures used to obtain aggregate
shape and size properties are described step by step in the follow-
ing paragraphs.
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RAO ET AL. ON NEW IMAGE ANALYZER 463
Thresholding or Separation
Each image consists of several pixels that are assigned a certain
value in the gray scale ranging from 0 to 255. A gray scale value of
“0” corresponds to the darkest black while the brightest white takes
the maximum value of “255.” To recognize an object in the image,
the regions that belong to the object must be identified first. The
simplest way to identify an object in the image is to perform the
“threshold” operation, which is essentially a labeling operation to
convert the image to a binary image. This binary image has only
black or white (gray level 0 or 255) pixels to clearly identify the
particle against its background. By thresholding, all pixels having
a gray scale value larger than the threshold value are made white,
i.e., assigned a value of 255. Similarly, all pixels having a value
less than the threshold value are assigned a value of 0 and hence
converted to black.
As aggregates have varying colors and shades, the threshold value
used should be chosen appropriate to the color of each individual
particle. This is to make sure that the threshold operation leaves the
complete aggregate particle white and distinguishable from the black
background. Since aggregate particles in a sample are not always of
the same color, using a constant threshold value may result in incor-
rect thresholding. Therefore, to eliminate the subjectivity involved in
choosing the right threshold value, an automatic thresholding was
adopted to choose objectively a threshold value befitting the color of
each individual particle. The “intervariance” method of autothresh-
olding was found to work best for this application. In this technique,
all mathematical algorithms are applied upon the matrix correspond-
ing to the 2-D image. This matrix has the same size as the number of
pixels in the image and each element in the array has a value equal to
the gray level of the corresponding pixel. A histogram of the gray
scale distribution of the pixels is first created from this array. A his-
togram, h, of a digital image I is defined by:
h(m)  #{(r,c)/I(r,c)  m} (1)
where r and c indicate row and column indices, m spans each gray
level value, and # is the operator that counts the number of ele-
ments in a set.
If the distributions of dark pixels and the bright pixels are widely
separated, the image histogram is bimodal; i.e., most pixel occur-
rences belong to two different groups. However, the gray value at
which the peak corresponding to the color of the particle occurs
will depend largely on the color or shade of the aggregate particle.
The threshold value in this procedure is selected such that it mini-
mizes the weighted sum of group variances. This criterion empha-
sizes high group homogeneity and hence low group variance. The
principle is mathematically illustrated below.
Let P(I) represent the histogram probabilities of the observed
gray values and R  C the spatial domain of the image (number of
rows and columns) such that,
P(I)  #{(r,c)/Image (r,c)  I}/#R  C (2)
If  2w is the weighted sum of the within group variances and “t” is
the threshold limit, then
 2w(t)  q1(t)21(t)  q2(t)22(t) (3)
where 21(t)  variance of the group with values less than or equal
to t,
22(t)  variance of the group with values greater than t,
q1(t)  probability of the group with values less than or
equal to t, and
q2(t)  probability of the group with values greater than t.
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FIG. 2—Prototype of U of I aggregate image analyzer.

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 RAO ET AL. ON NEW IMAGE ANALYZER 465

