Visual TEAPAC has been superseded by and incorporated into the new TEAPAC Complete product which is described in detail at the main page of www.StrongConcepts.com. Upgrades from Visual TEAPAC to TEAPAC Complete are available. Contact Strong Concepts for details.
:TEAPAC Ver 7.81 27MAY08
Build 16 - 20AUG08
>Maintenance Update for PRENETSIM and SITE.
This update of TEAPAC includes maintenance updates for PRENETSIM and SITE, as
described below.
>PRENETSIM: Ver 2.81 27MAY08 Build 16.
Improved handling of bend nodes on external links and one-way links.
>SITE: Ver 4.81 27MAY08 Build 16.
Non-site COMPUTE Code Changed from 99 to 999 and Related Changes.
Better Notification of Link Errors for FINDPATHS.
Build 11 - 27MAY08
>Major Maintenance Update for all Visual TEAPAC programs.
Ver 7.81 is a major maintenance update for all Visual TEAPAC programs. The
update includes a number of generic enhancements found in all programs, specific
enhancements for individual programs, and both generic and specific fixes for
all the programs. The following summarizes the specific changes made in each
program, followed by the generic changes made in all programs.
>SIGNAL2000: Ver 2.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
HCS+ Export Enhancements.
Better Terminology in Permitted LT Output Report.
Better formatting for Detailed (cycle) output for DESIGN 0.
Dialogs identify need for consistency between Yellowtimes & ReqClearances.
>SCENARIO: Ver 1.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Include SCENARIO_000.tpc in distribution for CreateFromTemplate.
Look for SCENARIO_000.tpc in installed folder, not in data file folder.
NOTE shows 'Issue X Not Selected' when case selection does not select an Issue.
File-SaveAs to an existing file name with Scenario conditions doesn't hang.
>ALL PREPROCESSORS: Ver x.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Dialogs identify need for consistency between Yellowtimes & ReqClearances.
Correct offsets displayed in time-space diagram for exclusive pedestrian phase.
No attempt to Export, Plot or Timings if no real nodes have been selected.
Error message for improperly connected node has detailed help text.
Include manual distance status for dummy nodes in View-Summary (SUMMARISE).
Plot & Timings only check for valid data of intersections to be plotted/listed.
Widen timing field in TIMINGS report to allow intervals over 99.9 seconds long.
>PRESYNCHRO: Ver 1.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Support added for offset-only optimization.
Default file type for Import is .CSV to match SYNCHRO Ver 7.
Temporary solution devised for SYNCHRO Ver 7 1-file CSV Export problem.
Import Browse button shows all possible SYNCHRO file types.
Better initialization for Import to avoid crash for null Import.
Only include RT phase module when overlap actuallt exists, not just allowed.
Include CBD and MasterNode condition in Export & Import for SYNCHRO Ver 7.
>PRENETSIM: Ver 2.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Create full-length turn lane when Storage is longer than link length.
Export exclusive pedestrian phase as an all-red phase.
Keep offset less than 1/2 system cycle when an intersection is double-cycled.
Better modeling of bends on links that change direction of flow.
>PRENOSTOP: Ver 1.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Satflows not required to be entered for Export.
Import fixes when route is used to define Subsystem.
Import fixes when dummy nodes (ie, bends) are in defined arterial.
Allow display of offsets longer than 99.9 seconds in Import report.
Warning message enhanced for Import when user is advised to adjust greens.
>PRETRANSYT: Ver 3.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Export exclusive pedestrian phase as an all-red phase.
Base volume for route volume weighting is for first route used, not route #1.
>PRETSPPD: Ver 1.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Default file type for Import is .DGT to match TS/PP-DRAFT.
Import Browse button shows all possible file types.
Better initialization for Import to avoid crash for null Import.
Only include RT phase module when overlap actually exists, not just allowed.
>NOSTOP: Ver 4.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Assure that offsets for bands are positive numbers to avoid crash.
>SITE: Ver 4.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Allow negative percentage on ASSIGNMENT for Passbys and Diverted trips.
Use Shift while dragging mouse to define development area on network display.
Update initial example problem in Chapter 2 for graphical network display.
>TURNS: Ver 3.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Remove requirement that extension for Import files be upper case (eg, .DFL).
>WARRANTS: Ver 2.81 27MAY08 Build 11.
Remove requirement that extension for Import files be upper case (eg, .DFL).
Fix Import dialog field width to accomodate new longer file names.
>Generic changes made to all Ver 7.81 TEAPAC programs.
Allow negative percentage on ASSIGNMENT for Passbys and Diverted trips.
Use Shift while dragging mouse to define development area on network display.
Dialogs identify need for consistency between Yellowtimes & ReqClearances.
Display dummy node dot and node number if it is current node or in Subsystem.
Note in CrdSysMgmt dialog that NewLinkDist button assumes coords are in feet.
Able to save from OpenIntoEdit if it was first file opened into program.
NOTE shows 'Issue X Not Selected' when case selection does not select an Issue.
File-OpenMerge does not allow existing Network data to be overwritten by zeros.
File-SaveAs to an existing file name with Scenario conditions doesn't hang.
File-SaveAs shows file type of current file & better file type descriptions.
:TEAPAC Ver 7.80 25APR07
Build 01 - 08OCT07
>PRESYNCHRO: Synchro Ver 7 1-File CSV Format Is Supported for Export
and Import.
When Synchro Ver 7 is involved, the UTDF file format used for both Export and
Import from/to PRESYNCHRO is now the new 1-file CSV UTDF format. This is a
vastly easier format to work with at the user level, providing the ability to
automatically launch Synchro with this file already open for Export, and the
need to create only a single file when saving a UTDF file from Synchro to be
Imported by PRESYNCHRO.
Build 00 - 08JUN07
>Long File Names and Longer Path Names Implemented, Plus New File
Format.
All aspects of TEAPAC data file storage, including SCENARIO condition files,
have been extended so that file names can have as many as 70 characters in their
names, and file path names can have as many as 180 characters, both including
upper or lower case characters and spaces. Since SCENARIO condition files and
certain file switch options can add as many as 6 characters to file names, it is
best if user-entered names are no more than 64 characters.
A new, higher capacity data file format with a new file extension (.tpc) has
been introduced which will be used by default for all new files created by all
TEAPAC programs. This format is text-based like the old .for format so it is
still easy to see what is in a file, as well as write such files from other
programs, but with a look to the future this format has line length maximums of
256 characters per line (254 useable) instead of the more limiting maximums of
the .for format which had maximums of 128 characters per line (80 useable). The
old format can still be read and written simply by continuing to use the .for
extension, but users are encouraged to convert files to the new format simply by
saving .for file with the new .tpc extension (then archive the .for files so
they are not used by mistake). The long file names and paths mentioned above are
valid for either extension.
>New User Discussion Forum Is Accessible Directly from the Help Menu.
The new User Discussion Forum which has been implemented for TEAPAC users and is
available 24/7 for posting questions and searching through answers to previous
questions can now be accessed directly from the Help menu of every TEAPAC
program. The Forum can also be accessed directly using any internet browser at
www.StrongConcepts.com/Forum.
>SIGNAL2000: HCS+ Export for Signalized and Unsignalized.
The EXPORT function has been updated to use the native HCS+ data file format
(XML-based), and has been expanded to include exporting for both signalized and
unsignalized intersections defined in the complete TEAPAC network of
intersections. This is now the default for the Export function, but as before,
older versions of HCS can still be exported to by using the file extensions
specific to those versions.
>PRENETSIM: Direct Support for CORSIM Ver 6.
Direct support for the latest version of CORSIM, Version 6, has been implemented
in PRENETSIM as the default condition. Continued support for older versions of
CORSIM and NETSIM still exists by proper selections in the Options-Setup menu
and the OUTPUT dialog.
>PRESYNCHRO: Direct Support for SYNCHRO Ver 7.
Direct support for the latest version of SYNCHRO, Version 7, has been
implemented in PRESYNCHRO as the default condition using the CSV UTDF multi-file
format. The DAT UTDF format is still used for Ver 5 Exports and Imports, but Ver
6 Exports and Imports have been converted from the DAT format to the CSV format
so that intersection and street name information can be transferred to Ver 6 the
same way it is handled in Ver 7.
>PRETSPPD: Direct Support for TSPPD Ver 7.
Direct support for the latest version of TSPPD, Version 7, has been implemented
in PRESTSPPD as the default condition, and now intersection and street name
information can be transferred to Ver 6 the same way it is handled in Ver 7.
:TEAPAC Ver 7.01 08SEP06
Build 07 - 25JAN07
Scroll down to 'Ver
7.00 07NOV05, Build 07 - 11NOV05' below for the major changes which
were implemented for the original Visual TEAPAC
release of this program.
>SCENARIO Program Makes its Debut.
SCENARIO is a new Visual TEAPAC program that can create multi-scenario data
files either from scratch or from data files of earlier versions of TEAPAC.
Users can 1) select from pre-defined typical scenario structures like multiple
volume conditions or multiple timing plans, 2) create completely unique scenario
conditions for their analyses, or 3) customize a pre-defined scenario structure
to meet their specific needs. The primary advantage of using SCENARIO is that
all the scenario data is saved without dangers of duplicated data which often
occur when scenarios are managed by the typical use of File-SaveAs.
The SCENARIO program also functions as an automatic plugin for all other Visual
TEAPAC programs so that each program automatically understands the SCENARIO file
structure which has been created, and at no additional cost (see below).
SCENARIO can easily define both single-issue and multi-issue conditions, and any
data dialog can be assigned or re-assigned to any defined issue for as many as
five independent, mutually-exclusive Issues. 25 Conditions can be defined for
each Issue. For example, a very common and simple single-issue scenario would be
having multiple volume conditions for one or more intersections for which
capacity analysis, intersection design and/or signal timing optimization would
be needed. Other examples of a single-issue analysis could be multiple years of
traffic count data for TURNS or WARRANTS, or multiple years or zones of land use
for SITE's projected traffic estimation.
Multi-issue scenarios could be combinations of any of these, where the variation
of one variable is independent of the others. Another example of a multi-issue
scenario could be where one Issue is changing volumes based on the time-of-day
and/or day-of-week while the other Issue is independently changing intersection
geometrics which depend on differing funding possibilities.
>SCENARIO Support in All Visual TEAPAC Programs.
All Visual TEAPAC programs have been updated so that support for multi-issue
data files created by SCENARIO is automatic and seamless. The SCENARIO program
serves as a plugin to the other Visual TEAPAC programs so that they
automatically support the SCENARIO-structured files for both File-Open and
File-Save. A new File menu option labeled Get-Scenario-Case allows the user to
select any of the Conditions for all of the Issues which have been created, and
any subsequent changes to data which are made are automatically saved in the
correct Condition files which have been defined. SCENARIO has also been added to
all LinkTo menus so that SCENARIO is immediately available to modify the defined
scenario structure, as necessitated by changing project assumptions.
>SIGNAL2000: Default Value for DESIGN Optimization Changed.
