Knowing which obstacles lie ahead is a critical part of making our roads and journeys as safe as possible. With autonomous driving on the horizon, the need for reliable traffic information grows.
The Traveller Information Services Association (TISA) is a non-profit association focused on the implementation of traffic and travel information services and products based on existing standards, including primarily RDS-TMC and TPEG (Transport Protocol Experts Group) technologies. Combined with highly accurate and up-to-date map information that are shared for example in NDS, travel and traffic information are a key source of knowledge for automated and autonomous driving systems.
TISA provides the standards and recommendation that enables the referencing for road traffic information. Public transport, points of interest, weather and environmental data are important areas of interest as well. TISA’s mission is to develop and promote open standards and policies that facilitate a timely and cost-effective deployment of Travel and Traffic Information services and products. This will save end users time and money, increase traffic safety, and minimize environmental impact. Another key focus of TISA is on maximizing interoperability worldwide in order to improve the quality and minimize the costs of traffic information services.
TISA is in charge of the location tables that are the basis for the Traffic Message Channel (TMC), a specific application of RDS (Radio Data System) for broadcasting real-time traffic and weather information. A TMC-equipped navigation system decodes the message and informs the driver of incidents and problems ahead. The dynamic route guidance calculates an alternative path. Standard TMC user messages provide five basic items of broadcast information: event description, location, direction and extent, expected duration, and diversion advice. To keep the amount of data as small as possible, TMC only transmits real-time traffic information for the immediate route.
While TMC stands for event-based road traffic information, TPEG refers to a whole set of specifications for offering services to a wider range of users and devices. They offer a method for transmitting multimodal traffic and travel information, regardless of client type, location or required delivery channel. TPEG services can go in very different directions, from applications like public transport or parking information, transmission methods to location referencing methods.
While TMC stands for event-based road traffic information, TPEG refers to a whole set of specifications for offering services to a wider range of users and devices. They offer a method for transmitting multimodal traffic and travel information, regardless of client type, location or required delivery channel. TPEG services can go in very different directions, from applications like public transport or parking information, transmission methods to location referencing methods.
As a member of the Open AutoDrive Forum (OADF), an open discussion platform to facilitate cooperation in the industry, TISA is a close partner of NDS. TISA members include vehicle manufacturers, public authorities, client device manufacturers and broadcasters from around the globe. The non-profit organization was established in 2007 taking-over the activities from the former TMC forum, the TPEG forum and the German Mobile.Info project.
For more information, visit https://tisa.org/
If you want to learn more about TISA and their most recent activities, join us for the 14th OADF Event on September 23 – register here for free!
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