Ground-Traffic Information-Management System for an Airport

A computer-based system, and a method built around the use of the system, have been developed to automate the acquisition, integration, and management of data that have been generated at different rates by multiple, heterogeneous, incompatible sources. The system [hereafter denoted the “TMS” (for “traffic-management system”)] in its original form is intended for use in improving the management of ground traffic at a large, busy airport in order to reduce delays. The TMS could also be adapted to scheduling the movements of multiple vehicles in other settings — for example, vessels in harbors, trucks or railroad cars in shipping yards, and railroad cars in switching yards. Still other uses for the TMS could include managing containers at a shipping dock, managing stock on a factory floor or in a warehouse, and training of a variety of airline, airport, and government personnel in the management of airport ground traffic.