Study on transformation process of chaos in simulation traffic flow based on distance headway

The relationship between distance headway and chaos in traffic flow is investigated in order to analyze the transfor- mation mechanism of chaos in traffic flow.The simulation time series of traffic flow is generated based on Bierley car-following model,which is programmed using Matlab.The changing processes of distance headway of the front vehicle and the following vehi- cle in the traffic flow are analyzed under the parameters combinations.From the orbit in phase space the transformation process between chaos and order motion can be seen clearly.The transformation processes of chaos in traffic flow are investigated with the improved algorithm for largest Lyapunov exponent.The influence of distance headway to the transformation process of chaos in traffic flow is discussed.The research shows that the change in distance headway is the main factor causing chaos and its trans- formation in traffic flow.The results are helpful to understand the chaos in traffic flow and provide theoretical foundation for the short time traffic flow forecasting and intelligent transportation control.