The default value for the DESIGN optimization control parameter has been changed
from 0 to 1 so that a default optimization will now always generate a capacity
analysis of the top-ranked phasing and cycle length combination without changing
the default.
>Generic Enhancements Made to All Visual TEAPAC Programs.
A number of additional generic enhancements and fixes have been made to the
original Ver 7.00 releases of Visual TEAPAC and are collectively included as Ver
7.01 Build 07. These are documented below. Ver 7.01 Build 07 changes are free
updates for Ver 7.00 licenses.
Data entry dialogs that don't apply to dummy nodes have been modified so that if
they are inadvertently displayed while pointing to a dummy node they will not
display unpredictable values or cause the program to crash.
The LinkTo menu has been adjusted so that if no data file path has been defined
it will attempt to use the program's file path, but will not crash if neither of
these is defined. The file menu options for Open, SaveAs and IntoEdit have been
adjusted similarly for the condition when no data path has been defined.
A bug has been fixed that could cause a crash when clicking within an output
being displayed at a zoomed-out scale on some low-resolution monitors.
:TEAPAC Ver 7.00 07NOV05
Build 28 - 28AUG06
Scroll down to 'Ver
7.00 07NOV05, Build 07 - 11NOV05' below for the major changes which
were implemented for the original Visual TEAPAC
release of this program.
>V7.00.28: Generic Enhancements Made to All Visual TEAPAC Programs.
A number of generic enhancements and fixes have been made to the original Ver
7.00 releases of Visual TEAPAC and are collectively included as Ver 7.00 Build
28. These are documented below and use heading lines that begin with V7.00.28:.
In addition, minor program-specific changes have been made, as summarized here
and detailed in the program's own specific list of updates and changes. Ver 7.00
Build 28 changes are free updates for Ver 7.00 licenses.
>V7.00.28: Number of Access Drives Increased From 5 to 10 for SITE
Computations.
The permitted number of driveways which provide access to a development area for
SITE computations has been increased from 5 to 10 in all TEAPAC programs,
allowing greater flexibility in modeling all driveways which may exist or be
proposed for a development. Along with this change comes a quicker way of
entering driveway locations by combining the intersection leg direction
(N/E/S/W) with the node number of the drive, such as 1N or 132E.
>V7.00.28: Input Limit for VOLFACTORS Adjusted for Consistency with Save.
The largest VOLFACTOR which can be saved in a TEAPAC data file has always been
9.99, but it's been recently noticed that the input dialog error checking
permitted factors as large as 20.0 without an error, resulting in subsequent
problems if an attempt was made to save such an entry. The input error checking
has been modified to match the save limitation to resolve this problem. At the
same time, the discussion in the documentation has been modified to reflect the
same precision of save accuracy to avoid any further confusion.
>V7.00.28: Multiple Copies of a Program Can Be Open Simultaneously Again.
The source of a problem which has recently prevented multiple copies of any
given program from being open at the same time, such as when comparing
alternatives side-by-side. This problem has been resolved and the ability to
have multiple copies open simultaneously has been re-enabled.
>V7.00.28: Minor Fixes to Drag-and-Drop Network Interface.
An occasional problem connecting T-intersections properly when bend nodes were
present in the network has been resolved. Build 21 versions of the programs
would notify the user of the problem immediately upon creation of a link under
these circumstances. If an earlier version was used to create the network, the
problem is easily detected (if it exists) with the Analyze function in the new
Coordinate System section of the Setup button dialog in the main window. the
problem would manifest itself with upstream connections to the wrong node and/or
incorrect distances. Creation of most T-intersections were not affected by this
problem.
If an old TEAPAC data file saved from a program prior to Visual TEAPAC was
opened using a LinkTo, drag-to or from a command line, a crash could result when
an attempt was made by the program to update the Nodelist format to the new save
format. This problem has been resolved.
Build 21 - 27JUL06
Scroll down to 'Ver
7.00 07NOV05, Build 07 - 11NOV05' below for the major changes which
were implemented for the original Visual TEAPAC
release of this program.
>V7.00.21: Generic Enhancements Made to All Visual TEAPAC Programs.
A number of generic enhancements and fixes have been made to the original Ver
7.00 releases of Visual TEAPAC and are collectively included as Ver 7.00 Build
21. These are documented below and use heading lines that begin with V7.00.21:.
In addition, minor program-specific changes have been made, as summarized here
and detailed in the program's own specific list of updates and changes. Ver 7.00
Build 21 changes are free updates for Ver 7.00 licenses.
>V7.00.21: New Coordinate System Management Features.
A new set of options to help manage the network coordinate system for any given
data file has been added to all programs that use the Visual TEAPAC
drag-and-drop network editing and display (all TEAPAC programs except NOSTOP,
TED and TUTOR). The options appear in a new dialog which is displayed when the
Coord Sys button is pressed in the network Setup dialog.
The Coordinate System Management dialog offers three main function - 1) to
Analyze the current network for possible coding errors such as
improperly-connected nodes and scaling issues, 2) to create a New Coordinate
System by shifting and/or scaling the current coordinate system, and 3) to
compute New Link Distances based on the current coordinate system. For the
Analyze function, a percentage error can be input to define the threshold which
identifies potential scaling problems between the coordinate system scale and
each link's entered distance, and an option can be selected to check the
approach angle of each intersection leg.
One of the motivations for this new option is to be able to identify and adjust
network coordinate systems from older TEAPAC programs which exercised the option
to specify the units of the coordinate system in something other than feet.
Although this is still possible, it can be problematic with the new
drag-and-drop Visual TEAPAC interface, and is not recommended. In combination
with the new Manual Distance option described below and the functions of this
new dialog, old coordinate systems can be easily converted for more predictable
use under the new Visual TEAPAC methods.
>V7.00.21: New Manual Distance Option Added to NETWORK Dialog Entry.
A new option can be selected in the NETWORK dialog individually for any given
link of the network that indicates that the distance entered for that link is
intentionally inconsistent with the network coordinate system and apparent
network scale. Links which have this option selected are specifically excluded
from the computation of the average coordinate system scale used and reported in
the network Analysis function described above. Although not recommended,
selecting this option allows a link's distance to be inconsistent with the
coordinate system without adversely affecting the management and checking of the
rest of the network.
In addition to this option, the NETWORK dialog also shows the calculated link
distance based on the coordinate system (and the average coordinate system
scale, if not equal to 1.0), and if this calculated distance is outside of the
allowed error specified in the Coordinate System Management dialog, it is
displayed in red. The Manual Distance option status is also shown in all data
summaries which include NETWORK data, and new distances which are required due
to any network editing are now always based on the coordinate distance, unless a
link is previously marked for Manual Distance.
>V7.00.21: Automatic Network Relationship Checks Made.
The new Analyze function of the Coordinate System Management dialog mentioned
above is invoked automatically any time a data file is Opened or Saved, or any
time NETWORK or NODELOCATION information is changed (either via drag-and-drop
actions or direct keyboard entry), thereby giving immediate feedback when a
network definition problem could be corrupting an analysis. The Analyze function
is also invoked prior to other program functions which make significant use of
the spatial arrangement of the network, such as Exporting in PRENETSIM,
PRESYNCHRO and PRETSPPD and FindPaths in SITE.
>V7.00.21: Frequency of Automatic Update Check Can Be Set By User.
A new user entry can now be made which controls the number of days between
automatic checks for program updates. The entry can be found in the Help-Check_For_Newer_Updates
menu dialog. With this new feature, the maximum frequency of automatic checks is
once per day, not every time the program is run. Automatic checks can be
disabled by entering a frequency of 0 days, but this is not recommended
(checking for updates every 10-30 days is recommended).
>V7.00.21: Improved Initial Zoom-All View for Large Coordinate Range.
The initial Zoom-All display for a network when a file is opened has been
improved for all networks, especially those with a wide range of coordinates,
such that the zoom level used is more appropriate for all combinations of
networks and display resolutions.
>V7.00.21: Improved Network Editing Features.
A number of enhancements have been made to network editing functions to improve
the response to various user actions, as follows. If a new link connection will
over-write an existing leg of a node, the user is warned and given the option to
select another leg or abort. If a new link creation is aborted for any reason,
any new dummy nodes created as part of that process are deleted (including
clicking on the network without dragging, now deleting the single node which was
previously created). If a third leg is added to a bend node as part of a new
link creation, the bend node is converted to a real node (and re-numbered
accordingly). If deleting a node removes one leg of a bend node, the bend is
converted to an external node. Default source movements for a new link which
connects existing nodes with a diagonal are determined more reliably. Left-click
can be used while in the Create New Link mode to select the current node.
>V7.00.21: Fixes to SIMULATION Dialog.
The 'Use TRANSYT or PASSER Actuated Model' option of the SIMULATION dialog is
now both properly selectable without any error messages, and displayed properly
in the dialog, and a random glitch which garbled part of the main window Network
display when the SIMULATION dialog opened has been fixed.
>V7.00.21: Make Help File Useable When a Data File is Double-clicked.
A problem locating the .HLP file when a user data file was double-clicked in
Windows Explorer to open it has been fixed.
>Program-Specific Updates Included in General Visual TEAPAC Update.
Several program-specific enhancements have also been made to individual
programs, as listed below:
SIGNAL2000 -- for unopposed left turns, the right turn model is no longer
used (as in previous HCM versions) since this condition is handled properly by
the Ped-Bike model for left turns.
NOSTOP -- a better output display is provided in the unlikely event of an
optimization result that has no solution.
All PRE-Processors -- check for problematic Offset entries that might
crash a time-space diagram plot; display the new Manual Distance entry for
NETWORK in the summary of data values.
PRETRANSYT -- improved correlation between Route and Nodelist/Subsystem
entries.
PRENETSIM -- automatic network validation check before Export; fix
problem simulating bend nodes between real and external nodes.
PRESYNCHRO -- automatic network validation check before Export; round
imported offset values which are between 0.0 and 1.0 to maintain consistent
units.
PRETSPPD -- automatic network validation check before Export; round
imported offset values which are between 0.0 and 1.0 to maintain consistent
units.
PRENOSTOP -- keep imported Offsets in proper range between 0.0 and 1.0
(sec/sec); more clear identification of an attempt to import results from a
NOSTOP optimization with no solution; better calculation of SPLIT for Export
when system cycle length is not the same as an intersection's current timings (eg,
when doing a system cycle optimization).
SITE -- automatic network validation check before FindPaths; improved
cumulation features, including better formatted output, better initialization
which allows for a larger subsequent cumulated network, and improved
documentation of cumulation procedures.
Build 14 - 20APR06
Scroll down to 'Ver
7.00 07NOV05, Build 07 - 11NOV05' below for the major changes which
were implemented for the original Visual TEAPAC
release of this program.
>V7.00.14: Generic Enhancements Made to All Visual TEAPAC
Programs.