2. Move Image: The image is then modified so that the particle

lies centered on the image. This is achieved by translating the
entire set of pixels in the image so that the coordinates of the
geometric center lie coinciding with the coordinates of the cen-
ter of the image (320, 240) for the 640 by 480 pixels image size.
This ensures that when geometric operations are performed on
the image, such as image rotation as discussed in the ensuing
steps, the particle is still within the bounds of the image. Oth-
erwise, a part of the rotated particle could be lost as it could oc-
cupy regions beyond the bounds of the image.
3. Particle Orientation: The particle orientation is defined as
the angle of the longest axis of the particle with respect to the
horizontal. Since the particle is oriented in a random direc-
tion, this operation will indicate the direction along which the
longest dimension of the particle is oriented in each view.
Figure 4a shows an example of the particle orientation com-
puted in this operation.
4. Rotate Image: The whole image is now rotated by an angle
FIG. 3—The orthogonal views of an aggregate particle as obtained by
equal to the “particle orientation” measured in the previous
the U of I Image Analyzer. step such that the longest dimension is now lying in the hori-
zontal direction as shown in Fig. 4b. Note that the object is
pivoted at the center of the image.
Further, 5. Maximum Intercept: The maximum intercept is the length of
t
the longest segment in the particle in all possible directions of
q1(t)  ∑ P(i) projection (see Fig. 4a). It now lies parallel to the x-axis in the
i1
rotated image as shown in Fig. 4b.
6. Determine Perpendicular Dimension: Next, the dimension
I that is perpendicular to the maximum intercept is determined.
q2(t)  ∑ P(i) In the rotated image (see Fig. 4b), the projection of the parti-
it1
cle on the y-axis is essentially the dimension of interest.
t 7. Determine the Flat and Elongated Ratio: After determining
∑ [i  1(t)]2P(i) the maximum intercept and the perpendicular dimension of
21(t)  
i1 each of the three views of an aggregate particle, the six dimen-
q1(t) sions are sorted to find the maximum and the minimum values.
The ratio of the maximum dimension to the minimum dimen-
I
sion gives the desired F&E ratio.
∑ [i  2(t)]2P(i)
22(t)  
it1
Since the three views are orthogonal to each other, the maximum
q2(t) intercepts determined from the three views would certainly capture
t
the absolute longest dimension of the particle. In rare cases, due to
∑iP(i) different shades existing in the same particle or due to variation in
light intensities, thresholding can result in some noise in the im-
1(t)  
1
q1(t) ages, i.e., small dots can be seen around the particle. When this is
detected early on, all the above steps in this case are performed
I only for the blob having the largest area in the image representing
∑ iP(i) the aggregate particle itself.
2(t)  
t1
q2(t) Gradation
The image analysis approach adopted for performing gradation
A simple sequential search is done through all possible values of t
analysis is: “If two orthogonal (intermediate and maximum) di-
to locate the automatic threshold, t, that minimizes 2w(t).
mensions of a particle are greater than a given sieve size, then the
particle is retained on that sieve.” In other words, the intermediate
Shape Analyses—Flat and Elongated Ratio Determination dimension controls the sieve size on which the particle is retained.
The goal is to find the longest dimension of the particle from all The lowest of the three maximum intercept values computed for
three views and then to measure the dimension of the particle in the the three views is chosen as the intermediate dimension. Accord-
two perpendicular directions so that the smaller of the two can be ingly, if this intermediate dimension is smaller than the diagonal
considered as the minimum dimension of the particle. The steps in- length of the square mesh/opening in a sieve, the aggregate parti-
volved in the determination of the F&E ratios are as follows: cle passes through that given sieve.

Volume Computation
1. Determine Center: The x- and y-coordinates of the geometric
center [(xmin  xmax)/2, (ymin  ymax)/2] of the particle are One of the most essential information items for obtaining grain
first determined in the 2-D image. size distribution and the F&E ratios by weight is the volume of each

