AGORA website
Objectives
Geographic information forms a major part of the information that is communicated in applications of traffic (and traveller) telematics. The geographic information component is needed to answer questions such as:
"Where am I?"
"Where are you?"
"Where is the accident?"
The form of the answer depends on the spatial reference system used. Generally speaking, answers to "Where?" may range from positions expressed exclusively in terms of scientific co-ordinates expressed in terms of objects of direct human experience (called locations in traffic telematics terminology). A location may be a road crossing or section, relation between road sections or a point of interest.
Consequently, digital map databases play a vital role in most traffic telematics applications. In the chain of creating, providing and using traffic and related information, a traffic message is created in the sending system and transmitted and used in the receiving system. The traffic information in the message is related to a location and this location is referenced by a code, called a location reference. A problem is caused by the fact that the sending and the receiving system may - and often will - use map databases of different origin, specification and completeness.
A new generic method for location referencing was successfully implemented, tested and validated in a laboratory type map database environment (TR4011-EVIDENCE). The method is designed for traffic telematics systems that use a digital map on both ends of the communication chain. A location code is created when needed from the map database in the sending system, embedded in a message, sent on wireless data carriers, and interpreted by the receiver using the information in its map database. Pre-coding of locations, maintenance, and dissemination of location tables are no longer necessary.
The AGORA project's key objectives are to:
- Adapt and implement this leading-edge technology and bring it from the laboratory environment to real telematics applications
- Test and validate the reliability of this method on a trial site in Hannover
- Disseminate and transfer this technology for wide-spread adoption/implementation
Approach
AGORA is an 18-month project (October 2000 – March 2002) and includes the set of actors necessary to build trials/tests addressing the entire telematics chain: major map providers, content/service providers and users/terminal manufacturers. To realise the AGORA's overall objectives, the following operational objectives have been defined which give a summary of the work to be carried out in AGORA, which include to:
- Adapt and fine-tune the EVIDENCE location referencing algorithms for the applications to be implemented in the trials.
- Integrate the location referencing algorithms in the telematics applications environment. The algorithms comprise the following functionality: identification of a location, creation of the location reference, encoding for and transmission in a message, reception and interpretation of the location reference, presentation of the location to end-users.
- Implement and test the location referencing method in telematics applications comprising the full service chain. The trial site will be in Hannover, and data carriers considered for use in the trials are DAB and/or GSM (using WAP/SMS).
- Make a validation plan, including definition of parameters to measure and assess the success of the trials, and perform the validation tests. Success will be reached if at least 95% of all coded location can unambiguously be identified as being present or absent in the receiving map database.
- Disseminate the technology by workshops and through other media, provide input to standardisation (CEN, ISO, ETSI), liaise with and provide support to IST and other projects requiring location referencing (DIAMOND, ITS-WAP, TPEG, TRIDENT, etc) offering a link to end-users.
AGORA's technical target: location presented in the terminal is identical to the originally identified location.
AGORA's business target: adapt this location referencing method for widespread use in transport telematics applications and foster interoperability.
Due to these factors, AGORA must build a trial implementing the full telematics service chain with respect to location referencing. The Hannover region has been chosen for the quality of the available information used at the EXPO 2000, and achieved results could be extrapolated all over Europe.
Consortium
| Map suppliers | |
| Navigation Technologies (now Navteq) BV |  |
| Tele Atlas NV |  |
| Content provider | |
| Move Entwicklungs-, Infrastuktur und Service Gesellschaft mbH | |
| Service provider | |
| Robert Bosch Multimedia Systeme GmbH & CoKG |  |
| Users/Terminal manufacturers | |
| Blaupunkt Werke GmbH |  |
| VDO Car Communication GmBH | |
| Project manager | |
| ERTICO |  |
Milestones
| March 2002 | Technological implementation plan, Location referencing change request for ISO |
| March 2002 | Final reports on validation results, implementation and verification test results |
| February 2001 | Specification of the consolidated algorithms based on the experience of the trials |
| December 2001 | Demonstrator of the whole service chain ready for the validation phase |
| May 2001 | Validation plan available |
| May 2001 | Location referencing integration and implementation guidelines |
| March 2001 | Brochure presentation of AGORA, Dissemination and use plan |
| January 2001 | First proposal for implementation algorithms |
Public Documents
| AGORA Final Workshop - 14 April 2003: Presentation |  2_AGORA-Workshop-2.zip (3345 KB) |
| AGORA Workshop - 12 June 2001: Agenda | 2_agoraws1.zip (85 KB) |
| AGORA Workshop - 12 June 2001: Background and history | 2_agoraws3.zip (102 KB) |
| AGORA Workshop - 12 June 2001: LBS Breakout session | 2_lbsbo.zip (86 KB) |
| AGORA Workshop - 12 June 2001: The AGORA location referencing method | 2_agoraws4.zip (682 KB) |
| AGORA Workshop - 12 June 2001: The AGORA Project | 2_agoraws2.zip (185 KB) |
| AGORA Workshop - 12 June 2001: Navigation Breakout Session | 2_navibo.zip (85 KB) |
| Deliverable D2.1: Specification of Algorithms | 2_d21.zip (367 KB) |
| Deliverable D2.2: Specification of Consolidated Algorithms | 2_D22.zip (872 KB) |
| Deliverable D3: Location Referencing Integration and Implementation Guidelines | 2_D.zip (950 KB) |
| Deliverable D4.2: Implementation and Verification Test Results | 2_D42.zip (3251 KB) |
| Deliverable D5.1: Validation Plan | 2_D5.1.zip (515 KB) |
| Deliverable D5.2: Validation Report | 2_D52.zip (5379 KB) |
| Deliverable D6.4: Change Request for ISO TC204 SWG3.3 | 2_D6.4.zip (257 KB) |
| ISO TC204, Amsterdam 9 August 2001: AGORA Presentation | 2_agora-iso-amsterdam.zip (76 KB) |
| ITS in Europe Congress - Bilbao, 22 June 2001: AGORA Presentation | 2_bilbao.zip (48 KB) |
| Presentation for VICS Center and Nomura Research Institute | 2_VICS.zip (307 KB) |