Traffic Light Report No.55 [ PDF-DOWNLOAD ] - RTB GmbH & Co. KG

No | 55
Fall 2010 Volume 21
A TRAFFIC JOURNAL
TRAFFIC
Light Report
Mannheim: Vehicle Classification
Dialogue-Display: A Role Model with Character
net.1: Retrofitting in Gelsenkirchen
QUANTUM JUMP

Contents
3 Innovative Safety
Dialogue-Display in the
Community of Hörden
4 /5 Successful Application
Traffic Safety in
Niestetal
6/7 Informative Journey
into the Past
German Street and
Traffic Convention 2010
8 / 9 Early Technology
August Horch Museum
in Zwickau
10 /11 Umfangreiche
Erweiterung
net.1 in
Gelsenkirchen
12 This & That
Editorial
Dear Readers,
One must admit that in our field we deal with rather dry
material which has a complexity that is rarely recognized
by those outside the field. Everyone is familiar with
traffic lights, commonly known as stoplights, but that’s
about it.
So when one of the leading business magazines in Germany
such as impulse – The Businessman`s Magazine
gets excited about a development in our field, this must
be considered a giant step forward !
The German Chamber of Industry and Trade (DIHK)
and the magazine impulse, in the framework of the
competition “Potential Innovation“, present awards to
companies, which stand out with convincing innovation
in the market place!
We express our heartfelt congratulations for receiving
this award to the company DTV-Verkehrsconsult GmbH,
and in particular to Dr. Hartmut Ziegler and Dr. Thorsten
Kathmann, who, along with their team are promoting
nation-wide traffic monitoring in Germany (cf. the
October issue of the magazine impulse).
In order to put such ideas into practice one needs
courageous persons and customers who are prepared to
keep working on an idea and carry out such a project as
nation-wide traffic monitoring. Special mention must be
made here of the State of Baden-Württemberg which
can be rightly proud of its presentation of this idea at the
German Traffic Convention in Mannheim.
We are also proud to contribute to this development
with our classification devices.
Once more our heartfelt congratulations to all involved!
Rudolf Broer
Executive Director
Publisher:
RTB GmbH & Co.KG, Geschäftsführer Rudolf Broer, Schulze-Delitzsch-Weg 10, 33175 Bad Lippspringe,
Tel. + 49 (0)5252-97 06-0,Fax +49(0)5252-97 06-10 E-Mail: info@rtb-bl.de, www.rtb-bl.de
Editor:
HACKPR- und Werbeagentur GmbH, 33175 Bad Lippspringe
Production:
Machradt, Graphischer Betrieb, 33175 Bad Lippspringe

Along with the life-sized figures of children the Dialogue-Display
is now contributing to the reduction of speeding.
Innovative Safety
Pilot project with the Dialogue-Display in the community of Hörden
In order to increase safety at a frequently used
pedestrian crosswalk, the community of Hörden
initiated a pilot project using the Dialogue-
Display.
In Hörden pedestrians must use a crosswalk
to reach a grade school, a general purpose
building, athletic fields and other leisure time
areas. School children are especially affected by
this quite difficult situation in street traffic.
Several years ago the community set up life-
sized figures of children at this traffic junction,
in order to warn car drivers and increase their
attentiveness. However, last year a child was
slightly injured at this intersection. The
community`s request to have a traffic light installed
was rejected by the county authorities.
Therefore, the community took the initiative.
For each direction of travel a Dialogue-Display
has been installed, mainly to achieve observance
of the speed limit of 30 km/h. When the facility
went into operation one could immediately
observe its effectiveness. A car driver who
happened to pass by was promptly scolded
with a red “Slow down”.
After the first weeks of operation, the unanimous
opinion of all those involved: The Dialogue-
Display makes an important contribution to
the safety of the weakest participants in
traffic.
2 | 3