A number of generic enhancements and fixes have been made to the
original Ver 7.00 release of Visual TEAPAC and are collectively
included as Ver 7.00 Build 14. These are documented below and use
heading lines that begin with V7.00.14:. In addition, minor
program-specific changes have been made, as summarized here and
detailed in the program's own specific list of updates and
changes. Ver 7.00 Build 14 changes are free updates for Ver 7.00
licenses.
>V7.00.14: Color Selection Added to Options Menu.
The Options menu now provides a Colors option for selecting
colors which are used when generating formatted output reports
and the main window network display. Any selections made are
retained and used during future program sessions. Most of the
default colors for formatted output reports are taken from the
user's desktop color scheme (DisplayProperties-Appearance), so
changing the color scheme will automatically change the output
colors used when the defaults are selected. All colors selected,
including actual selections and defaults, are displayed in the
Color management dialog produced by the Options-colors menu
selection.
>V7.00.14: Browse Button Added to Select a Bitmap File.
A browse button has been added to the Network Display and Edit
Management dialog which is displayed when the Setup button of the
main window is pressed. This can be used to select a bitmap
background file in the data file folder as an alternative to
simply typing the file name in the entry field.
>V7.00.14: INTERSECTION Dialog Options Added.
The INTERSECTION dialog which is used to select the 'current'
node has been significantly enhanced with several new features,
as follows. A check box enables the inclusion of dummy nodes in
the drop-down list so dummy nodes can be selected from the
dialog; and nodes in the drop-down list can be ordered in any of
three arrangements - the order they appear in the NODELIST,
numeric order by node number, or alphabetic order by intersection
description.
On a related note, the network display is now updated any time a
new current intersection is selected, including when it is
entered from the Manual Mode, when it is entered from file input,
etc. Also, when a dummy node is selected as the current node, it
is always highlighted in the network display, even when the zoom
level is such that other dummy nodes are not displayed.
>V7.00.14: Option Added to Delete All References to Deleted
Node.
When a node is deleted or cut from the network, either from the
main window network display or from the NODELIST dialog, a prompt
to verify the deletion is now always issued, and the prompt now
includes a new option to include the deletion of all other
references to the deleted node elsewhere in the network. The
option to delete all references is pre-selected by default on
each deletion, but can be de-selected in the prompt dialog box.
On a related note, the manipulation of nodes in the NODELIST
dialog has been extended to include dummy nodes as well as real
nodes, offering greater flexibility in managing the entire node
list from this dialog. A problem with the Copy and Paste
functions (to and from the clipboard) has also been fixed.
>V7.00.14: Improved Support for PDF Creation.
Difficulties producing PDF files for formatted output reports
with certain PDF writers have been resolved.
>V7.00.14: Improved Constraint In Use of SUBSYSTEM
Function.
The use of the drag function in the main window network display
to create or edit a SUBSYSTEM has been constrained for better
consistency with the allowed use of the SUBSYSTEM feature based
on the program's licensed Usage Level. This prevents inadvertent
setting of the SUBSYSTEM which then causes an error when opening
a file which has this feature saved.
>V7.00.14: Maximum Link Length Increased from 9999 to
32000.
The maximum link length allowed by all TEAPAC programs has been
increased from 9,999 feet (<2 miles) to 32,000 feet (> 6
miles), and a warning message is now issued if a link is created
in the main window network display that exceeds this limit.
>V7.00.14: File-OpenMerge Function Enhanced.
The File-OpenMerge function has been enhanced in several ways, as
follows. First, if a file being merged contains information about
a bitmap file and its scaling, this information is ignored in
deference to the bitmap/scaling information currently in effect
in the program. The help strings for this function have also been
updated, and the function is initialized more completely each
time it is used to avoid overlap with responses to previous error
situations.
>V7.00.14: Help File Formatting Restored to Previous Style.
The numbering of the indented paragraphs in the Notes section of
Appendix B of the Help file has been restored, as appeared
previously.
>V7.00.14: Minor Cleanups and Fixes Implemented.
A number of (mostly internal) cleanups and fixes have been
implemented for more reliable operation of Visual TEAPAC
programs. Most of these will not be noticeable to users, but a
couple will resolve certain problems a few users have
experienced. For example, opening an old TEAPAC data file which
does not contain valid NODELOCATION entries for each intersection
will not crash, and moving a bend node under certain conditions
will not cause the program to close prematurely.
>Program-Specific Updates Included in General Visual TEAPAC
Update.
Several program-specific enhancements have also been made to
individual programs, as listed below:
SIGNAL2000 -- a new OUTPUT option called 'Input'
has been added to include the Input Worksheet (only) with the
Capacity Analysis Summary output report, and Critical v/c has
been added to the top of the Capacity Analysis Summary output
report.
SITE -- bend nodes can be omitted from the path
list in PATHASSIGNMENT; bend nodes are automatically removed from
paths created by the FINDPATHS function; long FINDPATH paths are
now displayed from beginning to end in the main window network
display; FINDPATHS responds better to missing or invalid network
data; and column headings have been added to continuation pages
for COMPUTE results.
PRETRANSYT -- remove the creation of an IOSPEC
file which is no longer allowed by Rel 10.3 of TRANSYT7F.
PRENETSIM -- default pocket length is still 250
feet, but it is now limited to a value 60 feet less than the link
length as an approximation of the effective link length which
cannot be exceeded by a pocket length.
PRESYNCHRO -- fix problem with PLOT function if
default list of nodes is used when dummy nodes are present.
PRETSPPD -- fix problem with PLOT function if
default list of nodes is used when dummy nodes are present.
Build 07 -
11NOV05
>Visual TEAPAC - A Whole New Way of Seeing TEAPAC.
All 13 modules of the TEAPAC suite of programs have been upgraded
to the Visual TEAPAC (Version 7) interface. Primarily, this means
each program sports a much more visual input and output system to
make entering and viewing data for the analysis network much
easier and to make the resulting output reports clearer and
easier to read. The general aspects of the two major enhancement
areas, visual input and visual output, are described below,
followed by the many other supporting enhancements that go along
with the Visual TEAPAC upgrade.
When combined with the unparalleled 1-file, 1-click,
500-intersection, completely seamless data sharing introduced
with each of the 13 TEAPAC2004 (Version 6) programs, Visual
TEAPAC provides an unmatched experience of fully-integrated
visual traffic engineering and traffic planning software. Read on
for the details.
>Visual TEAPAC - Graphical Input and Display of Analysis
Network.
All TEAPAC programs (except NOSTOP and TUTOR) now provide a
drag-and-drop user interface as a way to create and/or display
the study network in the main window of the program. The network
can be drawn schematically or to precise scale with the aid of an
underlying grid, or a bitmap can be displayed under the network
to make drawing easy and/or display of the network more
meaningful. The bitmap file can be an aerial photograph, a street
map, as-built drawings, or any other such display which would be
helpful, and this bitmap is exported to third-party program such
as CORSIM and TRANSYT as permitted.
Streets can be drawn by clicking on the grid or scaled bitmap and
dragging across the extent of the street section, creating
analysis intersections where the new street segment crosses
existing street segments. The Setup button can be used to
identify the bitmap, scale the bitmap and establish an axis
origin, either before the network is drawn or afterwards for
pre-existing data files. Special display adjustment modes allow
quick re-orientation to new bitmaps, such as when using
higher-resolution bitmaps for a zoomed-in study area versus a
regional area bitmap.
Dummy nodes are automatically created to orient external legs of
intersections around the periphery of the study network, and
internal dummy bend nodes are easily created for better network
representation between analysis intersections. Proper treatment
of all dummy nodes (externals and bends) are fully integrated
into all of the TEAPAC application programs, as well as the
eleven+ third-party programs to which TEAPAC analyses can be
exported. Dummy nodes do not count against the maximum number of
intersections allowed by each Usage Level.
Intersections and dummy nodes are easily moved within the network
by simply dragging them across the grid or bitmap, with the
option to freeze the associated link distances, or have them
adjust automatically as they are moved.
The network view is easily adjusted with buttons for panning in
eight directions, zoom in, zoom out, zoom all to show the entire
network, and a rubber-band selection to outline the desired
zoom-in area. The display of either the bitmap or the network is
easily toggled on or off, as required, and the current
intersection for subsequent dialog data entry or analysis is made
by simply clicking the intersection. Intersections can also be
selected by a right-click which opens a popup menu with all the
data entry and data analysis dialogs immediately available,
either in Normal View or Tabular View (use F3 to toggle the
view). The popup menu also allows the renumbering or deletion of
the selected node. Dragging a rubber-band selection box around a
set of intersections can be used to define or add to (with Ctrl
key) a subsystem of intersections for subsequent analysis.
The on-screen shortest-path FindPath assignment function of the
SITE program is now performed in color directly on the
main-window graphics network display, including the bitmap
background, providing helpful visual cues while performing the
assignment process.
The on-screen Startup Help? button provides immediate assistance
for all of the functions described above. Visit
www.StrongConcepts.com for examples of the new graphical input
front-end now found in Visual TEAPAC.
>Visual TEAPAC - Enhanced Graphical Output Reporting.
All TEAPAC programs now feature enhanced, graphical output
reporting for all results produced. Output reports now make full
use of color and graphics drawing for arrows, phasing diagrams,
permitted movements, time-space diagrams, intersection diagrams,
cycle optimization graphs, daily count variation graphs, etc. All
reports are printable on any color or black & white printer
supported by Windows, including PDF writers. Any graphics output
page can be copied to the clipboard as a bitmap so it can be
pasted into other applications. The prior version's text-only
results are still viewable alone or in parallel with the
graphical results, and selected text can be copied to the
clipboard or saved to a text file for subsequent use, as before.
In Visual TEAPAC, you are no longer limited to the old, archaic,
hard-to-read character graphics which was used when TEAPAC was
originally created (what did your computer look like 30 years
ago?).
All output reports use shades of color from the desktop
theme/style setting to highlight the results, including report
titles, report sub-sections, column headings and alternating
output lines. The proportionally-spaced, sans-serif Tahoma font
is used for easier readability, including right-justified numeric
results in columns.
Viewing options include zoom in, zoom out, zoom all to see an
entire page, rubber-band selection to zoom in, drag the page to
scroll and click to re-center. Text strings can be searched for
within one or many pages of results and multi-page results can be
quickly scanned with controls to advance to the next or previous
page, the next or previous report, or the beginning or end of all
results.
Visit www.StrongConcepts.com for examples of the new graphical
output back-end now found in Visual TEAPAC.
>Other Generic Enhancements Found in All Visual TEAPAC
Programs.
Many other generic enhancements have been made to the Visual
TEAPAC user interface which is now included in every TEAPAC
program. These include:
-- Windows XP style buttons, drop-down lists, scroll windows,
etc.
-- all Edit and Results menus can be accessed by right-click.
-- all demos allow at least 4 intersections to be entered and
analyzed.
-- license keys are valid for any older version of the same
program;
license info displays in Help-About, including site license
address.
-- leading W removed from all program file names for easy
recognition;
LinkTo and Menu looks for new name first, then old name with W,
for
backward compatibility with older versions of other TEAPAC
programs.