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466 JOURNAL OF TESTING AND EVALUATION
FIG. 4—Particle orientation and image rotation.
particle, which can be computed now by combining the three im-
ages from the UI-AIA. The approach adopted, discussed in an ear-
lier publication by Rao and Tutumluer [10], is based on counting
the pixels in the volume bounds of the aggregates that have gray
scale values corresponding to the particle. Each thresholded image
is first converted to an array having the same size as the image.
Each element of the array corresponds to the gray scale value of the
corresponding pixel in the image. A subset of this image array is
extracted so that the array represents only the smallest rectangle
that encloses the particle. Three such arrays, one for each view, to-
gether correspond to the smallest cuboid of pixels in which the par-
ticle can fit tightly. Figure 5 illustrates this mathematical operation
pictorially. The objective is now to eliminate the portions of the
rectangular box (shown on the right side in Fig. 5) that do not con-
tain the solid particle. The number of pixels that satisfy the condi-
tion of occupying the mass of the particle, i.e., having black color,
from all three directions is counted for the entire 3-D space. This
gives a direct measure of the volume of the particle in units of pixel
length cubed. Knowing the uniform calibration factor used for all
three cameras, the volume can then be converted easily to volu-
metric measurement units in cm3 (in.3).
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Shape and Size Properties from the UI-AIA
Objects of known geometry and size were used to perform the
preliminary calibration and validation of the UI-AIA. Four white
spheres having diameters 12.7, 15.9, 19.1, and 25.4 mm (0.5,
0.625, 0.75, and 1 in., respectively) were chosen to represent the
range of average particle sizes and used in calibrating the aggre-
gate particle sizes from the images. A calibration sensitivity anal-
ysis undertaken to study the effect of the size and location of the
calibration specimen revealed that the errors due to these effects
were not more than 1.3% in determining the length and the volume
of the particle. An error of this magnitude was even smaller than
the quantization error from digitizing and therefore was consid-
ered negligible. Hence, an average calibration factor was adopted
for use.
For UI-AIA tests on aggregate samples, only particles retained
on the No. 4 (4.75 mm) sieve size were tested. The accuracy of the
system was first evaluated for the predicted volumes, and therefore
weights, of 50 aggregate particles. This study was conducted under
the conditions of both a stationary conveyor belt (static measure-
ments) and a moving belt (dynamic measurements). Table 1 lists all
the static, dynamic, and actual weights for each of the 50 particles.
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 RAO ET AL. ON NEW IMAGE ANALYZER 467

The weights of the aggregates estimated using a specific gravity
Gs of 2.66 agree quite well with the physically measured values.
The errors are clearly biased towards the positive side. This is ex-
pected as the volumes are slightly overestimated; the cameras can-
not capture information about surficial dents and hollow portions
or cavities not in the sight of the cameras. An average absolute per-
cent error of 7.32% was obtained when comparing the static and
manual results. A slightly higher average absolute percent error of
8.74% was obtained when comparing the dynamic and manual re-
sults. The fact that the predicted total weights for the 50 particles
match the actual total weight closely indicates that the standard Gs
value is typical of the whole sample but not necessarily an individ-
ual particle.
A total of ten bags of aggregate samples, more than 21 000 par-
ticles, received from the Illinois Department of Transportation
(IDOT), were used to evaluate speed, precision, and accuracy of
the UI-AIA and the other video-imaging systems for determining
aggregate particle size and shape. These bags, each containing
from approximately 740 to over 3900 particles, represented ran-
dom samples of primarily crushed gravel, limestone, and dolomite
obtained from different sources throughout the state. Manual test-
ing of the aggregates was done for the flat and elongated particles
both at IDOT and at the University of Illinois. Particles were cate-
gorized into three categories with F&E ratios of: (i) less than 3:1,
(ii) greater than or equal to 3:1 and less than 5:1, and (iii) greater
than 5:1, and their percentages by count and weight were deter-

FIG. 5—Image cropping for volume computation.

TABLE 1—Predicted weights of 50 individual aggregate particles compared to their actual weights.

Absolute %Error Absolute %Error

Weight (grams) Weight (grams)
Particle Static vs. Dynamic vs. Particle Static vs. Dynamic vs.
Number Static1 Dynamic2 Manual Manual Manual Number Static1 Dynamic2 Manual Manual Manual

