●Research Trends and Results

The location referencing method for distribution
diverse road related information—Establishing the Road Section Referencing
method—IMAI Ryuichi (Ph.D.), Researcher
ARUGA Kiyotaka, Guest Research Engineer
SASAKI Yoichi, Guest Research Engineer
Research Center for Advanced Information Technology, Information Technology Division(Key Words) location referencing method, road section referencing method, road information provision, intelligent
transport systems

1. Information
With the advance of Intelligent Transport Systems,
diverse road related information is circulated usingmaps. And if it circulated smoothly between
organizations and between fields, it would be possible
to improve existing information provision services andto create new services. The Information Technology
Division has established the location referencing
method “Road Section Referencing method (below
called “ID method”), necessary to realize the creationof new services.
2. Outline of the ID method
Applying the ID method, a permanent ID is
assigned to a road section and to a reference point,
relatively expressing the location based on the section
and reference point and on the route from thereference point. Figure 1 shows how the ID method isused to represent the position of a gas station on theleft side at the 150m point of a road (section) startingat an intersection (reference point) on the road andlinking intersections. Using the ID method in this way,even if various organizations which use informationuse different maps, they can circulate information withaccurate location representations.
3. Situations where the ID method is used
A few situations in which the ID method is used areintroduced. Following the Great East Japan
Earthquake, the public and private sectors
cooperatively created and provided information about
open roads and closed roads in the disaster region1).
But because the methods of expressing the location in
their information differed, they were forced to collectand process the information employing human wave
tactics.
If the ID method were applied in such a case, evenif each organization used its own unique location
representation method, it would be possible to unify

the location representation methods to circulate theinformation between the organizations. As a result,visualization using maps and preparation ofspreadsheets would be performed efficiently,
achieving prompt and accurate information provision(Fig. 2).
4. Conclusion
At this time, the Information Technology Division
is working to build a technique for circulating
road-related information through public-private sector
links using the ID method, and plans a social
experiment in 2012. We are eager to continue to workto achieve our goal of realizing circulation of diverseroad related information.
[Reference]
1) ITS Japan: Open roads/closed roads information>http://www.its-jp.org/saigai/< (obtained Sept. 2011)
2) Road section method introduction page
http://www.nilim.go.jp/lab/qbg/rs_id_2.html,(released December 2011)

●Research Trends and Results+150m
on left side from reference point
区間ID225830001上のID2258852583
参照点ID225885283から+150m左側
On section ID 225830001
ガソリンスタンドGas station

Intersection
交差点

１５０ｍ

Section
区間

区間IDID2 225830001
25830001
SectionIntersection
交差点

参照点ID
Referencepoint225885283
ID2258852583

Figure 1. Example of Representation of Location
Reference by the Road Section Referencing
MethodSelectedfrom Great East Japan Earthquake (Report No. 46)
東日本大震災（第46報）から抜粋
Road closure information
KPから通行止情報
from KP is efficientlyを効率よく反映
reflected

プローブデータ
Probe data

Road SectionReferencing method
道路の区間ＩＤ

複数の主体のプ
Efficientlylinks andローブデータを効superimposes
probe
data
from multiple
率よく関連づけ・重organizations
ね合わせ

If道路区間ID方式を用いると，関連the Road Section Referencing
method is used, relating steps are
づけの作業が省力化されるので，
eliminated, permitting the information to
速やかに地図に落として情報の無bepromptly superimposed on a map,
謬性が確認できる
confirming
its infallibility.
Sourceof map image: http://www.its-jp.org/saigai/
地図画像の出典：http://www.its‐jp.org/saigai/

Figure 2. Image of Use of the Road Section
Referencing Method During a Disaster