-- default node to renumber is the current node, not 0.
-- Startup Help button is located in main window and now in Help
menu;
StartUp.txt can be modified by user with virtually unlimited
size.
-- View-Network and Options-Graphics menu options have been
removed.
>Program-Specific Enhancements Included in Visual TEAPAC
Upgrade.
Many program-specific enhancements have also been made to
individual programs, as listed below:
SIGNAL2000
Timings provided or optimized 'by movement' are displayed with a
new ring-based display in the capacity analysis report. New
options (TrapOk, MultiOk & Unrestricted) for the Permissives
dialog allow both the analysis and optimization of two
special-case permitted left turn conditions - the left turn trap
and multi-turn-lane permitted operations. The message that
displays each time an unsignalized intersection is skipped in an
analysis can now be disabled. Warning messages that display when
high turn percentages are encountered are automatically omitted
when the sum of the turn percentages is 98% or higher, such as at
T-intersections or special conditions with dummy through
movements. Dummy nodes are skipped without any messages when all
intersections are being analyzed, and dummy node conditions are
reported in abbreviated form at the end of a Summary of Parameter
Values produced for all intersections.
SIGNAL2000 output reports which are significantly enhanced by the
new color-graphics results produced by Visual TEAPAC include: all
phasing displays, clearly showing permitted movements and
critical design movements, either in HCM 'by-phase' style or
ring-based 'by-movement' style; the Capacity Analysis Summary
boxes for each approach; and the intersection data summary
diagram.
SITE
The FindPaths assignment function is now performed with color
path display directly on the main window network/bitmap instead
of a schematic network display in a separate window. The
Assignment data entry is initialized like other intersection
entries, either for the current intersections or for all
intersections. Dummy node conditions are reported in abbreviated
form at the end of the Summary of Parameter Values.
NOSTOP
The demo limits have been increased from 3 intersections to 6 and
from 5 cycles to 7, with increments of 10 seconds instead of 30
seconds allowed, all to better illustrate the program's potential
and to allow the sample problem of Chapter 2 of the on-screen
manual to be entered. A new 6-intersection sample data file
called NOSTOP.FOR has also been provided which exploits these new
limits. Inappropriate errors which were issued when the Available
dialog was used and when certain inputs for the Nonconcurrent
dialog were used have been suppressed.
NOSTOP output reports which are significantly enhanced by the new
color-graphics results produced by Visual TEAPAC include: the
color-coded Efficiency versus Cycle graph; the full-color
time-space diagram which show through phases and clearance
intervals, directional offsets and band widths.
WARRANTS and TURNS
A new entry in the CountType dialog is provided which can be used
to describe the count which was made for each intersection. 40
characters can be entered to describe the date, weather, count
station, etc. and this information is listed in most output
tabulations and analyses. Import of electronic count data also
fills this field with available information from the count file,
and the intersection description of the Intersection dialog is
also filled. Except for a 1-intersection analysis, this
information is no longer placed in the Project/Description/Note
title entries which now apply generally to all intersections in
the study network, not an individual intersection (as before).
Dummy nodes in the network are now skipped for all tabulation and
analysis functions without any message. The demo versions of the
programs allow certain limited Conditions inputs to be made in
order for the sample data files and example problem of Chapter 2
to be entered without error.
WARRANTS and TURNS output reports which are significantly
enhanced by the new color-graphics results produced by Visual
TEAPAC include: the plot of changes in daily traffic counts; and
intersection peak volume diagrams.
All PRE-Processors
The new Permissives options for SIGNAL2000 are displayed and
exported properly to all host programs. Dummy nodes are ignored
for any PLOT or TIMINGS result, and bend nodes or unsignalized
locations are ignored for any time-space PLOT. Node number
entries for PLOT and TIMINGS are allowed up to the more recent
upper bound of 999 instead of the older limit of 327. Various
input error checks are skipped for dummy nodes, and dummy node
conditions are reported in abbreviated form at the end of a
Summary of Parameter Values produced for all intersections.
PRE-Processor output reports which are significantly enhanced by
the new color-graphics results produced by Visual TEAPAC include:
all phasing displays, clearly showing permitted movements, either
in HCM 'by-phase' style or ring-based 'by-movement' style; and
the full-color time-space diagram which shows all phases and
clearance intervals, directional offsets and band widths.
PRETRANSYT
In addition to the above for all PRE-processors, dummy external
nodes are omitted from the TRANSYT Export in order to minimize
the number of intersections sent to TRANSYT (which has a maximum
of 100 intersections), and links with bend nodes are merged into
a single link for the same reason.
PREPASSR
In addition to the above for all PRE-processors, dummy external
nodes are omitted from the PASSER Export in order to minimize the
number of intersections sent to PASSER (which has a maximum of 20
intersections), and links with bend nodes and/or unsignalized
intersections are merged into a single link for the same reason.
PRENETSIM
In addition to the above for all PRE-processors, if dummy
external nodes are provided by the analysis network, these nodes
and their coordinates are exported to CORSIM for the most
realistic animation in CORSIM. If dummy external buffer nodes
need to be created, they are now created starting at 999 (instead
of 750) counting backwards, and detailed checks are made to make
sure a dummy node number to be used is not already referenced
elsewhere in the network. The default external link length for
created buffer nodes is now 500 feet instead of 1,320 feet. Bend
nodes are modeled using the same method as buffer nodes
(side-street stop control with no side-street traffic). The cause
of occasional invalid random number seeds has been tracked down
and fixed, and better pseudo-random seed creation has been
implemented. An inappropriate error which was issued when the
Animate option of the Export dialog was selected has been
suppressed.
PRESYNCHRO
In addition to the above for all PRE-processors, when dummy
external nodes are created for the SYNCHRO network, a
comprehensive check for prior use of the new node number is made
before being used, and the default external link length for
created buffer nodes is now 500 feet instead of 1,320 feet.
PRETSPPD
In addition to the above for all PRE-processors, when dummy
external nodes are created for the TS/PP-DRAFT network, a
comprehensive check for prior use of the new node number is made
before being used, and the default external link length for
created buffer nodes is now 500 feet instead of 1,320 feet.
PRENOSTOP
In addition to the above for all PRE-processors, dummy external
nodes are omitted from the NOSTOP Export in order to minimize the
number of intersections sent to NOSTOP (which has a maximum of 25
intersections), and links with bend nodes and/or unsignalized
intersections are merged into a single link for the same reason.
The new NOSTOP.exe executable file name is used instead of the
previous WNOSTOP.exe. A missing field description in the
Options-Setup dialog for the NOSTOP host location has been
inserted.
TUTOR
The Programs option of TUTOR uses the new executable file names
of the programs to launch a selected program.
TED
The TED text editor is fully integrated into each of the new
Visual TEAPAC programs when TED is licensed.
TEAPAC Menu
The TEAPAC Menu has been updated to look for the new executable
file names, but if not found it will look for the old file name
so that old licenses or demos which have not been updated can
still be run. For best compatibility among all the TEAPAC
programs, it is highly recommended that all TEAPAC programs be
upgraded to the same Version 7 status. The SIGNAL97 option in the
TEAPAC Menu has been removed.
:TEAPAC Ver 6.01
23MAY05
Scroll down to 'Ver 6.00 08SEP04, Build 06 - 22SEP04' below for the major changes which were implemented for the original TEAPAC2004 release of this program.
Build 12 - 30SEP05
>Field Width Error Detection Modified for More Useful
Performance.
A new error check was recently introduced to warn a user that too
many characters for an input field had been entered and that the
entry would be truncated. The aggressive response to this
condition (ignoring the entry entirely) has been toned back, now
accepting the truncated input with a similar warning. This
reduces the potential for the need to re-type an entry which may
be perfectly fine in its truncated form, or require only minor
editing to correct instead of complete re-entry. The new error
check has also been eliminated for any entries of the GROUPTYPES
dialog, most of whose possible entry values can typically exceed
the actual allocated input field width.
Another effect of the overly-aggressive error check was that
certain drop-down list values in a number of dialog boxes had
pre-programmed entries which exceeded the input field width, thus
preventing them from executing properly. These included drop-down
lists in the OUTPUT, CONDITIONS, GENERATION and PATHDISTRIBUTION
dialogs. The field widths of all of these entries have been
modified to accept the full drop-down list pre-programmed
entries.
>Extra Warning Message Eliminated When Opening New Files.
If a user is warned about unsaved data or results values when a
new file is about to be opened, with an option to first save the
values, certain circumstances could cause the same message to be
re-displayed a second time, regardless of the user response to
the first message. This duplicate warning message has been
eliminated.
>Debug Value Removed from Display for Text Search Function.
A spurious debug value was inadvertently left in the production
version of the program, displaying each time a text string is
searched for in any output window or edit window. The debug
display has been removed.
>Key Files Are Now Valid for All Prior Versions of Program.
The key file processing logic has been enhanced to allow a given
key file to be used not only for various builds and minor updates
for the licensed version, but also for any version of the program
prior to the licensed version. This minimizes the hassle of
multiple key file management when multiple versions of a program
are being used, for example, to maintain consistency in results
throughout the course of a project which was begun with an older
version of a given program that has been updated.
Build 11 - 22AUG05
>Optimized Timings Can be Imported in PRE-processors When
Defined 'By-Movement'.
Optimized timings can now be Imported in all the TEAPAC
PRE-processors when the timing entry styls is 'By-Movement'. This
includes PRETRANSYT, PREPASSR, PRESYNCHRO, PRETSPPD and
PRENOSTOP. Previously, this was not possible.
>Bug In Synchro Requires Reading LANES File Twice for
Correct RTOR Values.
A bug has been identified in Synchro which requires that the
LANES UTDF data file be read again after all other UTDF files
have been read in order to make sure that the RTOR values are
properly transferred from PRESYNCHRO into Synchro. A bug fix for
this problem is pending for Synchro 6.
Build 10 - 04AUG05
>Minor Generic Enhancements and Fixes for TEAPAC2004 Ver
6.00 Release.
A number of minor enhancements and fixes have been made to the
Ver 6.01 releases of TEAPAC2004 and are collectively included as
Ver 6.01 Build 10. These are documented below and use heading
lines that begin with T2004v6:. In addition, minor
program-specific changes have been made, as summarized here and
detailed in the program's own specific list of updates and
changes. Ver 6.01 changes are free updates for Ver 6.00 licenses.
SIGNAL2000 -- the precision of default lane utilization factors
used has been increased from two decimal places to 3 decimal
places.
PRESYNCHRO and PRETSPPD -- right turn overlaps are now fully
handled by the Import and Export functions.
WARRANTS and TURNS -- DFL site codes of up to nine characters can
now be imported.
>T2004v6: Print Problem Resolved from Tabular View.
Difficulties experienced by some users attempting to print
results when using the Tabular View have been resolved.
>T2004v6: Improved Phasing Display in Dialog Boxes.
The currently-selected signal phasing for an intersection which
is displayed in some dialog boxes has been improved so that
improperly-coded permitted left turns display differently than
expected to indicate the error in coding.