1 8.449 8.522 8.560 0.45 1.30 26 2.151 2.472 2.213 11.69 2.79
2 4.358 4.399 4.201 4.72 3.73 27 2.805 2.634 2.662 1.07 5.37
3 5.675 6.179 5.455 13.27 4.03 28 6.156 5.544 5.623 1.40 9.47
4 5.044 4.842 4.888 0.94 3.19 29 2.363 2.430 2.231 8.93 5.93
5 6.854 7.097 6.311 12.46 8.60 30 2.684 2.527 2.600 2.81 3.24
6 6.862 6.461 6.249 3.39 9.81 31 4.297 4.355 3.668 18.73 17.15
7 8.265 8.246 7.795 5.78 6.03 32 2.521 2.160 2.036 6.08 23.84
8 7.445 6.287 6.041 4.08 23.24 33 2.369 2.054 2.352 12.65 0.73
9 5.388 5.204 5.174 0.58 4.13 34 5.097 5.218 4.643 12.38 9.79
10 1.893 1.704 1.691 0.77 11.97 35 4.131 3.902 3.647 6.99 13.26
11 3.320 3.090 2.930 5.46 13.32 36 2.612 2.631 2.881 8.69 9.35
12 2.901 2.679 2.944 8.99 1.47 37 1.977 1.913 1.882 1.64 5.04
13 5.503 4.355 5.560 21.67 1.03 38 3.334 3.080 3.205 3.90 4.03
14 13.032 13.748 14.589 5.77 10.67 39 4.961 4.487 4.114 9.06 20.60
15 3.212 3.292 3.606 8.71 10.91 40 4.449 4.826 4.108 17.47 8.31
16 3.500 3.278 3.404 3.70 2.83 41 2.836 2.951 2.979 0.93 4.79
17 8.338 7.758 8.395 7.59 0.67 42 3.363 2.900 2.700 7.39 24.55
18 4.638 4.150 4.212 1.48 10.12 43 3.054 3.235 2.787 16.07 9.59
19 3.640 3.591 3.445 4.23 5.65 44 2.584 2.440 2.397 1.81 7.80
20 2.687 2.515 2.905 13.44 7.52 45 2.100 2.029 2.174 6.68 3.39
21 2.825 2.701 2.710 0.34 4.24 46 1.730 1.744 1.935 9.89 10.61
22 0.886 0.862 0.897 3.88 1.18 47 2.350 2.333 2.865 18.55 17.99
23 1.121 1.068 0.877 21.79 27.82 48 4.184 4.278 4.021 6.39 4.04
24 3.576 3.318 2.916 13.78 22.64 49 1.889 1.905 1.951 2.36 3.16
25 3.683 3.242 3.261 0.58 12.94 50 3.509 3.796 3.627 4.66 3.25

Totals: 202.603 196.430 194.317

Averages: 7.32 8.74
1
Obtained from a stationary conveyor belt by multiplying the volume from imaging with the specific gravity.
2
Obtained from a moving conveyor belt by multiplying the volume from imaging with the specific gravity.

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468 JOURNAL OF TESTING AND EVALUATION

mined for each sample. The results obtained from the manual test- very good agreement with the manual caliper test results. Note that
ing then formed the basis for evaluating the imaging systems. these good predictions are due to the fact that the percentage of
The summary of results obtained for bag 62A from both the UI- F&E particles by weight is determined as a ratio of volumes (or
AIA and the WipShape system is given in Table 2. Repeatability weights). Since volumes are predicted accurately, the total weight
tests with the UI-AIA were run in triplicate. The F&E ratios pre- predicted for each bag by the UI-AIA also matches very closely
dicted by the UI-AIA are in very good agreement with the manual with the actual weights, even for the samples containing a large
caliper test results obtained from IDOT and at the University of Illi- number of particles such as samples 35, 37, 48, 52, and 62b.
nois and show good repeatability. The total weight of bag 62A was Gradation curves were developed for the ten IDOT samples
measured to be 1891.4 g while the calculated values by the image based on the intermediate size/dimension of the particles deter-
analysis approach using a specific gravity Gs of 2.66 were 1801.8, mined by the UI-AIA. Mechanical sieve shaking was also under-
1794.3, and 1897.3 g for the three trial cases, respectively. Such taken to plot gradation curves in accordance with the ASTM C 136
good weight predictions once again validate the volume computa- procedure to compare results and to verify the image analysis ap-
tion technique adopted. proach. Figures 6 and 7 show the gradation curves for two bag sam-
Table 3 presents results for the other nine IDOT aggregate sam- ples, 85 and 62A, respectively, with the repeatability test results
ples tested. The F&E ratios predicted by the UI-AIA are again in given only for sample 62A. Similar results were obtained for the
other eight samples. The plotted curves indicate gradations ob-
tained from the UI-AIA, the VDG 40, and the manual sieve pro-
cess. The UI-AIA gradations very closely follow the curves devel-
TABLE 2—UI-AIA repeatability study results: flat and elongated ratios oped from the manual sieve analyses.
for sample 62A.
One should realize that the dimension of a particle measured us-
Flat and Elongated Ratio ing imaging is limited to the projection of a particle at a given ori-
entation. Although the measured dimension is large enough to be
Test Method 3:1
3:1 and 5:1
5:1 Weight, g retained on a certain sieve size, in reality, due to the irregular
shapes of the particle, it can weave, wiggle, and make its way
Manual Caliper, 56.7% 39.0% 4.3% … through the same sieve under the vigorous sieve shaking process as
IDOT illustrated in Fig. 8. Therefore, it is hard to pinpoint the actual di-
(ASTM D 4791)
Manual Caliper, 61.5% 36.1% 2.5% 1891.4 mension of the particle that can be associated with particle size.
U of I Nevertheless, the chosen intermediate dimension was found to rep-
WipShape Analysis 66.5% 31.4% 2.1% … resent the grain size of the particle quite accurately.
UI-AIA, Trial 1 63.41% 34.16% 2.43% 1801.8 Using the UI-AIA, it took approximately 70 min to capture im-
UI-AIA, Trial 2 62.16% 34.93% 2.91% 1794.3
UI-AIA, Trial 3 62.13% 35.49% 2.38% 1897.3
ages of approximately 1000 particles (sample 62A) and 20 min to
determine the volumes and the F&E ratios. Next, it took only a few

