Open Traffic Simulation: design of a multi-scale and multimodal representation of the infrastructure for transportation models

Subject

Open Traffic Sim is an open source software transport model system that can be used as a research environment that is open for everyone who is interested in transport modelling. It aims to provide state-of-the-art transport modelling knowledge in the form of programming code and allow users to alter and extend it by adding new code. In this thesis the requirements to create such as system are systematically examined from the perspective of both the software and project governance, and the functional representation of the transport system with its main objects, methods and relationships. As a result, it provides a coherent design for a traffic network ontology that enables a seamless transition between global and detailed representations of a road traffic infrastructure, allows the modelling of all modes of traffic on this infrastructure.

Scientific challenges

The challenge is to create an architecture (the big picture) of a model system that is most suitable to encapsulate varying transport modelling approaches. and is capable to (1) seamless integrate multiple scales in terms of level of detail, (2) handle multiple modes of transport within one application and (3) use data structures that align to the semantics of internationally accepted standards. This challenge is elaborated for the transport infrastructure by creating a design for a traffic network ontology that enables a seamless transition between global and detailed representations of a road traffic infrastructure and allows the modelling of all modes of traffic on this infrastructure?

Societal relevance

Currently, a generic transport modelling tool that is specifically designed for research purposes and oriented towards usability and learnability, is lacking. The main societal contribution is the start-up of an open source software project that aligns to the concepts and ideas from this PhD project.

Guus Tamminga

Start/end date: 2009 - 2017
Daily supervisor: Hans van Lint
Promotor: Serge Hoogendoorn