In the past, the transportation industry deployed systems with unique data definitions and proprietary communications protocols. Field devices and systems from one manufacturer or developer were not interoperable with those of other manufacturers or developers. As a result, system expansion after initial deployment generally required major systems integration efforts and costs.
In 1996, a consortium of manufacturers, engineers, safety experts, and governmental entities joined together to create the National Transportation Communications for ITS Protocol (NTCIP) standard. This committee identified examples where a standard protocol would enable unlike systems to interface into a common protocol.
The following areas identified by NTCIP were addressed:
- Dynamic highway message signs
- Automated traffic signals
- Data-collection and monitoring devices, such as traffic counter, traffic classifiers, and weigh-in-motion stations
- In-vehicle sensors and controllers
- Environmental sensors
- Ramp meters
- Vehicle proximity detectors
- Closed-circuit television cameras
The following disparate systems can be fully integrated utilizing the NTCIP protocol:
- Traffic management (freeway/surface street, urban/rural)
- Transit management (bus/rail/other)
- Incident management
- Emergency management
- Parking management
- Traveler information (all modes)
- Commercial vehicle operations regulation
Deploying NTCIP protocol enables municipalities, companies, and other entities to interface their entire transportation system into a cohesive, highly efficient solution.
Delcan Technologies, a Parsons company, provides components that translate unlike protocols into NTCIP, which enables government and business entities to deploy an Advanced Transportation Management System across vast areas with an integrated user experience.
Want to learn more about NTCIP?
The Introduction to NTCIP is a free 20-page guide
with NTCIP information from the experts.