TABLE 3—Flat and elongated ratio predictions obtained for nine IDOT aggregate bag samples.

Manual Caliper
Sample Flat and U of I Image Total Weight, g
(# Particles in Sample) Elongated Ratio IDOT U of I WipShape Analyzer UI-AIA (Actual)

Sample 35 (2627) 3:1 89.3% 89.1% 87.8% 1088.3 (1066.8)

3:1 and 5:1 10.4% 10.9% 12.0%

5:1 0.3% 0.1% 0.2%
Sample 37 (2746) 3:1 88.0% 89.6% 89.3% 1084.1 (1106.2)

3:1 and 5:1 11.6% 9.9% 10.1%

5:1 0.5% 0.4% 0.6%
Sample 48 (2844) 3:1 81.8% 74.3% 75.3% 1177.1 (1157.9)

3:1 and 5:1 16.1% 23.6% 22.4%

5:1 2.1% 2.1% 2.3%
Sample 52 (2912) 3:1 82.9% 82.7% 71.5% 83.2% 1191.0 (1218.7)

3:1 and 5:1 14.8% 15.9% 21.9% 14.9%

5:1 2.3% 1.4% 6.6% 1.9%
Sample 62b (3866) 3:1 62.7% 63.4% 61.7% 1666.1 (1644.6)

3:1 and 5:1 31.9% 33.4% 33.8%

5:1 5.4% 3.2% 4.5%
Sample 85 (740) 3:1 96.7% 97.6% 97.0% 97.9% 2656.5 (2596.9)

3:1 and 5:1 3.3% 2.4% 2.9% 2.1%

5:1 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
Sample 86 (1791) 3:1 86.8% 88.1% 87.5% 89.2% 1204.8 (1132.4)

3:1 and 5:1 12.0% 11.6% 11.1% 10.2%

5:1 1.1% 0.4% 1.4% 0.6%
Sample 93 (1799) 3:1 90.3% 89.8% 89.0% 90.9% 1032.3 (1016.5)

3:1 and 5:1 8.9% 9.6% 9.5% 8.4%

5:1 0.8% 0.6% 1.5% 0.7%
Sample 161 (1018) 3:1 89.8% 90.7% 89.4% 90.1% 2719.5 (2791.9)

3:1 and 5:1 9.0% 9.1% 9.6% 8.7%

5:1 0.6% 0.2% 2.1% 1.2%

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 RAO ET AL. ON NEW IMAGE ANALYZER 469

FIG. 6—Gradation curves for Sample 85.

