Abstract
The work carried out by the Service d'Etudes Techniques des Routes et Autoroutes is presented with regard to the automatic detection of incidents affecting motorway traffic and, more precisely, research on detection models based on condensed, and thus more economical, data compilations. Two types of algorithm, devised so as to meet different function requirements, are dealt with. A description is given of each of them which includes their general principles and the initial results obtained through simulation with real data.