Traffic Light Report No. 55
The variable motif design makes multiple uses possible: Safety at a kindergarten and safety at an agency for senior citizens.
An interview with the Mayor of Niestetal Andreas Siebert
Niestetal is one of several communities which has decided to use Dialogue-Displays to
make sensitive locations (e.g. in front of kindergartens and schools) safer. Certainly the
recommendations of the German Insurance Federation (GDV) support this decision.
Mayor Andreas Siebert explained his position to us in the following Interview.
Mr. Siebert, what exactly was the reason for your intensive consideration of the topic of speed displays?
We pay very special attention to traffic areas near kindergartens and schools. Of course, our Office for Public Order
conducts sporadic speed checks in these streets and we ticket and fine some speeders for exceeding the limit. However,
I think that the permanent installation of a Dialogue-Display has a significantly greater and longer lasting effect. One
can influence the car driver in a positive manner with the words “Slow down” and “Thanks” which are displayed
dependent on the speed of the passing vehicle.
How did you learn about RTB and in particular about the Dialogue-Display?
Once the decision to install Dialogue-Displays had been made, we searched the market place for manufacturers of
such devices. The price and the flexibility for the optical design of the display were the decisive aspects for giving the
contract to RTB. In the meantime there are more cities and communities which have chosen RTB.
Why did you expressly choose the Dialogue-Display?
Speed measurement facilities which covertly photograph drivers when the speed limit is exceeded and result in a
warning ticket or a fine are frequently a lesson for car drivers. Experience shows, however, that this effect doesn’t last
very long. This is different with the Dialogue-Displays, which are in operation 24 hours a day and react directly to the
driving behavior of traffic participants. Studies by accident researchers have shown that the words ”Slow down” and

Successful Application
Dialogue-Displays for more safety
The community of Niestetal places special
value on safety in street traffic in the vicinity of
schools and kindergartens. The recently installed
Dialogue-Displays should insure that
car drivers adjust their speed according to
the situation – especially at locations where extreme
caution is necessary.
What is special about the display signs is
that the car driver is not only warned when
exceeding the speed limit but also praised for
observing the speed limit. With both phrases
“Slow down” and “Thanks”, displayed in red and
green respectively, the Display reacts directly
to the driving behavior of the driver. Mayor
Andreas Siebert states, “that accident re-
searchers recommend this kind of display,
because at some point in time simple traffic
signs are disregarded. It has been proven that
this loss of effectiveness with the passage of
time is also true for signs that display only the
current speed of the passing vehicle.”
A total of seven Displays, some of which are
powered by solar energy, are now installed at
selected locations in Niestetal. Siebert: “We
hope that traffic safety, especially for children,
will be significantly increased by the Dialogue-
Displays. The reaction of the public to the sign
displays is, in any event, unanimously positive.”
(Press release of the community of Niestetal, Text Bachmann)
“Thanks” make a strong emotional impression on drivers. Due to the fact that the effectiveness does not diminish with
the passage of time, the results with the Displays last significantly longer.
Who was involved in the decision process in your community?
One the one hand, of course, our street traffic authority, which determined potential locations and obtained various
pro forma invoices. On the other hand the community board of trustees, which made the final decision.
What criteria were used to select the locations?
In the two sections of our town we have four communal kindergartens, two grade schools and one 1 - 13 school –
institutions where, as a rule, many children are present. Since car drivers should drive past these areas very cautiously
we found it important to install the devices at these locations first.
In Niestetal you are using a special motif for the first time. It combines safety at a kindergarten with safety at an agency
for senior citizens across the way from the kindergarten. Can you report on the experience with this idea thus far?
As I mentioned before, the flexibility of design of the Displays was one of the selection criteria in favor of RTB, It was
important for us that the Displays could be designed based on their location. For this reason the Display at this
location has our Niestetal logo and a picture of a child with an older man. On the Display near the kindergarten a
picture of young children is used. In the vicinity of schools older children are pictured.
How do you rate the system at the present time?
We hope that the Displays will significantly increase traffic safety, especially for children. The reactions to the
Display up until now are, in any event, completely positive.
Mr. Siebert, we sincerely thank you for this interview.
4 | 5

