Hardware-in-the-loop evaluation of traffic signal systems

Vendors of modern traffic control equipment implement many unique algorithms designed to move traffic more efficiently. However, because of either the difficulty in modeling or the proprietary nature of the algorithms, many of these vendor specific algorithms can not be adequately evaluated using general purpose macroscopic or microscopic simulation models. This paper describes a procedure for incorporating actual traffic signal control equipment into a microscopic simulation to provide a rigorous of algorithms embedded in traffic devices. This procedure can be used to evaluate systems as diverse as SCOOT, SCATS or closed loop traffic responsive systems