Measuring Travel Times in Road Traffic using Bluetooth Technology

Mjerenje i procjene vremena putovanja su bitne komponente u prometnom planiranju i praćenju prometnih trendova, te su postale sastavni dio inteligentnih transportnih sustava. Zbog široke uporabe uređaja opremljenih Bluetooth tehnologijom u svakodnevnom životu, njegove niske nabavne cijene i lake implementacije, Bluetooth postaje sve češći predmet prometnih istraživanja. Cilj ovoga rada je ispitati praktičnost i pozdanost korištenja Bluetooth detektora u svrhu mjerenja vremena putovanja na cestovnom segmentu. U radu su opisane specifikacije i funkcionalnosti Bluetooth tehnologije, te detekcija Bluetooth signala i uređaja iz okoline putem MAC adrese. Navedene su metode klasifikacija uređaja prema vrsti prijevoznog sredstva, te je napravljena analiza mjerenja putovanja nad podacima prikupljenih s dva Bluetooth detektora implementirana u prometnu infrastrukturu u širem centru Zagreba. Iznesena je interpretacija rezultata, a dobiveni rezultati pokazuju da se Bluetooth tehnologija može koristiti kao isplativ sustav za prikupljanje i obradu određenih podataka iz prometnog okruženja, kao i za računanje vremena putovanja. Iako još postoje određeni nedostaci korištenja Bluetooth tehnologije za prometna istraživanja, Bluetooth ipak ima velik potencijal u daljnjem nadzoru i upravljanju prometnom mrežom te praćenju sudionika u prometu i njihovog kretanja u urbanom okruženju.Estimation and measurement of the travel times represent an important component in traffic planning and monitoring of traffic trends. Those measurements became an integral part of intelligent transport systems. Widespread use of devices equipped with Bluetooth technology in everyday life and Bluetooth's low price of production and implementation cause Bluetooth to be used as a frequent subject in traffic research. The main objective is to assess the practicality and reliability of using Bluetooth detectors for measuring travel times on a road segment. This paper describes specifications and functionalities of Bluetooth technology, detection of Bluetooth signal, detection of Bluetooth devices from the surroundings by using MAC address and methodologies of device classification according to the travel mode. Analysis has been done for the travel times based on the data gathered from two Bluetooth detectors, which have been installed in the traffic infrastructure of the wider city center of Zagreb. Data interpretation that resulted from analysis shown within this paper indicates that Bluetooth technology can be used as a reliable and affordable system for gathering data from the traffic environment. Collected data can be furthermore analysed for various purposes, including the calculation of travel times. Although there are still some disadvantages of using Bluetooth technology as a data collecting system in traffic research, there is a large potential in the technology for observation and managing traffic networks, so as for tracking traffic participants and their movements in urban environments