Why can AutoNavi and Baidu Maps know the countdown of traffic lights?

Everybody is a product manager

2024-05-23 13:07Posted on the official account of everyone in Guangdong

This article mainly introduces how Baidu Maps and AutoNavi Maps can implement the traffic light countdown function to improve the driver's travel experience and improve road efficiency

In today's fast-paced city life, navigation software has become an indispensable travel assistant for drivers. As the two major navigation giants in China, Baidu Maps and AutoNavi Maps have continuously launched innovative functions in recent years, among which the traffic light countdown function is particularly eye-catching. This function can not only display the remaining seconds of the traffic light ahead in real time, effectively help the driver predict the road conditions in advance, reduce sudden braking and violations, but also greatly improve the efficiency of road traffic. So, how do these navigation software accurately obtain the countdown information of traffic lights?

1. Data cooperation of traffic management departments

In the early days, Baidu Maps and AutoNavi Maps cooperated with local traffic management departments to directly access the data of the urban traffic signal system. This approach relies on the support of government agencies and open data interfaces, allowing navigation software to obtain real-time information about the working status and countdown of traffic lights. However, due to differences in management policies and technical conditions in different cities, this kind of cooperation is not universal in all regions, so it is only a way to implement the traffic light countdown function.

2. Data analysis and algorithm prediction

In view of the limitations of data cooperation, navigation software uses more advanced data analysis technology and algorithm models to realize the traffic light countdown function. This approach is based on the support of big data and cloud computing, and includes the following steps:

1. Data collection: The navigation software continuously collects information such as the location and speed of the vehicle when passing the traffic light through the user's mobile phone GPS positioning data. Although the value of individual users' data is limited, the collective behavior data of massive users can reveal the law of traffic light changes.

2. Algorithm processing: machine learning algorithms are used to analyze and process the collected data to identify the periodic change patterns of traffic lights. The algorithm will learn the time interval between the first car passing the green light and the last car stopping at the red light, and gradually optimize the prediction model through continuous cycle calculation, and finally achieve a more accurate countdown display.

3. Real-time calibration: The algorithm model will continue to receive real-time data during operation, and carry out self-correction and optimization to ensure that the countdown information provided is as close to the actual situation as possible. For example, when a traffic light is abnormal due to special traffic conditions, the system can quickly adjust the prediction model to avoid the spread of misinformation.

3. The support of Alibaba Cloud and Baidu AI

In particular, it is worth noting that AutoNavi Map relies on the powerful computing power of Alibaba Cloud and Baidu Map relies on Baidu's deep accumulation in the field of artificial intelligence, and both companies are constantly optimizing their algorithm models to improve the accuracy and reliability of traffic light countdowns. Through the cloud computing platform, massive data can be efficiently processed and analyzed, so that the algorithm model can be quickly iterated to adapt to different road environments and traffic conditions.

Image from Unsplash, based on the CC0 license.

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