CONTACT INFO
CTRE
ISU Research Park
2901 S. Loop Dr.
Suite 3100
Ames, IA 50010
Phone
515-294-8103
Fax
515-294-0467
Webmaster:
mregenol@iastate.edu
Collision Diagram Software
This project involves the development of automated collision diagram software to run in conjunction with the windows version of the Iowa DOT's PC-ALAS accident analysis programming.
The collision diagrams are driven by three fields on the accident data base:
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(1) vehicle direction of travel
(2) vehicle action
(3) collion type
The basic summary information to be shown for each accident includes the following data fields:
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(1) date of crash
(2) time of crash
(3) light conditions
(4) surface conditions
(5) driver/vehicle related contributing circumstances (to determine major cause - logic will be provided by the Iowa DOT)
(6) driver age and sex (for driver at fault)
(7) property damage
(8) injury severity
The collision diagram software should be designed to work from a data file created by PC-ALAS for an intersection or short section of road. The user must be able to revise codes on the created data file in order to make corrections based on a review of the actual accident reports.
It is recommended that the collision diagram show one plot for each type of accident having the same vehicle travel directions and vehicle actions. Ideally the lines of the plot should get wider for each accident associated with that plot. If this is not feasible, acceptable alternatives may be line width based on ranges of accident numbers, or simply type of accident. The plots will be illustrative only and will not reflect actual location of the accident within lanes.
The software should include the capability to expand and/or revise the summary data output to meet special needs for certain studies.
It the intent of the Iowa DOT that this software will become a part of the PC-ALAS package and be made available to all users of PC-ALAS. The required modifications to PC-ALAS should be included as part of this project.