Commercial Operations

The advent of cable modems conforming to the Data Over Cable System Interface
Specification (DOCSIS) has created an ever-increasing communications infrastructure,
not only for the typical homeowner, but also for the homeowner supporting a Small
Office Home Office (SOHO) and for other small businesses.
The use of DOCSIS cable modems can also be extended to support communications of
traffic data to provide enhancements to existing communications methods.  Tests are
currently being conducted at the City of Fort Worth Traffic Management Center (TMC)
using commercial grade and extended temperature grade DOCSIS cable modems to
characterize communications performance parameters and to identify system
constraints.
Whether for the homeowner, the business community, or a TMC, security measures are
vital to ensuring data integrity.  This paper will provide an overview of the Community
Antenna Television (CATV) system and the cable network infrastructure.  In addition, a
description of the DOCSIS cable modems and how they are being used in a novel
approach to transmit traffic data will be presented.  Finally, an overview will be provided
describing the tests being conducted by the City of Fort Worth using the CATV and
DOCSIS cable modems and the security measures that should be considered when
using DOCSIS cable modems within the CATV cable network to provide transmission of
traffic data.

Southwest Research Institute

The City of Fort Worth

Presented at the ITS America Annual Conference and Exposition, April 26 - 28, 2004 San Antonio, Texas

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has contracted with the
University at Kentucky and General Dynamics to develop the CVO Safety System, an innovation
that increases commercial vehicle safety and fleet efficiency through the use of on-board
monitoring and reporting technology. This program has developed a brake stroke sensor to
monitor the status of pneumatic brakes and is integrated with automatic vehicle location and
vehicle network communication to help fleet managers assess the safety of their trucks while in
operation. Additionally, the CVO Safety System provides automated crash detection through use of the General Dynamics Crash Detection Algorithm (CDA). Since the CDA was based on
passenger car dynamics, the Algorithm must be modified for use with commercial vehicle
dynamics. The acceleration threshold levels must be set low enough to detect a crash and yet
high enough to prevent false alarms.

General Dynamics

Presented at the ITS America Annual Conference and Exposition, April 26 - 28, 2004 San Antonio, Texas

This paper describes  in detail  some of the essentials of the  Ethernet  standard, common
misconceptions of the technology, and key issues that need to be addressed prior to deployment of it for  Intelligent Transportation Systems.  Since Ethernet is the most prevalent networking standard in the world today due to its flexibility, reliability and cost effectiveness, it is these same features that have made Ethernet a solid choice for many ITS communications networks being implemented in the new millennium.  However, there are certain portions of the standard that are actually constraining for ITS networks, but innovative techniques and methods of implementation enable ITS engineers to maintain compliance with the standard while accommodating the  rigorous  demands of ITS communications networks.  Some of these constraints include transmission distances, the CSMA/CD algorithm, and the fact that many ITS field devices are not “Ethernet-ready”, or Ethernet devices are not “ITS ready”.   Another constraining factor includes the lack of environmental, shock and vibration  tolerance for outdoor applications with most Ethernet gear.  Cities such as San Francisco, California, Orlando, Florida and Arlington, Texas are utilizing it for their new city-wide ITS networks, and many others are considering it as part of their ITS Master Plans.

DKS Associates

City and County of San Francisco

Presented at the ITS America Annual Conference and Exposition, April 26 - 28, 2004 San Antonio, Texas

An evaluation that measured driver acceptance of the Enhanced Object Detection System
(EODS) for transit bus side proximity warning was performed in conjunction with a 100-
day Field Operational Test (FOT), conducted during April to July 2003 on buses
equipped with Intelligent Vehicle Initiative (IVI) technology, at the Harmar Division of
the Port Authority of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh metropolitan area).  
The EODS technology was designed as a driver assistive tool to provide bus drivers with
information about detected objects in close proximity to their vehicles.  The objects of
primary concern are other vehicles and stationary obstacles during in-service operations
such as close-maneuvering situations, slow speed turns, lane change and merge
situations.

Battelle Memorial Institute

CJI Research Corporation

Transportation Resource Associates, Inc.

Presented at the ITS America Annual Conference and Exposition, April 26 - 28, 2004 San Antonio, Texas

In anticipation of substantial growth of traffic in coming years many
transportation agencies frequently undertake projects which aim to increase the capacity
of the system.  A critical element for decision-making in these projects is to assess the
effectiveness of various alternatives prior to implementation. The need to consider
interactions between adjacent arterials, combined with the growing need to assess various
ITS (Intelligent Transportation System) applications, made simulation an increasingly
essential tool for such purposes. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the adequacy of
a proposed redesign for freeway I-494 in the  Twin Cities, Minnesota using two widely
used state of the art microscopic simulators. Prior to evaluating the new redesign the two
simulators were calibrated with existing conditions. The calibration results indicate that
the two simulators were calibrated at an acceptable level prior to implementing for future
scenario. The final adequacy evaluation results suggest that both the simulators produce
similar results for basic system-wide MOE’s like total travel, total travel time and speed.
As for freeway individual links and intersection approaches, although similar conclusions
can be drawn for most cases from both simulators, there are some situations where the
results obtained from different models are  different. For these cases, a decision on the
adequacy of the design cannot be made unless the user decides which model is reliable.

University of Minnesota

Presented at the ITS America Annual Conference and Exposition, April 26 - 28, 2004 San Antonio, Texas