Build 00 - 23MAY05
>Minor Generic Enhancements and Fixes for TEAPAC2004 Ver
6.00 Release.
A number of minor enhancements and fixes have been made to the
Ver 6.00 releases of TEAPAC2004 and are collectively included as
Ver 6.01 Build 00. These are documented below and use heading
lines that begin with T2004v6:. In addition, minor
program-specific changes have been made, as summarized here and
detailed in the program's own specific list of updates and
changes. Ver 6.01 changes are free updates for Ver 6.00 licenses.
NOSTOP and PRE-Processors -- the default scale for PLOTting a
time-space diagram has been changed from 100 feet/line to 0, the
new default of 0 being a code that instructs the program to
determine a scale automatically which will include the entire
time-space diagram on a single page.
NOSTOP -- the offset to the first main-street phase has been
added to the right margin of the time-space diagram; input limits
have been adjusted for DISTANCES and SPLITS to prevent errors
when dividing by very small numbers; and dialogs and result
reports have been modified to indicate that SPLITS are complete
phase times, including both CLEARANCES and ALLREDS.
PRENOSTOP -- an error in the installed configuration file which
prevented successful installation of PRENOSTOP anywhere but the
default C:\TEAPAC folder has been corrected.
PRETRANSYT -- better card type 29 coding has been implemented
regarding the determination of the opposed movements of a
stop-controlled movement on the stem of a T-intersection,
recognizing the likelihood of certain movements not existing due
to the T structure of the intersection.
SITE -- an important note regarding cumulated computations and
the new VOLADDITIONALS values has been added to the COMPUTE
dialog help; and possible problems saving ACTUATIONS values with
SITE were fixed.
>T2004v6: New Message Warns User That Calculated/Imported
Values Have Not Been Saved.
A new message has been created which warns a user when calculated
and/or imported values will be lost when the program is closed or
File-New is used. This provides a check against inadvertently
losing data results which could otherwise be saved in a file for
future use or use by another program. The existence of unsaved
calculated and/or imported values is indicated in the window
caption with an asterisk (*) in the same fashion as changed user
entry values. A similar message is now issued when File-Open or
Reset [Parameters] is used when edited, calculated and/or
imported values have not been saved.
>T2004v6: Edit Window Contents Can Be Printed, Including
Line Numbers.
The contents of the TED Edit window, either within TED or the
built-in edit window in any TEAPAC program, can now be printed
using the normal print menu or toolbar buttons, including line
numbers.
>T2004v6: LinkTo followed by Another LinkTo Performs
Properly.
Multiple LinkTo operations can now be performed smoothly under
all conditions without limitation. Previously it was observed
that under certain conditions, one LinkTo followed by another
LinkTo could cause certain problems successfully connecting to
the next desired program.
>T2004v6: VOLADDITIONALS Values Now Allowed to be Negative.
The entry or computed values for VOLADDITIONALS is now allowed to
have negative values, with a complete input range permitted from
-9999 to 9999. This is primarily to afford the possibility of
re-assignments of traffic to result in a net reduction of volume
for individual movements, either by manual entry or computations
from SITE. In the case of SITE, this also means that ROUNDing of
results can create small negative VOLADDITIONALS in locations
that receive little or no new traffic and where final volumes are
rounded down (this is appropriate and to be expected).
>T2004v6: Global Entry of Additional Sequence Codes Now
Includes All Extra Codes.
The entry of additional sequence codes for intersection 0 (to be
assigned to all intersections) has been expanded so that all
extra sequence codes will be assigned to all intersections, not
just the first extra sequence code. This allows added flexibility
when using this global entry feature for SEQUENCES.
>T2004v6: Better Graphics for Phasing Display and Bitmap
Buttons.
The arrows used to represent phasing in various dialogs have been
improved in quality and appearance, and if timings for phasings
are defined by-movement instead of by-phase, the by-movement
phasing diagrams are now shown in every relevant dialog. In
addition, the pan and zoom button bitmaps within the View-Network
display have been improved for better clarity.
>T2004v6: Option to Select Pages to Print; Page 0 for
Current Page.
An option has been added to the Print-Setup dialog which allows
the selection of specific pages to be printed instead of always
printing all pages in the output window. Selection of page 0 will
print only the current output page (the page which contains the
insertion point cursor).
>T2004v6: View-Network Works Without Defined Network
Distances.
Previously it was not possible to perform the View-Network
function unless all NETWORK distances had been entered. This was
due to the function's attempt to establish a scale factor between
the network distances entered and the potentially arbitrary
coordinate system used. Now, if distances are not entered,
View-Network simply assumes the scale factor is 1.
>T2004v6: Warnings If Too Many Characters Entered or Number
Too Large in an Input Field.
If a user enters more characters in a dialog's input field than
the dialog expects or can process, a warning is now issued and
the entire entry is ignored, rather than just ignoring the extra
characters. This allows for better understanding by the user that
the entry may not have been processed correctly. The F5 Refresh
button should be used in all cases to see the current dialog
values after the warning. On a similar note, if an entry has a
numeric value too large for the intended internal variable, this
condition is also noted with a message rather than allowing the
possibility of a more catastrophic reaction by the program at a
later point.
:TEAPAC Ver 6.00 08SEP04
Scroll down to 'Build 06 - 22SEP04' below for the major changes which were implemented for the original TEAPAC2004 release of this program.
Build 07 - 07DEC04
>Minor Generic Enhancements and Fixes for Initial
TEAPAC2004 Release.
A number of minor enhancements and fixes have been made to the
initial release of TEAPAC2004 (Version 6, Build 06) and are
collectively included as Build 07. These are documented below and
use heading lines that begin with T2004v6:. In addition, minor
program-specific changes have been made, as summarized here and
detailed in the program's own specific list of updates and
changes. Build 07 changes are free updates for Build 06 licenses.
SIGNAL2000, SITE, WARRANTS, TURNS and PRE-Processors -- blank
lines are now inserted between intersections and site generation
data in TEAPAC2004 data files to aid in distinguishing the parts
of the data file when being viewed as a text file.
SITE, WARRANTS and TURNS -- the saved values for ACTUATIONS (for
use by signal operations programs such as SIGNAL2000) may have
been corrupted in the initial TEAPAC2004 version of the program.
This has been corrected. If legitimate ACTUATIONS values existed
in any data file which was subsequently saved by this program,
these values should be checked carefully for validity. If an
attempt is made to read such corrupted values, error messages
will be issued which should be ignored, then the values should be
verified and/or corrected. Also, the representation of the
Intersection entry in a Tabular View has been modified in its
appearance so it is consistent with all other TEAPAC programs.
The change includes representing the intersection number and
description as a single entry field, as well as providing a
button to 'Execute' the entry.
WARRANTS and TURNS -- IRD machine count data files with the .PRN
file extension can now be Imported directly into TURNS and
WARRANTS by specifying an Import file with a .PRN extension. This
operates much like the Numetrics Import, where a Periods entry
should already be in place before the Import, and several Imports
to different movements can be accomplished, as needed. Multiple
counts cannot be accumulated to a single movement (this is
different than the Numetrics Import). Also, the parameter values
which are normally entered in the special dialog which appears
for TAS, Numetrics and IRD machine count Imports can now be
entered at the end of a manual mode Import command. When this is
done, the special dialog will display the manual mode entries so
no further adjustment is required. Further, if an additional
non-zero entry is made after these values in the manual mode, the
special dialog will not be displayed at all. This feature allows
the Import command to be included in a control file and thus run
unattended.
WARRANTS -- + and - buttons have been added to the main window
and all relevant dialogs as a convenient way of navigating among
the various intersections of the Nodelist without the need to
visit the Intersection dialog to select a new 'current'
intersection.
PRESYNCHRO -- the dialog box labels for eastbound movements in
the diagonal import assignment dialog (right side) have been
corrected to properly represent the movements which the graphics
in the dialog clearly depict. This is only a cosmetic change in
the appearance of the dialog box, and does not affect any data
entry values as long as the graphics of the dialog have guided
the input process (most likely the case).
>T2004v6: Last Output Window Contents Saved in Text File
Upon Program Closure.
The contents of the last Output Window display are now always
saved in a temporary file (TMPxxx.OUT, where xxx is the program's
abbreviated name) when a TEAPAC2004 program exits, thus leaving
the last output produced in a text file for review and
post-processing, if desired. The file is located in the folder
which contains the authoring program (usually C:\TEAPAC) and is
over-written the next time the same program exits. This feature
also allows viewing of results created by a scripted control file
which contains the Stop command, as well as multiple, linked
control files which link to each other or are run from a batch
command file. Also, a change has been made to make sure that all
output generated by launching a control file from a command line
is captured in the Output Window and/or the TMPxxx.OUT file.
Lastly, if an Output Window is open when a Stop command is
encountered in a control file, that Output Window is now always
closed automatically.
>T2004v6: Automatic Closure of Save Message.
The message which is displayed when File-Save is used is now
closed automatically in all cases after a brief display to
confirm that the save has occurred as desired. Only Advanced file
save messages are displayed until closed manually (unless the
automatic closure checkbox is selected). Any save action directed
from a control file is also closed automatically after a brief
display in order to allow unattended operation.
>T2004v6: View-Network Shows Exiting External Legs.
The schematic network diagram created by the View-Network menu
will now show external intersection legs for one-way street
segments departing from an intersection.
>T2004v6: Longer Window Caption File Path Display.
The number of characters used to display the current file
name(s), path and save status has been increased so that more of
the file path is visible in the top caption line of the main
window.
>T2004v6: Tabular View Caption Fix Prevents Corruption of
Node# Display.
A problem in the caption display of the Tabular View window has
been fixed so it no longer corrupts the display of the Current
Node in the main window.
>T2004v6: File Functions Restored in TEAPAC Menu.
The 'Use this file:' function has been restored to the TEAPAC
Menu so a file can be found by browsing, dragging to the Menu
window, or double-clicking in Explorer. Then use of that file can
be transferred to any TEAPAC program in the Menu. This function
was inadvertantly disabled in the initial TEAPAC2004 release.
Build 06 - 22SEP04
>TEAPAC2004 (Version 6) Released After 2 Years in
Development.
After 2 years in development, TEAPAC2004 (Version 6) has been
released with a major enhancement to the generic user interface
used by all programs, as well as major developments to individual
programs. A summary of these enhancements follows for each TEAPAC
program, followed by the details of the generic interface changes
now found in all TEAPAC programs.
SIGNAL2000 and PRE-Processors -- completely seamless, one-click,
one-file exchange of all input and results with each other, SITE,
TURNS and WARRANTS, including calculations of HCM satflows,
optimized timings, peak-period turn counts and estimated site
traffic; new volume adjustment inputs to allow factoring volumes
and adding additional volumes on a movement-by-movement basis;
new sensitivity controls for global testing of factored volumes,
additive volumes, factored satflows, minimums, clearances, etc.;
complete implementation of the enhanced TEAPAC2004 (Ver 6) user
interface, as described below.
