External adaptive control systems and methods

• US 8,653,989 B1
• Filed: 04/04/2011
• Issued: 02/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rhythm Engineering
• Original Assignee: Rhythm Engineering
• Inventors: Chandra, Reggie J., Bley, James W., Penrod, Stephen S., Parker, Arthur S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pope, Daryl
• Application Number:
  US13/079,537
• Time in Patent Office: 1,051 Days
• Field of Search: 340907-924, 701/117, 701/118
• US Class Current: 340/917
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/07 Controlling traffic signals
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/081 Plural intersections under common control

Abstract

An external adaptive control system and method control a traffic signal controller assembly. The external adaptive control system determines a non-linear schedule with one or more states corresponding to one or more individual phases with each state having a start time and a duration. The external adaptive control system generates presence data for reception by the controller assembly for each state and its associated duration.

Claims

1. An external adaptive control system for controlling a traffic signal controller assembly at an intersection, comprising:

an interface to receive vehicle sensor information for a plurality of sensors at an intersection;

a processor configured to;

determine an optimized schedule for controlling traffic at the intersection based on the vehicle sensor information, said schedule comprising a plurality of states, each state having a state start time and a state duration,

generate presence data for each state in the optimized schedule starting at each state start time and for each state duration, the presence data corresponding to (i) an absence of vehicles at an approach to the intersection even if vehicles are actually present at said approach, or (ii) a presence of vehicles at the approach to the intersection even if no vehicles are actually present at said approach, and

transmit the presence data corresponding to each state at each state start time and for each state duration for reception by the traffic signal controller assembly;

wherein the external adaptive control system is external to the traffic controller assembly; and

whereby the external adaptive control system causes the traffic signal controller assembly to operate according to the optimized schedule determined by the processor in the external adaptive control system.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the presence data comprises up to two detector calls for each state in the optimized schedule.

3. An external adaptive control system for controlling traffic at an intersection, comprising:

a sensor interface to receive vehicle sensor information for a plurality of sensors at the intersection;

an optimizer to determine a plurality of vehicle phases for controlling traffic at the intersection based on the vehicle sensor information, each vehicle phase having a time of initiation and a duration;

a scheduler to generate a one or more detector calls for each state starting at each state start time and for each state duration, the plurality of detector calls corresponding to (i) an absence of vehicles at an approach to the intersection even if vehicles are actually present at said approach, or (ii) a presence of vehicles at the approach to the intersection even if no vehicles are actually present at said approach; and

a controller assembly interface that, for each vehicle phase, transmits at least one detector call generated by the scheduler to a traffic signal controller assembly at the intersection for the vehicle phase starting at the time of initiation of the vehicle phase and for the duration of the vehicle phase.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein said external adaptive control system is configured to transmit up to two detector calls generated by the scheduler to the traffic signal controller assembly for each vehicle phase.

5. A tangible computer readable medium encoded with instructions executable by a processor for controlling traffic at an intersection, the instructions comprising:

instructions that, when executed by the processor, will cause the processor to receive vehicle sensor information for a plurality of sensors at the intersection;

instructions that, when executed by the processor, will cause the processor to determine a schedule for controlling traffic at the intersection based on the received vehicle sensor information, the schedule having a plurality of vehicle phases, each vehicle phase having a time of initiation and a duration,

instructions that, when executed by the processor, will cause the processor to generate one or more detector calls for each state starting at each phase initiation time and for each phase duration, the plurality of detector calls corresponding to (i) an absence of vehicles at an approach to the intersection even if vehicles are actually present at said approach, or (ii) a presence of vehicles at the approach to the intersection even if no vehicles are actually present at said approach; and

instructions that, when executed by the processor, will cause the processor to transmit, for each vehicle phase, at least one detector call for reception by a traffic signal controller assembly at the intersection for the vehicle phase starting at the time of initiation of the vehicle phase and for the duration of the vehicle phase.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the instructions comprise transmitting up to two detector calls for reception by the traffic signal controller assembly for each vehicle phase.

13. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 5, wherein the plurality of vehicle phases in the schedule are arranged in a variable order.

14. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 5, wherein the plurality of vehicle phases in the schedule are arranged in a fixed order.

