Efficient and Accurate Traffic Sign Detection Leveraging YOLOv8: A Cutting-Edge Deep Learning Framework

The timely and precise identification of traffic signs is essential for maintaining the effectiveness and safety of contemporary roads, particularly in light of the increasing number of self-driving cars. Conventional image processing methods have faced challenges because to the intricate and fluctuating variables present in real-world settings, including various signage, erratic weather, and inconsistent illumination. This study utilizes recent breakthroughs in deep learning, particularly the YOLOv8 (You Only Look Once version 8) model, to tackle these difficulties. YOLOv8 incorporates cutting-edge neural network architectural advancements, such as an anchor-free detection methodology, adaptive spatial feature pooling, and dynamic neural configurations. In order to further increase detection efficiency and accuracy, this study presents two innovative models, YOLOv8-DH and YOLOv8-TDHSA. These models make use of improvements such decoupled heads and transformer-based self-attention mechanisms. Experimental results indicate that the suggested models substantially surpass current deep learning models, attaining enhanced performance across multiple measures, including accuracy, recall, F-score, and mean average precision (mAP). This research enhances traffic sign detecting technology, facilitating the development of safer and more intelligent transportation systems.