Fujitsu (News - Alert) Laboratories is developing a new traffic simulation system that creates a virtual driving environment similar to real life city streets. Why anyone would want to sit in virtual traffic after real traffic is beyond me, but it is useful to road developers who want to test new traffic plans or road maps.

A Fujitsu spokesman claimed, “What’s new about this system is that it recreates not only the real streets, but the interaction among cars.” The new software includes real life driver diversity such as some speeding, slow drivers, and short cuts. While using the system, other virtual cars affect the way the user drives as well, though the system does not currently include reactions from pedestrians.

Fujitsu believes that the new virtual driving environment will be able to apply to automotive manufacturers, GPS manufacturers, driving schools, and possibly even videogame manufacturers. Traffic authorities can plug their new road plans into the system and operate it to see whether or not their plans make sense for the city.

The software includes thousands of other drivers with whom to interact, and has used statistics to implement how drivers actually drive, so the experience is incredibly lifelike. Even though it’s still similar to a video driving game, the streets and driving patterns have been developed from real life driving statistics.

Juliana Kenny graduated from the University of Connecticut with a double degree in English and French. After managing a small company for two years, she joined TMC (News - Alert) as a Web Editor for TMCnet. Juliana currently focuses on the call center and CRM industries, but she also writes about cloud telephony and network gear including softswitches.

Edited by Juliana Kenny