Coordinated traffic-responsive ramp control via nonlinear state feedback

In this paper, we develop a coordinated traffic responsive ramp control strategy based on feedback control and artificial neural networks. The proposed feedback control law is nonlinear and realized by a series of neural networks. The parameters of the neural networks are obtained through a nonlinear optimization procedure. Traffic simulations show that the proposed nonlinear ramp control strategy compares favorably against the well-known linear quadratic control strategy in reducing total travel times, particularly at situations where drastic changes in traffic demand and road capacity occur.