Research Project

CAV Application Deployment Roadmap

Developing a standardized system architecture for deploying Connected & Automated Vehicle applications across all Caltrans districts. This roadmap ensures uniform, safe, and scalable V2I equipment and CAV application deployment statewide.

PI: Qijian Gan, Ph.D.Caltrans Agreement 65A1268
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CAV Applications
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Use Cases
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Task Areas
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Software Products

Project Overview

The Challenge

Caltrans is actively piloting V2I equipment including Road-Side Units (RSUs) and Roadside Processors (RSPs) across State Highway Systems. However, all existing deployments use non-standard or proprietary system architectures, creating long-term design and deployment challenges across districts.

The Solution

This research delivers a comprehensive Caltrans CAV Application Deployment Roadmap consisting of a common nomenclature, a designer toolkit with technical specifications, and internal webpages for searching and managing CAV applications, their architectures, and deployment status.

10 Priority CAV Use Cases

Selected in collaboration with Caltrans for statewide deployment, each with detailed technical specifications and deployment guidelines.

Queue Warning

Alerts drivers of downstream traffic queues to prevent rear-end collisions

Curve Speed Warning

Warns drivers when approaching curves at unsafe speeds

Intersection Safety Warning

Collision avoidance at intersections through V2X communication

Vulnerable Road User Safety

Protects pedestrians and cyclists through connected alerts

Speed Harmonization

Dynamically adjusts speed limits to smooth traffic flow

Eco-Approach & Departure

Optimizes speed at signalized intersections to reduce emissions

Transit/Freight Signal Priority

Gives priority signal timing to transit and freight vehicles

Emergency Vehicle Preemption

Clears signal phases for approaching emergency vehicles

Wrong Way Vehicle Detection

Detects and warns wrong-way drivers on highways and ramps

Work Zone Management

Manages traffic safety and flow through active work zones

Software Products Delivered

Production-ready applications and tools built to support the CAV deployment roadmap.

CAV Application Portal

56 Applications Cataloged

A comprehensive Next.js web portal cataloging 56 CAV applications with advanced filtering, search, and detailed metadata for each application including architecture diagrams and deployment maturity levels.

Video Recording Software

Desktop App Built

An Electron desktop application (Caltrans Recorder) for recording traffic camera streams with weather-triggered automation, multi-camera selection, and loop recording capabilities. Packaged as a macOS installer.

Analytics Pipeline

ML Pipeline Complete

A YOLOv11 + ByteTrack vehicle detection and tracking system with fine-tuning capabilities, multi-format export (CSV, JSON, JSONL), and annotated video generation for traffic analysis.

File Reorganization Utility

Automated Organization

A Python utility for standardized CCTV video file organization with metadata extraction, intelligent filename parsing, and hierarchical reorganization by resolution, weather, district, and camera ID.

Research Task Breakdown

01

Project Management

Ongoing

Facilitating communication with Caltrans through quarterly reports, meetings, and advisory panel coordination.

02

Common Nomenclature Development

Complete

Comprehensive review of CAV applications from ARC-IT 9.3, CVRIA, and NOCoE. Each application assigned a unique Caltrans Use Case Name, ID, and Deployment Maturity Level.

03

Designer Toolkit

Complete

Specifications for 10 essential CAV applications covering benefits, impacts, hardware/software requirements, communications, and block diagrams for each use case.

04

Internal Webpages

Complete

Searchable web portal for CAV applications with architecture views, filtering by deployment status, hardware needs, and application type.

05

Final Report & Workshop

In Progress

Comprehensive documentation of all findings and a knowledge-transfer workshop for Caltrans staff on using the roadmap and web tools.

Value to Caltrans

The roadmap guarantees all districts meet federal safety and mobility standards while reducing duplication and cost across the state.

Standardization

Uniform deployment across all Caltrans districts with a pre-defined system architecture

Cost Reduction

Eliminates training on different technologies for the same CAV use case statewide

Safety Compliance

Ensures all deployments meet federal safety and mobility standards

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