Design of an improved fuzzy logic based model for prediction of car following behavior

Nowadays, car following models, as the most popular microscopic traffic flow modeling, are increasingly being used by transportation experts to evaluate new Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) applications. This paper presents a car following model that was developed using a fuzzy inference system (FIS) to simulate and predict the future behavior of a Driver-Vehicle- Unit (DVU). This model was developed based on a new idea for estimating the instantaneous reaction of DVU, as an input of fuzzy model. The model's performance was evaluated based on field data. The results showed that fuzzy model based on instantaneous reaction delay outperformed the other car following models. The proposed model can be used in Driver Assistant Devices, Safe Distance Keeping Observers, Collision Prevention Systems and other ITS applications.