PRETRANSYT -- in addition to above, direct support for TRANSYT-7F
Release 10.
PRESYNCHRO -- in addition to above, automated graphical dialog
for easier import of diagonal legs from Synchro/SimTraffic.
PRENOSTOP -- new program connecting NOSTOP with all of the other
TEAPAC programs, including all of the features described above
and the TEAPAC2004 user interface.
SITE -- increased network size as large as 500 intersections
using arbitrary intersection numbers (not limited to 1..N);
completely seamless, one-click, one-file exchange of all input
and results with SIGNAL2000, TURNS, WARRANTS and all the
PRE-processors, including capacity analysis of projected traffic,
optimization of projected conditions, and peak-period turn counts
as background traffic; new sensitivity controls for individual
and/or global testing of inputs such as factored volumes;
complete implementation of enhanced TEAPAC2004 (Ver 6) user
interface, as described below.
TURNS and WARRANTS -- multi-intersection data management in one
data file with up to 500 intersections per file; completely
seamless, one-click, one-file exchange of all input and results
with SIGNAL2000, SITE and all the PRE-processors, especially to
deliver peak-period traffic volumes to all these programs as
existing or background traffic conditions, as well as calculated
peak hour factors and truck percentages; complete implementation
of enhanced TEAPAC2004 (Ver 6) user interface, as described
below.
NOSTOP -- support for the new PRENOSTOP program to connect NOSTOP
with all of the other TEAPAC programs, including all of the
features of the TEAPAC2004 user interface which apply.
TED -- ability to edit files of virtually unlimited size, as well
as all the TEAPAC2004 (Ver 6) user interface developments which
apply to the Edit window.
WTEAPAC Menu -- new File menu shows recent files; new Options
menu allows program folder setup; new Help menu can list recent
installed changes and check internet for updates; default support
for VISSIM 4 and TRANSYT-7F Release 10; TEAPAC files which are
double-clicked to be launched thru the TEAPAC Menu now open into
the menu only without launching the program that created the file
(since any file can now be used by any program, this old action
is no longer appropriate).
>T2004v6: TEAPAC2004 Interface Enhancements Found In All
Programs.
TEAPAC2004 (Ver 6) includes a multitude of enhancements which are
part of the generic user interface found in all TEAPAC programs
(some do not apply to NOSTOP, TED or TUTOR, for readily-apparent
reasons). All of the generic enhancements are listed below with
heading lines that begin with T2004v6:.
>T2004v6: One Common Data File Supports All TEAPAC
Programs.
The most significant and obvious change made to each TEAPAC
program in Version 6 is that all programs now share a single,
common data file structure that contains all of the data entries
used by all TEAPAC programs. This means that any TEAPAC program
(except NOSTOP and TUTOR) can open any file from any other TEAPAC
program, make changes to any of the data values it contains, and
re-Save the file with complete retention of all data values for
future use by any other TEAPAC program.
The first implication of this major fundamental change is that
the concept of File-OpenShare of earlier TEAPAC programs is no
longer needed since the sharing of TEAPAC files among TEAPAC
programs is now fundamental and automatic. File-OpenShare has
been re-named to File-OpenMerge/Share to better reflect its
current function, to merge the content of multiple files, and can
still be used to read and merge the content of files from older
versions of SIGNAL97, SIGNAL2000 (Ver 1), SITE, TURNS and
WARRANTS -- OpenMerge is automatic when reading these files.
Also, the warning message when saving to a file created by one of
these other programs has been removed, again because this
function is now standard procedure and has no risk of loss of
data.
The second implication of this change is that any values computed
by one program and to be used by another (such as peak-period
volumes from TURNS, HCM satflows from SIGNAL2000, optimized
signal timings and phasings from SIGNAL2000, projected traffic
from SITE, etc.) need only be saved into the data file with
File-Save, then the next program launched with the same file
using the LinkTo menu. A single click positions the user in the
next program ready to do the analysis of that program.
Lastly, all programs (except NOSTOP and TUTOR) now have the
ability to store all of this data for up to 500 intersections in
a single file.
>T2004v6: LinkTo Menu In All TEAPAC Programs Includes All
TEAPAC Programs.
All TEAPAC programs (except NOSTOP and TUTOR) now contain the
LinkTo menu which now provides immediate access to all other
TEAPAC programs with a single click which causes the current data
file to be re-opened in that program.
>T2004v6: LinkTo Function Now Allows Direct Link to Host
Programs.
A new function of the LinkTo menu has been added which allows
direct linkage to the six host programs which are supported by
the six TEAPAC preprocessors. These are PRETRANSYT for TRANSYT,
PREPASSR for PASSER, PRENETSIM for CORSIM, PRESYNCHRO for
Synchro/SimTraffic, PRETSPPD for TS-PP/Draft, and now PRENOSTOP
for NOSTOP. Since all programs have access to the control
directives for all the preprocessors, this means, for example,
that a TRANSYT run can be made directly from SIGNAL2000 with a
LinkTo-TRANSYT (assuming a licensed copy of PRETRANSYT is
installed on the system).
>T2004v6: Global Input Option for Most Intersection Inputs.
A powerful new feature has been added to all TEAPAC programs that
allows the value of a single data entry to be made to all
intersections in the NODELIST (or the SUBSYSTEM, if one is
defined). This is done when Intersection 0 is selected, and the
user is first warned of the pending global entry action and
followed by an audible beep when the global entry is made. The
warning message can be omitted for future such actions, if
desired.
Examples of uses for this new feature include the following:
Enter a common cycle length or cycle range for SIGNAL2000
optimization of all signals; designate a full SIGNAL2000 phasing
optimization for all signals; set the new volume adjustment
factor or number of years for compounding a growth factor for all
intersections for sensitivity analysis; enable or disable the new
additional volumes entry for all intersections; designate a
common peak hour factor for specific movements or all movements
of all intersections; set the minimum or required clearance
values for optimization at all signals; set the satflow
adjustment factor for all signals to perform sensitivity
analysis; etc. The possibilities of this new feature are
virtually endless.
>T2004v6: View-Network Function Improved with Easier Pan
& New Zoom.
The View-Network function has been added to all programs (except
NOSTOP and TUTOR), and has been greatly improved in functionality
regarding the ability to pan up/down and left/right, as well as
new functions for zoom in/out and selecting a view area of the
network connections and underlying bitmap with the mouse.
>T2004v6: Output/Edit Window Major Enhancements.
The Output and Edit Windows have been enhanced with menus and
toolbar buttons which provide the ability to Find a user-entered
text string, find the next output report and find the next page
of results. A button also allows moving backwards thru the output
to the previous output page. In the Edit Window, an additional
Find & Replace function has also been provided. Also, the
current line number of the cursor is displayed in the status line
of the window, and the ^A function now performs the standard
'SelectAll' function instead of copying the entire window to the
clipboard.
>T2004v6: Toolbar Button Provided for Intersection
Selection.
A toolbar button has been provided in the main window next to the
+/- buttons which provides direct access to the Intersection
dialog to select the 'current' intersection, allowing quick
access to this common function without the need to use the menus.
>T2004v6: Intersection/Type Description Listed in Dialog
Caption.
If an intersection description has been provided for the current
intersection (via the Intersection dialog), this description is
displayed in the caption of any intersection data dialog in
addition to the intersection number. For traffic impact studies
with SITE, the same function is true for the current distribution
type. These number and description displays are now also included
in the caption of the Tabular View window.
>T2004v6: Check For Internet Update Function Provided.
A new function has been provided in the Help menu of every TEAPAC
program that allows the user to have the program check the
internet for any available downloadable updates. This function
can be set to automatically check for updates every time the
program is launched. If updates are found, this fact is displayed
along with the status of the update (free or if a fee is involved
and what that fee is), as well as a link to a complete
description of what functionality changes the update includes,
the ability to launch an email requesting a new key for a paid
update or a quote for an upgrade. Options to view a complete
price list online, to launch an email requesting technical
support, and to go to the Strong Concepts main web page are also
provided. This feature was partially implemented in the most
recent downloads of several TEAPAC programs and accepted with
great enthusiasm.
>T2004v6: INTERSECTION Dialog Includes Option to Renumber a
Node and All Refs.
The INTERSECTION dialog now contains a feature to renumber any
intersection in the NODELIST to any value not currently in the
NODELIST. When selected, all references to the old node number
anywhere else in the network are also updated, making renumbering
a snap.
>T2004v6: Save Remembers Selected Intersection/Type for
Subsequent Open.
When data files are saved, a directive is placed at the end of
the file which remembers the 'current' intersection and current
distribution type so that these positions can be reset when the
file is subsequently re-opened by either the same program or any
other TEAPAC program.
>T2004v6: Error Message Help Leaves Dialogs Open so Errant
Entries Can Be Seen.
When Help for an error or warning message is displayed, the
dialog entry which caused the error or warning is now left open
so the entered values can be inspected in relation to the help
advise given. Also, a note is provided in the message to use the
Refresh button to see the dialog with the actual current values
which are likely to not reflect the entry attempted (which caused
the error or warning).
>T2004v6: Errors Contain Cancel Button to Abort File-Open
or Control File.
When errors or warnings are issued as a result of reading a data
file, a Cancel button is now provided which allows the user to
abort continued attempts to read the file. This is now a
convenient way to halt attempted processing of a file which is
clearly not what was intended, or for power users, a way to kill
a control file which has gone off the deep end.
>T2004v6: OUTPUT Dialog Contains Entries for All Programs.
The OUTPUT dialog is a common dialog name which has had different
content for most TEAPAC programs. This conflict and impediment
for combining all the TEAPAC data into a single file for
TEAPAC2004 has been resolved by having a common OUTPUT dialog for
all programs which contains the OUTPUT parameters for all TEAPAC
programs. In the manual mode and control files, this involves the
addition of a new parameter #1 which is the name of the program
for which the following values apply, and thus all OUTPUT
parameters for all programs are stored in the file and displayed
in the dialog.
>T2004v6: Wording on Dialogs Used by Multiple Programs
Improved.
The wording on dialogs which are used by multiple programs in
TEAPAC2004 have been clarified so that it is more apparent what
the relevance is to the current program in which the dialog is
found.
>T2004v6: NODELIST Entry Protected from Change in Tabular
View.
The only safe place to change the NODELIST after it has been
entered is in the Normal View NODELIST dialog, so the NODELIST
entry in the Tabular View has been greyed and protected from
change to avoid unintended changes and possible disastrous
results.
>T2004v6: Options-Setup Uses Browse for Folder, not Browse
for File.
The Browse button in the Options-Setup dialog now produces a
Browse-for-Folder dialog instead of the File-Open dialog so it is
more clear what the function will return.
>T2004v6: Dialog Actions Re. ROUTEs with 9+ Nodes Fixed,
Including Save.
Certain problems with ROUTES which contained more than 8 nodes
have been fixed, including saving these route definitions.
>T2004v6: Recent File Menu Option Works Under All Windows
Platforms.