Traffic Light Report No. 55
Informative Journey into the Past
“The Street as a Contemporary Witness of History”
at the German Traffic Convention 2010
The German Street and Traffic Convention 2010
took place in the Congress Center Rosengarten
in Mannheim from the 15th to the 17th of September
2010. It was accompanied by the satellite
exhibition Street and Traffic 2010. RTB was on
location with a fair booth.
The convention was organized by the Research
Society for Street and Traffic Matters (FGSV),
a non - profit technical - scientific association.
Founded in 1924, it mainly supports continuing
development of technical knowledge in the
entire field of streets and traffic. In a cooperative
manner, administrations, businesses and scientific
agencies work together and send a total of
2100 employees and members to participate in
numerous expert commissions and committees.
In the various presentation series, experts deal
with current questions about the design of
traffic space, street planning and traffic management.
They also discuss the longevity of street
construction.
The satellite exhibition Streets and Traffic 2010,
with its more than 100 exhibitors, attracted a
great deal of interest as a meeting point for experts
in the field. In this regard RTB’s exceptional
fair booth puzzled many visitors. Certainly, many
asked themselves, what do a sun umbrella and
a folding chair have to do with a traffic convention.
A closer look answered the question.
RTB used two antique toy pedal cars, a Mercedes-Benz
300 SL and a BMW 328 H, to emphasize
the slogan of the exhibition “The Street as a
Contemporary Witness of History”. Here the
development of the street traffic census was
of particular importance. Where students have
often sat in their folding chairs along the side
Dipl.-Ing. Martin Pozybill (Ministry for Environment, Ecological Protection and Traffic Baden-Württemberg) tests the traditional
counting method at the RTB booth.

of the street and tried to coordinate a collection
of singles pieces of paper with census information,
modern counting devices mounted in guide
posts will take over the task in the future. Of
By the way. . .
The full-scale originals of the two miniature
old timers which were displayed at
the RTB fair booth could recently be admired
during the 3rd Hamburg-Berlin’-
Classic Old Timer Rally.
course, the visitors could get an impression of
the radar technology involved but could also
have a look at the time-tested RTB products
Push Buttons and Acoustical Signal Transmitters.
183 classic cars built between 1907 and
1990 traveled from Hamburg to Berlin.
After about 600 km through attractive
German countryside the participants
reached their goal on July 31. One could
read the emotions in the facial expressions
– the range went from pride to minor
fatigue. Newcomers, old pros and
prominent personalities such as Jochen
Maaß (former race driver) or Detlef Buck
(actor and director’) took on the physical
challenge and tribulations.
Once again it was an exceptional event
with lots of fun and a good atmosphere.
All those involved were in agreement on
this.
6 | 7

Traffic Light Report No. 55
Early Technology
Authentic Exhibition in the
August Horch Museum in Zwickau
The connection between history and the present
is shorter than many people think. Especially in
the signal manufacturing industry one has a
direct connection to the automobile, because
without the automobile traffic light facilities
would very likely not exist. Therefore, we want to
present a museum for technology here which documents
the development of technical progress.
Since September 2004 the August Horch
Museum has been offering its visitors an authentic
experiential exhibition on the subject of
automotive history. The exhibition is housed in
the restored buildings of the former Audi factory
in Zwickau and is called “Relive Automotive
History”. The reopening of the former office
building and the Villa Horch in September 2005
expanded the two-story exhibition area to
almost 3,000 m2 .
Many ideas started here and then had an influence
on the entire German car manufacturing
field: the pioneer spirit and the wealth of inventiveness
of this over 100 year old tradition
invite the visitors to discover the past now.
Some real gems of the art of Saxon automotive
construction, such as the Horch Phaeton from
1911 and the compact car DKW F1 with the first
production model front wheel drive or the
elegant Horch Luxury-Models, testify to the
highly sophisticated technology of times past.
At the Intertraffic 2010 in Amsterdam another
contemporary witness of automotive construction
history drew the attention of many visitors:
the DKW F8 at the RTB fair booth had a large
number of admirers. After all, the engineering
skills from the beginning of the automobile and
in the current RTB products for street traffic
technology form an attractive contrast.
There is further information about the exhibition
in Zwickau at www.horch-museum.de.

