Map matching for urban high-sampling-frequency GPS trajectories

Abstract

As a fundamental component of trajectory processing and analysis, trajectory map-matching can be used for urban traffic management and tourism route planning, among other applications. While there are many trajectory map-matching methods, urban high-sampling-frequency GPS trajectory data still depend on simple geometric matching methods, which can lead to mismatches when there are multiple trajectory points near one intersection. Therefore, this study proposed a novel segmented trajectory matching method in which trajectory points were separated into intersection and non-intersection trajectory points. Matching rules and processing methods dedicated to intersection trajectory points were developed, while a classic “Look-Ahead” matching method was applied to non-intersection trajectory points, thereby implementing map matching of the whole trajectory. Then, a comparative analysis between the proposed method and two other new related methods was conducted on trajectories with multiple sampling frequencies. The results indicate that the proposed method is not only competent for intersection matching with high-frequency trajectory data but also superior to two other methods in both matching efficiency and accuracy.