7. An external adaptive control system external to a traffic signal controller, the external adaptive control system comprising a processor configured to:

receive vehicle sensor information for a plurality of sensors at an intersection;

determine an optimized schedule based on the vehicle sensor information, the optimized schedule comprising a plurality of states with a variable state order, each state having a state start time and a state duration;

sequentially generate presence data for each state in the optimized schedule starting at each state start time and for each state duration, the presence data corresponding to (i) an absence of vehicles at an approach to the intersection even if vehicles are actually present at said approach, or (ii) a presence of vehicles at the approach to the intersection even if no vehicles are actually present at said approach; and

sequentially transmit the presence data corresponding to each state at each state start time and for each state duration for reception by a traffic signal controller assembly controlling traffic signals at the intersection;

whereby the external adaptive control system causes the traffic signal controller assembly to operate according to the optimized schedule determined by the processor in the external adaptive control system.

8. A method for controlling traffic comprising:

receiving vehicle sensor information for a plurality of sensors of an intersection at an external adaptive control system that is external to a traffic signal controller assembly;

determining a plurality of states for controlling the traffic at the intersection based on the vehicle sensor information, each state having a state start time and a state duration;

generating presence data at the external adaptive control system, the presence data corresponding to (i) an absence of vehicles at an approach to the intersection even if vehicles are actually present at said approach, or (ii) a presence of vehicles at the approach to the intersection even if no vehicles are actually present at said approach; and

transmitting the presence data corresponding to each state starting at each state start time and for each state duration from the external adaptive control system for reception by the traffic signal controller assembly.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein transmitting the presence data corresponding to each state comprises transmitting at least one member of a group consisting of detector calls for up to two individual phases and the presence of at least one vehicle in each of up to the two individual phases.

10. A method for controlling traffic at an intersection, comprising:

receiving vehicle sensor information for a plurality of sensors of the intersection at an external adaptive control system that is external to a traffic signal controller assembly for the intersection;

determining a plurality of vehicle phases for controlling traffic at the intersection based on the vehicle sensor information, each vehicle phase having a time of initiation and a duration;

for each vehicle phase, transmitting at least one detector call for reception by the traffic signal controller assembly for the vehicle phase starting at the time of initiation of the vehicle phase and for the duration of the vehicle phase, said at least one detector call corresponding to (i) an absence of vehicles at an approach to the intersection even if vehicles are actually present at said approach, or (ii) a presence of vehicles at the approach to the intersection even if no vehicles are actually present at said approach.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising transmitting up to two detector calls for reception by the traffic signal controller for each vehicle phase, said at least two detector calls corresponding to (i) an absence of vehicles at said approach to the intersection even if vehicles are actually present at said approach, or (ii) a presence of vehicles at the approach to the intersection even if no vehicles are actually present at said approach.

12. A method for controlling traffic at an intersection controlled by a traffic signal controller assembly, the method comprising:

receiving vehicle sensor information for a plurality of sensors of the intersection at an external adaptive control system that is external to the traffic signal controller assembly;

determining an optimized schedule based on the vehicle sensor information, the optimized schedule comprising a plurality of states with a variable order, each state having a state start time and a state duration; and

sequentially transmitting presence data corresponding to each state in the optimized schedule starting at each state start time and for each state duration for reception by the traffic signal controller, the presence data corresponding to (i) an absence of vehicles at an approach to the intersection even if vehicles are actually present at said approach, or (ii) a presence of vehicles at the approach to the intersection even if no vehicles are actually present at said approach;

whereby the external adaptive control system causes the traffic signal controller assembly to operate according to the optimized schedule determined by the external adaptive control system.

15. An external adaptive control system for controlling traffic at an intersection, comprising:

a sensor interface that receives vehicle sensor information for a plurality of sensors at the intersection;

a state machine that dynamically determines a non-linear schedule for controlling traffic at the intersection based on the vehicle sensor information, the non-linear schedule comprising a plurality of states in a variable state order, each state having a state start time and a state duration;

a scheduler to generate presence data for each state starting at each state start time and for each state duration, the presence data corresponding to (i) an absence of vehicles at an approach to the intersection even if vehicles are actually present at said approach, or (ii) a presence of vehicles at the approach to the intersection even if no vehicles are actually present at said approach; and

a controller assembly interface that, for each state in the non-linear schedule, sequentially transmits the presence data for said each state to a traffic signal controller assembly for the intersection, starting at the state start time for said each state and lasting for the state duration for said each state.