8 | 9

Traffic Light Report No. 55
Comprehensive Expansion
Retrofitting traffic light facilities with net.1 in Gelsenkirchen
Retrofitting a large intersection in Gelsenkirchen
presented the authorities and the signal
manufacturing industry with a considerable
new challenge. In meeting this challenge net.1
demonstrated its complete range of operative
capability.
Pedestrian crosswalk at the intersection Florastraße / Overwegstraße in Gelsenkirchen

In net.1 an intelligent field bus makes the integration
of additional devices possible without
necessitating an increase in the number of
cables used. In Gelsenkirchen in particular this
aspect was of enormous importance. The
existing signal transmitter star cabling pattern
would have, in the normal case, necessitated 52
additional grounding cables for the retrofitting
with signal transmitters for blind pedestrians.
By using net.1 only 6 cables which could be
installed simply in the existing duct system,
were needed.
Especially for this relatively complex junction,
net.1 was expanded to make connecting a total
of 32 signal transmitters with 230V for blind
pedestrians possible. This expansion was important
since 26 devices needed to be installed at
the large intersection. This would not have been
possible with the previous version of net.1.
Independent of this concrete
project, net.1 offers,
in addition to the reduction
of the size of the cable
net, saving potential in
the logic of the switching
device. For example, the
activation of the LED confirmation
screen “Signal
activated” is possible internally
in net.1. In contrast
to the strictly internal
push button confirmation
logic, the signals
are activated centrally,
to be exact in the net.1
central module which is
installed in the switching
device.
Thanks to these new
possibilities an effective
utilization of the existing
grounding cable net is
feasible and thus allows a
simple and inexpensive
retrofitting of existing
traffic light facilities.
Simple Installation of net.1 central
modules in the control device
10 | 11

Traffic Light Report No. 55
This & That
Vacation discovery
In the vacation region Zillertal in Austria an RTB employee
was more than surprised when she came upon a
push button that was very familiar to her at the stations
of the Narrow-Gauge Railway. Of course, she tested
one right away and received the reliable announcement
from the loudspeaker about when the next train to
Mayrhofen or Jenbach would be departing. There were
also push buttons to signal to the train engineer to stop
at stations where the trains only stop on demand. This is
simply another great example for the many different
application possibilities for RTB products.
Parking lots for trucks
Goods valued at approximately 8 billion Euro are stolen
from trucks annually. The General German Automobile
Club (ADAC) tested the security at truck parking lots in
eleven countries. Only nine parking lots met the high
security standards. The European Union (EU) has
recognized this problem and is supporting the project
“Label” which is intended to help to certify parking lots
in the future so that truck drivers can have a direct
approach to guarded parking lots. Further information
can be found at www.adac.de / lkw-parkplaetze and
www.truckparkinglabel.eu.
Endangered Traffic
A single sex act and then death – that is the fate of
millions of day flies. This applies not only to the day flies
but also to several Bavarian motorists. Along the Naab
River in the Upper Palatinate County Schwandorf
the insect plague turns the streets into dangerous
slides. The reason is that the day flies hatch and mate
at about 10 pm when the illumination is appropriate.
After mating the males die and fall to the ground
where a dangerous slippery film is created. In order
to counteract this, halogen spotlights are being
installed directly under bridges to attract the insects.
Then the flies would fall directly into the water after
mating.