FIG. 7—Gradation curves for Sample 62A—Repeatability study.

minutes to provide the grain size information for plotting the grada-
tion curve. In contrast, just performing the manual test for flatness
and elongation (ASTM D 4791) can take up to 6 h of the time of
laboratory personnel for the considered sample size. The time and
labor efficiency of the UI-AIA will be fully realized after the addi-
tion of the angularity module.
Current Limitations and Future Research
The UI-AIA is currently in its final stages of development as a
laboratory prototype system. The system is optimally calibrated for
particles greater than No. 4 (4.75 mm) sieve size. As common to all
video imaging based systems, this system has its limitations when

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470 JOURNAL OF TESTING AND EVALUATION
FIG. 8—Particle passing through a sieve with intermediate size larger than the sieve size.
dealing with dark-colored aggregate particles. These particles es-
pecially create difficulties in the thresholding and processing
stages. It is beyond the abilities of the adaptive thresholding proce-
dure to identify such particles in an image when the particle is al-
most of the same color as, or darker than, the background. Bags 52
and 37 contained a number of these particles, 168 and 114 particles,
respectively, which could not be thresholded and therefore were
not included in the F&E ratio results. However, these ignored dark
colored aggregate particles did not affect the good predictions
given in Table 3. Future versions of the UI-AIA will have to ad-
dress this issue for its routine use in the laboratory. Furthermore, an
angularity module soon to be added to the system will also help dif-
ferentiate a rounded gravel particle from an angular crushed one.
In Portland cement concrete (PCC), particle shape, angularity,
and surface texture of coarse aggregate particles also affect the mix
design, rheological properties, aggregate mortar bond, and the
strength-generating interlocking effect. Spherical particles are pre-
ferred over angular particles since spherical particles minimize the
paste required to fully coat the surface of each particle and reduce
particle interaction during mixing. Although some guidance [19] is
available for selecting coarse aggregates for PCC mixes, there are
no standard test methods to measure objectively shape properties
associated with PCC strength, performance, and durability. Future
research with the UI-AIA will focus on determining surface tex-
ture/area of aggregates and developing imaging-based shape in-
dices that can be correlated to PCC performance.
Summary and Conclusions
Aggregate shape and size properties affect the performance of
pavement unbound granular layers and surface courses, asphalt
concrete, and Portland cement concrete. Image analysis procedures
to determine coarse aggregate shape and size properties are cur-
rently being considered as attractive and viable alternatives over
the more labor-intensive and time-consuming manual test proce-
dures. An image analysis system, besides being fast and efficient,
has to be accurate, reliable, and based on sound techniques to repli-
cate the manual test procedures it is designed to automate.
A new coarse aggregate image analyzer has been developed at
the University of Illinois to provide a reliable means of automating
the determination of coarse aggregate size and shape properties
such as the flat and elongated ratio and gradation in a fast and effi-
cient way. The new device uses three cameras to collect aggregate
images from three orthogonal directions. The use of three cameras
provides the unique capability of accurately reconstructing the
three-dimensional shape, i.e., computing volume of an aggregate
particle, so that results can be expressed in percentages by weight.
Validation of the University of Illinois Aggregate Image Ana-
lyzer (UI-AIA) was achieved by comparing the predicted weights
of 50 individual aggregate particles to the actual measured weights.
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Using the system, the volumes and therefore weights, were com-
puted for ten aggregate bag samples, each containing anywhere
from 700 to 3900 particles. The weight percentages of the flat and
elongated ratios falling in each size category were determined for
each sample. Results from the new imaging approach were in very
good agreement with the flat and elongated ratios obtained by man-
ual calipers following the ASTM D 4791 test procedure. The re-
peatability of the UI-AIA results was also very good. Moreover,
gradation curves developed based on imaging were found to match
very closely the mechanical sieve analysis results obtained from
the ASTM C 136 test procedure. The UI-AIA is considered to be a
significant technological advancement towards automating analy-
sis of coarse aggregates and for properly characterizing the three-
dimensional shapes and sizes of aggregate particles.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to acknowledge the Federal Highway
Administration and the Illinois Department of Transportation for
providing support in the development of the University of Illinois
Aggregate Image Analyzer. The authors would also like to thank
Kristen Erbach for performing the ASTM D 4791 tests for flat and
elongated particle measurements.
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