Display of recently used files in the File menu has presented
problems under certain Windows platforms, and thus an option has
been provided to turn this display off so recent files are
accessed only thru the File-RecentFiles dialog. This problem has
been fixed so recent files can be displayed in the File menu on
any Windows platform, and thus the default condition for this
feature has been changed from No to Yes.
>T2004v6: Command-Line Control File Enhancements.
When a user has set a TEAPAC program to start in the Tabular
View, ASK commands in command-line control files could not be
used. This limitation has been eliminated so this feature can be
used, if desired.
The output window for output generated by a command-line control
file now appears in front of the main window so it is immediately
visible without the need to click it to bring it to the front.
A new /x option has been added at the end of a command-line file
name which instructs the program to open the command-line file as
File #x (the default is File #1, as before). This allows the data
file which a control file #2-5 opens to be designated as File #1
so that it is the file which will be open for subsequent
File-Save operations from the File menu. Opening command-line
control files as #2-5 instead of #1 is now the recommended
practice.
>T2004v6: -X Entry for INTERSECTION Number Allowed As
Positional Input.
The intersection number on an INTERSECTION command line or dialog
is now allowed to be a negative number between -1 and -N where N
is the number of intersections in the NODELIST. When this is the
case, the intersection selected is the i-th node of the NODELIST
when -i is used. The expected use of this feature is to allow
REPEAT loops in control files to easily sequence through all the
nodes of the NODELIST when the NDOELIST is not in numerical order
and/or not a sequential list of nodes from 1 to N.
>T2004v6: TEAPAC Menu Enhancements.
A new File menu in the TEAPAC Menu shows recent files which have
been used by the program; a new Options menu allows program
folder setup for all of the third-party programs supported by the
Menu; a new Help menu can list recently installed changes and
check the internet for updates; default support for VISSIM 4 and
TRANSYT-7F Release 10 is provided.
TEAPAC files which are double-clicked to be launched thru the
TEAPAC Menu now open into the menu only without launching the
program that created the file (since any file can now be used by
any program, this old action is no longer appropriate).
>T2004v6: Printable On-screen Manuals Available as PDF
Downloads.
The full documentation for each TEAPAC program has always been
directly available as the on-screen manual which also serves as
the context-sensitive Help document. Options for obtaining
printed/bound copies of this document have also been available at
an additional cost. Now, in addition, this document is available
as a downloadable PDF file which provides the ability to print a
copy locally, as well as search the entire document for
user-defined strings.
:TEAPAC Ver 5.12 22NOV03
Build 16 - 16JUL04
>SIGNAL2000 More Flexibility Added
for Lost Time Calculation in Compound LT.
SIGNAL2000 has been enhanced to provide the ability to have
different lost time values calculated for the protected and
permitted portions of compound left turns. In prior versions, a
single lost time value was calculated for each movement of an
intersection. Now, if Yellow+AllRed clearance times are different
for the protected and permitted phases of a protected-permitted
or permitted-protected left turn, the computed lost times for
these two conditions will be different, better reflecting the
different behaviors these phases might experience.
>SIGNAL2000 & PREPROCESSORS Fix NODELIST &
SUBSYSTEM Dialogs w/ >100 Nodes.
A problem has been fixed which could cause difficulties
displaying a node list with more than 100 nodes in the NODELIST
and SUBSYSTEM dialogs of the 500-node version of the program.
>Automatic Check for Updates Added When Connected to
Internet.
A new feature has been added which allows an automatic check for
updates via the internet any time the program is started when an
internet connection is present. The automatic check can be
disabled from the Help menu using the CheckForUpdates option. The
same menu selectiion can be used to manually check for updates,
to review details about any available updates, to download
updates, to see update prices (if they are not free), to request
a quote for updates and to order certain updates.
>Accelerator Key Definitions Added to Tooltip Help for
Dialog Buttons.
Tooltip help strings for certain dialog box buttons have been
updated to include the accelerator keys which can be used in lieu
of the buttons.
Build 14 - 29MAR04
>Installation Setup Modified for
Proper Creation of Shortcuts.
A change has been made to the configuration of the new MSI
installation setup now used by most TEAPAC programs. Now when
shortcuts are created in the start menu or the desktop during
installation, they are configured properly with the installation
folder set as the 'Start In' folder (Working Directory) for the
shortcut. In recent TEAPAC releases which use the new MSI
installation system, this configuration option was not selected,
resulting in a possible problem when running the program in
Exporting to HCS and locating the Help file (on-screen manual,
Help-Contents menu, Help buttons and F1 key) and/or the Recent
Changes file (Help-RecentChanges menu).
Build 12 - 03MAR04
>All Programs Receive Minor Ver 5.12 Interface Updates.
All TEAPAC programs using the Ver 5.1x
TEAPAC Interface have been further refined with additional
features to aid in the analysis process. These include: 1) saving
the current intersection in the data file so that when the file
is re-opened, the same current intersection is re-established, 2)
providing the ability to scale a bitmap background for a single
intersection analysis by right-clicking on a point 100 feet from
the intersection, and 3) providing a Clear button on the Subsytem
and Route dialogs so that the lists displayed can be removed with
a single click.
The TEAPAC Menu System now runs SYNCHRO 6 by default, and shows
ITC's new name (PTV America) for VISSIM. A summary of the
program-specific changes is provided below. Refer to the detailed
Recent Change notes for each program for more details. These are
all free update downloads from www.StrongConcepts.com for current
licenses.
>SIGNAL2000 Important Update for More Reliable Capacity
Analysis Calculations.
The new method under use in DESIGN for optimization regarding
setting certain protected-permitted left turn flags has been
implemented for more reliable and consistent determination of
these flags under capacity-analysis-only conditions. Also,
obscure but possible cases which could cause abnormal program
termination are now detected and reported in an orderly way.
>All Preprocessors Improve Selection of Default System
Cycle & Coordinate Scale.
The system cycle length used when the MASTERNODE is not used (or
not in the current SUBSYSTEM) is now the first node of the
SUBSYSTEM rather than the first node in the NODELIST. If the user
uses a coordinate system different than ground coordinates, an
imporved method is used to establish the scale that relates these
two coordinate systems, with less bias from outliers or
coordinate input errors. Also, a background bitmap in the
View-Network display can be scaled for use by other programs in a
single-intersection analysis by right-clicking a point 100 feet
from the center of the intersection.
>PRETRANSYT Accommodates Certain TRANSYT Input Limitations.
PRETRANSYT now makes sure that a calculated queue storage
capacity which exceeds the TRANSYT limit of 200 vehicles does not
place a capacity higher than 200 in this field of the input data
file. Also, RTOR is not coded for links which do not have any
non-permitted opposing links in the TRANSYT network model, and
empty record types 02 and 70 have been eliminated from the input
data file.
>PRESYNCHRO Improvements to Import and Export Functions.
Exported timings are now checked and adjusted to make sure that
the exported times in tenths of seconds add up exactly to the
cycle length. The way T-intersections and 1-way streets are
exported has been improved, particularly in relation to how
shared and/or 'not-opposed' left turns are handled for both
phasing definition and timings.
Lost time import and export have both been significantly enhanced
to provide greater consistency with the Highway Capacity Manual
definitions of lost time and related parameters, and as applied
in the SIGNAL2000 program. Also, entry of intersection
coordinates is now verified before exporting since they are an
intrinsic requirement of SYNCHRO for its displays and certain
calculations.
>PRETSPPD Improvements to Export Function.
Most of the PRESYNCHRO improvements above also apply to PRETSPPD.
In addition, several new options available in TSPPD Ver 6.0.0.13
have been implemented for easier readability and comparison to
'traditional' bandwidth representations of flow.
>PREPASSR Import Adjustment.
In relation to the adjustment of the default system cycle
described above, the affect that this change has on importing
PASSER II-02 results has been accommodated.
>PRENOSTOP (and NOSTOP) Enhancements.
As PRENOSTOP draws closer to its first official release later
this year, further enhancements have been made to its PreRelease
version (PreRelease 06). Most notably, the Import function has
been implemented so that optimized offsets and cycles can be
imported from NOSTOP back into PRENOSTOP for further review
and/or transfer to other TEAPAC programs such as SIGNAL2000,
PRETRANSYT, PRENETSIM, etc. In addition, minor improvements to
the Export function have been made to accommodate certain
unexpected conditions. The option to run NOSTOP without viewing
any of the NOSTOP run directly has also been implemented. Use of
the new Import function requires a new PreRelease version of
NOSTOP in order to function properly (contact Strong Concepts for
availability).
>WARRANTS and TURNS Minor Import Display Fix.
A display problem in the CSV Numetrics import dialog has been
fixed so that it is clear that the default movement is 0 and must
be entered with a value between 1 and 12.
Build 10 - 31DEC03
>All Programs Use Microsoft Installer (MSI) Ver 2.
The Microsoft Installer (MSI) Version 2 is now used by all TEAPAC programs for the installation process, including the installation of the complete package from a single file.
>WARRANTS and TURNS Updated for 2003 MUTCD and a Few Fixes.
WARRANTS and TURNS have been updated to include the 2003 MUTCD methodology as the default method, and a few fixes have been made to the 2000 MUTCD warrant analysis based on recent FHWA rulings. Also, support for importing Numetrics automatic counter data files has been added.
>PRESYNCHRO Supports Ver 6 of SYNCHRO/SIMTRAFFIC, Plus a Few Fixes.
PRESYNCHRO has been modified so it supports Version 6 of Synchro and SimTraffic directly. Export has also been fixed for input timings given in seconds/second and for 1-way linnks leaving the network (SimTraffic only). A few new features have been added for TEAPAC Interface Ver 5.12.
>PRETRANSYT Updated to Accommodate Error in TRANSYT Documentation.
PRETRANSYT has been modified so that offset-only optimizations are performed correctly, in contrast to the method described in the TRANSYT documentation. A few new features have been added for TEAPAC Interface Ver 5.12.
>PRETSPPD Fixes Seconds/second Export.
Export has been fixed for input timings given in seconds/second and a few new features have been added for TEAPAC Interface Ver 5.12.
>PREPASSR Fixes Import of PASSER Results.
PREPASSR has been adjusted so that when optimized timings from PASSER are imported (in seconds), they will be treated properly if the original input timings were given in seconds/second. A few new features have also been added for TEAPAC Interface Ver 5.12.
>SIGNAL2000 and PRENETSIM Minor Updates.
A few new features have been added for TEAPAC Interface Ver 5.12.
:TEAPAC Ver 5.11 02FEB03
Build 54 - 05JUN03
>SIGNAL2000 Lost Time Adjustment.
Lost times in SIGNAL2000 are now re-calculated before each capacity analysis which is performed as part of a DESIGN N analysis.
>PRESYNCHRO Debug Trace Statements Removed.
Unnecessary debug trace statements in PRESYNCHRO were inadvertantly left in Build 52 and have been removed.
Build 52 - 04JUN03
>Updated PRESYNCHRO for Expanded and Improved Import and Export Functions.
