A system is described for providing a clear and intuitive depiction of current or forecasted traffic conditions using three-dimensional representations and animation. The system is composed of a front-end visualization system and a back-end server system. The back-end server system serves a number of purposes: it collects, aggregates and corrects real-time updates from various public and private sources of traffic conditions; It permits selection by super-users of the type and attributes for the data to be displayed: for instance real-time data vs. forecasted data; the back-end serversystem also allows super-users to input manually data of traffic flow andincidents that may complete or supersede the automated data feeds. This paper focuses on the front-end visualization system and the characteristicsthat set it apart.
Abstract