ESTIMATION OF ASPHALT CONCRETE FATIGUE CURVES – A DAMAGE THEORY APPROACH

ESTIMATION OF ASPHALT CONCRETE FATIGUE CURVES – A DAMAGE THEORY APPROACH. Castro, M., Sánchez, J. A. Construction and Building Materials, 22 (6), 1232-1238, 2008

Abstract

In order to represent the behaviour during fatigue tests of asphalt concrete mixtures, a phenomenological model, based on the continuous damage theory, has been developed. From this model, a method for estimation of fatigue curves was formulated. From a practical point of view, the use of this method enables classic fatigue curves to be estimated with a smaller number of specimens tested. This method of estimating fatigue curves was applied to three mixtures, and its results were compared with those of the standard procedure.

Keywords: Asphalt mixes; Fatigue; Damage


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HIGHWAY DESIGN SOFTWARE AS SUPPORT OF A PROJECT-BASED LEARNING COURSE

HIGHWAY DESIGN SOFTWARE AS SUPPORT OF A PROJECT-BASED LEARNING COURSE. Castro, M. Computer Applications in Engineering Education, 20 (3), 468-473, 2012.

Abstract

Traditionally, practical training of students in highway design has been based on solving geometric problems without using professional highway design software. In a degree of the Technical University of Madrid (UPM), teaching of this subject has been redesigned using a project-based learning approach. Along the course, the students make a complete project of a highway using professional software and procedures. The highway design software chosen includes a simulator that makes a virtual journey along the highway from the point of view of a driver traveling on it. A detailed description of the course program and the software used is provided.

Keywords: engineering education; project-based learning; highway design software; simulation; sight distances

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GEOMETRIC MODELLING OF HIGHWAYS USING GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM (GPS) DATA AND SPLINE APPROXIMATION

GEOMETRIC MODELLING OF HIGHWAYS USING GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM (GPS) DATA AND SPLINE APPROXIMATION
Castro, M., Iglesias, L., Rodríguez-Solano,  R., Sánchez J. A. Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technologies, 14 (4), 233-243. 2006.

Abstract
Detailed studies of traffic safety, as highway design consistency evaluation, require having the geometric definition of the alignment. An efficient and reliable procedure has been developed for obtaining this geometric definition for two-lane rural highways. The method is based on getting data of the highway by means of a GPS receiver mounted in a car and the subsequent processing of this information. The data taken in the highway are differentially corrected and points in the roadway centerline are estimated by means of a developed calculation algorithm. Finally, the highway alignment is defined by means of a parametric cubic smoothing spline. In this paper, the developed method and its application to the M-607 highway, located in Madrid (Spain), is exposed.

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HIGHWAY SAFETY ANALYSIS USING GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS

HIGHWAY SAFETY ANALYSIS USING GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS. Castro, M., Iglesias, L., Rodríguez-Solano,  R., Sánchez J. A. P. I. Civil Eng-Transport, 161 (2), 91-97. 2008.

Abstract
Given the high number of crashes occurring on highways, it is necessary to intensify the search for new tools that assist in understanding their causes. With this aim in mind, the authors have developed a computer system, named Highway Design Analysis (HDA), which analyses the relationship between the geometric characteristics of a highway and those characteristics that the driver expects to find. The system is based on the analysis of vehicles' operating speed and allows the selection of the operating speed prediction model to be used. Several speed prediction models, including the model developed in Spain in the current study, have been used in the case study. The information generated by the application developed has been integrated into a geographic information system (GIS) with the purpose of manipulating, analysing and showing the results in a more efficient way. The system developed is discussed along with its application to three highways.

Keywords:information technology; roads & highways; traffic engineering

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AUTOMATED GIS-BASED SYSTEM FOR SPEED ESTIMATION AND HIGHWAY SAFETY EVALUATION

AUTOMATED GIS-BASED SYSTEM FOR SPEED ESTIMATION AND HIGHWAY SAFETY EVALUATION. Castro, M., Sánchez, J. A., Vaquero, C. M., Iglesias, L., Rodríguez-Solano, R. Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, 22 (5), 325-33. 2008.

Abstract
Although geographic information systems (GISs) have been applied in different areas of transportation, full use of their potential in speed profile analysis and highway design consistency studies has yet to be made. The possibilities that GISs offer for analysis and the increasing number of highway inventories supported by such systems, including traffic data and crash rates, suggest that the implementation of a highway design consistency analysis module within a GIS will facilitate and improve road safety studies. It is with this aim that a GIS-based computer system that builds vehicle speed profiles and analyzes highway design consistency has been developed, in which an operating speed prediction model, acceleration/deceleration rates, and other features can be configured by the engineering user in order to obtain an analysis that is more representative of drivers and local conditions. Application of this system to the study of the design consistency of highways is described, using three examples.

Keywords: Geographic information systems, Highway and road design, Safety, Traffic speed, Evaluation

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