The objectives of the AVS-TDC project (Oct. 1997 - Sep. 1998) were to show the potential of video detection as input :

• to predict travel time,
• to detect incidents within a queue and
• to determine the queue tail position.

Five partners participated in the project:

• the 3 end users were the Ministry of the Flemish Community- EMA, Autostrade Firenze and BMW. 
• Tritel, a transport consultant co-ordinated the committee of end users. 
• Traficon co-ordinated the project as industrial partner.

The pilot site was the frequently congested road stretch of 5km, equipped with 15 traffic data detector cameras, before the entrance of the Kennedy-tunnel in Antwerpen, Belgium.

At the heart of the resulting TDC application lies video image processing for accurate flow speed measurement (down to 0 km/h) in all traffic conditions from fluid traffic to queue.

The TDC algorithms use this flow speed to calculate the expected travel time and to determine the queue tail position.

The application functions within a client-server architecture with the WATTS (Wide Area Traffic Telematics Server). Output is presented in a graphical user interface on PC.

The end result of the project is a PC client software that shows the output of the system, i.e. the graphical representation of both travel time and a queue tail position on the site.
As a client, the application fits into a total concept of traffic data handling: 

• Camera images are processed by the video detector 
• Data & images are transmitted to the server via a COM board
• The output is presented by a specific graphical client software for different kinds of applications.

This concept is already operational on several sites world-wide.
The TDC application is a valuable, ready-to-use tool that fits well into a complete incident detection and management system due to its modular concept.
The essential information is presented in a basic format that can serve as input for several types of broadcasting media (e.g. VMS, Internet).

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