DATA FUSION FOR DELIVERING ADVANCED TRAVELER INFORMATION SERVICES
Advanced Traveler Information System (ATIS) is one of several Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) technologies that offers users integrated traveler information before and during travel, thereby providing a wider range of choices about how, when, and where to travel based on individual interests and needs. One of the major reasons ATIS services has garnered public and professional interest is the concern created by the continuing disparity between the growth in surface transportation travel demand and the relatively minor addition of travel capacity. This combination has resulted in increased regional roadway congestion, greater uncertainty in travel time estimates, and higher real or perceived costs in safety and productivity. Increasing transportation capacity by building roads and other related infrastructure is not a feasible solution in many urban areas due to the high costs as well as environmental and associated societal concerns. Alternative solutions are necessary. To be effective, ATIS systems must work with a broad set of source data and information, combine and qualify the information to yield better traveler information, and disseminate the information when needed by travelers. One component of this complex process is data fusion. The purpose of ATIS data fusion is to combine data (in the broadest sense of the term) to estimate or predict the state of some aspect of the surface transportation world. These estimates may include statements about current or future vehicular speeds, mean speeds, vehicular classifications and volumes on selected roadway segments, environmental information, transit system performance, and similar topics of interest to travelers. The overall effectiveness of data fusion needs to be evaluated in a systems context, taking into consideration the overarching system mission and purpose, architectures, data processing capabilities, data validation and verification, human-system interface, and institutional arrangements. A study was completed, examining these issues, the findings of which can be found in this report. The process of the study was threefold. First, a literature review was conducted of the ATIS and data fusion fields to examine current practices. The review also included an examination of relevant field case studies and discussions with selected ATIS practitioners to determine the extent and direction of their data fusion interests and applications. Second, an appropriate ATIS data fusion model was developed, along with guidelines to enable a multitude of source data to be fused to create ATIS products and services. The model describes ATIS data fusion using five distinct levels of functional activities. Third, appropriate metrics were identified that describe quantitatively and qualitatively how data quality can be verified, modeled, and processed so that traveler information products can be considered more reliable and useful.
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- Record URL:
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Corporate Authors:
Federal Highway Administration
ITS Joint Program Office
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC United States 20590 - Publication Date: 2003-5
Language
- English
Media Info
- Features: Appendices; Figures; References;
- Pagination: 164 p.
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Advanced traveler information systems; Costs; Data fusion; Environment; Environmental protection; Estimating; Forecasting; Ground transportation; Information dissemination; Information processing; Intelligent transportation systems; Measurement; Performance; Productivity; Public transit; Speed; System architecture; Traffic congestion; Traffic volume; Transportation safety; Travel demand; Travel time; Urban areas; Validation; Vehicle classification
- Uncontrolled Terms: Data fusion model; Human system interface
- Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Environment; Finance; Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Public Transportation; Safety and Human Factors; Society; I10: Economics and Administration;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 00961939
- Record Type: Publication
- Files: NTL, TRIS, USDOT
- Created Date: Aug 17 2003 12:00AM