dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaAutonomous detection and anticipation of jam fronts from messages propagated by inter-vehicle communication
| Authors | Martin Schönhof, Martin Treiber, Arne Kesting, Dirk Helbing |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | physics/0611261 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0611261 |
| DOI | 10.3141/1999-01 |
| Journal | Transportation Research Record, Volume 1999, Pages 3-12 (2007) |
Abstract
In this paper, a minimalist, completely distributed freeway traffic information system is introduced. It involves an autonomous, vehicle-based jam front detection, the information transmission via inter-vehicle communication, and the forecast of the spatial position of jam fronts by reconstructing the spatiotemporal traffic situation based on the transmitted information. The whole system is simulated with an integrated traffic simulator, that is based on a realistic microscopic traffic model for longitudinal movements and lane changes. The function of its communication module has been explicitly validated by comparing the simulation results with analytical calculations. By means of simulations, we show that the algorithms for a congestion-front recognition, message transmission, and processing predict reliably the existence and position of jam fronts for vehicle equipment rates as low as 3%. A reliable mode of operation already for small market penetrations is crucial for the successful introduction of inter-vehicle communication. The short-term prediction of jam fronts is not only useful for the driver, but is essential for enhancing road safety and road capacity by intelligent adaptive cruise control systems.
{
"annotation_id": "2ab716b0-f0da-4a32-9d89-86f4dfb17af3",
"date_created": "2026-03-02T18:01:14.584000Z",
"date_modified": "2026-03-02T18:01:14.584000Z",
"file_hash": "34b11b643dfeabf5791b670ee9611b07fd014c71489fc4e32dc78f89dbf48744",
"private": false,
"record": {
"abstract": "In this paper, a minimalist, completely distributed freeway traffic\ninformation system is introduced. It involves an autonomous, vehicle-based jam\nfront detection, the information transmission via inter-vehicle communication,\nand the forecast of the spatial position of jam fronts by reconstructing the\nspatiotemporal traffic situation based on the transmitted information. The\nwhole system is simulated with an integrated traffic simulator, that is based\non a realistic microscopic traffic model for longitudinal movements and lane\nchanges. The function of its communication module has been explicitly validated\nby comparing the simulation results with analytical calculations. By means of\nsimulations, we show that the algorithms for a congestion-front recognition,\nmessage transmission, and processing predict reliably the existence and\nposition of jam fronts for vehicle equipment rates as low as 3%. A reliable\nmode of operation already for small market penetrations is crucial for the\nsuccessful introduction of inter-vehicle communication. The short-term\nprediction of jam fronts is not only useful for the driver, but is essential\nfor enhancing road safety and road capacity by intelligent adaptive cruise\ncontrol systems.",
"arxiv_id": "physics/0611261",
"authors": [
"Martin Sch\u00f6nhof",
"Martin Treiber",
"Arne Kesting",
"Dirk Helbing"
],
"categories": [
"physics.data-an",
"physics.comp-ph"
],
"doi": "10.3141/1999-01",
"journal_ref": "Transportation Research Record, Volume 1999, Pages 3-12 (2007)",
"title": "Autonomous detection and anticipation of jam fronts from messages propagated by inter-vehicle communication",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0611261"
},
"schema_id": "dorsal/arxiv",
"source": {
"execution_id": "c3c0c2a5-bab1-4671-b1d5-5e8baa25cc4f",
"id": "arXiv Dataset IDs",
"type": "Model",
"variant": "snapshot-2026-03-01",
"version": "0.1.0"
},
"user_id": 1000002
}