Many enhancements and adjustments have been made to the new PRESYNCHRO program to improve the quality of both the Import and Export functions from and to SYNCHRO/SIMTRAFFIC.
>SIGNAL2000 and All TEAPAC Preprocessors Use New Logic for Converting Timings.
A new ccordination between YELLOWTIMES ByMovement and REQCLEARANCES improves the way signal timings are converted between the ByPhase and ByMovement styles of input and display.
>PREPASSR Export to PASSER II-02 Handles Data Files in Folders with Spaces Better.
A change in PREPASSR allows data files to be sent to PASSER II-02 by the EXPORT AUTO function when these data files reside in folders which have spaces in their path names.
>All TEAPAC Preprocessors Ignore Dummy Nodes When Producing TIMINGS Report.
Each of the TEAPAC preprocessors PRETRANSYT, PREPASSR, PRENETSIM, PRETSPPD and PRESYNCHRO now ignore dummy nodes (as well as unsignalized intersections) when producing the TIMINGS report.
Build 50 - 08MAY03
>New TEAPAC Programs Added to Support TS/PP-Draft and Synchro/SimTraffic.
Two new TEAPAC programs have been added to the TEAPAC system - PRETSPPD and PRESYNCHRO. These programs interface all other TEAPAC programs to the TS/PP-Draft and Synchro/SimTraffic programs. Buttons for each of these TEAPAC and third-party programs have been added to the WinTEAPAC Menu System.
>New Seamless Integration Among TEAPAC Programs.
PREPASSR, PRETRANSYT and PRENETSIM have been modified to provide the seamless integration introduced in SIGNAL2000 Ver 2. This feature allows these programs to quickly transfer control and data between themselves, the new PRETSPPD and PRESYNCHRO programs, and SIGNAL2000 with a single LinkTo menu click. Other changes were made for compatibility with SIGNAL2000 Ver 2 including the option to enter and/or view signal timings in a NEMA-style, ring-based format.
>Enhanced Third-Party software Support.
PREPASSR has been upgraded for direct support of the new PASSER II-02 program. PRETRANSYT has been upgraded for direct support of the latest TRANSYT-7F Release 9.7. PRENETSIM has been upgraded for direct support of new features offered by TSIS/CORSIM Version 5.1.
>Minor Update to SIGNAL2000 for Consistency with Changes Above.
SIGNAL2000 has been updated to incorporate the TEAPAC Interface Ver 5.11 which appears in all the new programs and upgrades described above. These include adding the new programs to its LinkTo menu, improved ability to read old-style formatted data files from PREPASSR, PRETRANSYT and PRENETSIM, the display of 'PedPhase' in phasing diagrams which include exclusive pedestrian phases, and the ability to automatically skip dummy nodes imported from a Synchro data file via PRESYNCHRO.
:TEAPAC Ver 5.10 30NOV02
Build 12 - 06DEC02
>Minor Changes to Finetune the Initial Release of SIGNAL2000 Ver 2 and WinTEAPAC Ver 5.10.
Minor changes to the initial release of SIGNAL2000 Version 2 to improve View-Network on low resolution screens and negative overlap optimization. Change to default installation folder for locating next release of VISSIM (3.70) in WinTEAPAC menu.
Build 10 - 03DEC02
>SIGNAL2000 Version 2.
This release of the TEAPAC Suite includes the first release of SIGNAL2000 Version 2. Version 2 contains major upgrades, including:
-- the ability to handle up to 500
intersections in a single file,
-- seamless integration with PRENETSIM, PRETRANSYT and PREPASSR,
-- accurate treatment of NEMA-style, dual-ring controllers,
-- major enhancement to the optimization method for signal timing
and phasing, and
-- graphical view of network with optional bitmap aerial or map
background
See the RecentChanges Update Messages of SIGNAL2000 for more specifics about these and other changes implemented.
:TEAPAC Ver 5.02 25APR02
Build 16 - 14JUL02
>New Version of SIGNAL2000 and SITE.
This release of the TEAPAC Suite includes new versions of SIGNAL2000 and SITE. Primarily, these programs incorporate a new options for compatibility with the same options added to PREPASSR, PRETRANSYT and PRENETSIM earlier this year. See the RecentChanges Update Messages of each of these programs for more specifics about these and other changes implemented.
>New Builds of All TEAPAC Programs Released Using Ver 5.02 Interface Updates.
All TEAPAC programs have been released as Build 16, incorporating the latest TEAPAC2000 Interface Ver 5.02 Build 16. Some of these programs have other minor changes implemented concurrently, others have no change except the build number. See the RecentChanges Update Messages of each of these programs for more specifics about these and other changes implemented.
Build 02 - 25MAY02
>New Version of WARRANTS and TURNS.
This release of the TEAPAC Suite includes new versions of WARRANTS and TURNS. Primarily, these programs incorporate a new warrant analysis for multi-way stops following the methods of the 2000 MUTCD. See the RecentChanges Update Messages of each of these programs for more specifics about these and other changes implemented.
Build 00 - 25APR02
>New Versions of PREPASSR, PRETRANSYT and PRENETSIM.
This release of the TEAPAC Suite includes new versions of PREPASSR, PRETRANSYT and PRENETSIM. Primarily, these programs implement a large number of enhanced modeling capabilities such as sign control, right-turn-on-red, free-flow lanes, etc. to take advantage of these same capabilities in TRANSYT and CORSIM. See the RecentChanges Update Messages of each of these programs for more specifics about these and other changes implemented.
>TRANSYT Button Runs T7F9.exe.
The TRANSYT button in the TEAPAC menu now runs the T7F9.exe program as the default TRANSYT program (instead of the McT7F.exe program).
>New Features for Host Definition and Launching.
The WTEAPAC.CFG file now allows the name of the Host executable file to be added at the end of the Host path, in the event that this executable name is different than that used by default. This is most likely when using an older version of a host program (such as TRANSYT or CORSIM). The .CFG file can be changed with any t4ext editor such as NotePad.
>TEAPAC2000 Version 5.02
Generic Interface Fine-Tuning.
In the first release of the TEAPAC2000 Ver 5 Interface, users may
have experienced difficulty using the Advanced Datafiles LOAD and
SAVE functions from the Tabular View. These functions have been
updated to work properly from the Tabular View.
Error messages generated from the Manual Mode, data files or
control files will list the specific line of input which
generated the error, with the offending item highlighted in red.
If the information came from a file, the file number and line
number of the error is also listed.
Shortcut keys have been added to the File-RecentFiles and
File-Save dialogs for more expediant keyboard manipulation.
Certain warning and error messages shouldn't be closed
automatically by the new AutoClose option if these messages
expect or require user response. The AutoClose option is now
ignored for these cases.
The Help-Messages menu item has been changed to
Help-RecentChanges to better reflect its purpose.
The Help-About menu item now shows the specific program name.
The default size of the Help window has been increased in size
vertically to better display the contents of the complete,
on-screen manual and context-sensitive help topics.
:TEAPAC Ver 5.01 02FEB02 Build 00
>New Version of SIGNAL2000 and NOSTOP.
This release of the TEAPAC Suite includes new versions of SIGNAL2000 and NOSTOP. Primarily, SIGNAL2000 included changes to the HCM queue model approved by the HCM Capacity Committee in January, 2002; and NOSTOP included minor adjustments to improve the use of the new Tabular View. See the RecentChanges Update Messages of each of these programs for more specifics about these and other changes implemented.
:TEAPAC Ver 5.00 25SEP01 Build 10
>TEAPAC2000 User Interface Version 5 Implemented.
The new WinTEAPAC2000 Version 5 User Interface has been implemented in all TEAPAC programs, including the advanced TEAPAC tutorial program, TUTOR. The following lists the many changes which this new interface provides:
>New Tabular View Option Provides Dense Data Entry Displays.
Two views for Visual Mode, normal
and tabular.
More data inputs per dialog, less helps and cues.
Toggle view between Normal and Tabular with View menu or F3 key.
Tooltip help and status line help for each entry field.
Context-sensitive help button for access to complete help in
.HLP.
Execute button for action functions.
Next & Prev buttons if input list takes more than one dialog
(PgUp & PgDn).
Alt-X accel to move through input keywords (commands) with
keyboard.
Create custom Tabular View input dialog with ASK command from
Manual Mode.
IODEV param #1 changed to toggle View.
Options-Setup allows option to startup program in Tabular View.
>New Recent File Dialog in File Menu.
Review list of last nine files and
paths used.
Can select/edit file names and re-open selected files.
Option to include list of recent files and paths in File menu.
List of recent files can be cleared from the dialog.
>New Features for Saving Files.
Files now contain name &
version of program which wrote the file.
-- also include the date & time of the Save
-- easily viewable information at the beginning of the file
Message advising of successful save remains visible until closed
by user.
-- option to close the message automatically for subsequent Saves
Warning if Save is attempted into a file that may over-write
other info.
-- warning condition is if file was written by another program or
unknown
-- certain earlier versions of the same prog may provide warning
if relevant
-- option to cancel save or to permit save anyway
>New Feature for Opening Files.
If data from another prog or
earlier ver of same program read from a file,
-- that file is protected from Saves that may over-write other
information
In particular, for file from another program, Share is automatic.
-- makes File-Open same as File-OpenShared & LOAD * * * same
as LOAD * * Share
-- eliminates the need to use the OpenShared or LOAD * * Share
explicitly
>New Results Log Option.
Ability to create text file with
results of primary functions of program.
Log Results item in Options menu.
Log On/Off toggles whether computed results are currently being
logged.
Start New Log clears all prior logged results and toggles Log On.
Log file is always the program name with .log extension.
-- located in folder where program was installed
>Improvements Regarding Output Titling Information.
Any time a title line is read from
a file, displayed in the title bar.
-- provides feedback when loading multiple stacked files or
control file
Blank title entries are saved in such a way that they will be
restored.
-- previously, blank entries were ignored, leaving the prior
entry
The option to use %F in a title line entry is noted in the input
dialog.
>TED Edit Window Available in Advanced Edit option of File menu.
Option to edit current open file
(#1) contents directly.
-- particularly for control files
-- also option to open a different file into the editor
-- -- converts to TEAPAC format when Saved
-- -- CONVERT.exe no longer needed for small files
-- available only when licensed copy of TED is installed
Upon saving the edits, option to open the edited file into the
program.
-- e.g., to Launch an edited control file
>Printer Setup Supported Directly in File Menu.
Option to Setup printer only, or
Setup and Print.
-- ability to select printer and printer options while in the
program
-- prior method only allowed printing to current selected printer
and option
Toolbar button and Ctrl-P accelerator print immediately with
current setup.
Same print options are provided in the File menu of the Output
window.
>Improved Context-Sensitive Help Features.
Tooltip popup help has been added
for any dialog box input field or button.
-- display after delay when mouse cursor hovers over input field
or button
Status line help also appears for the input field with the input
cursor.
HELP in manual mode for a single command displays the relevant
part of .HLP.
As before, Help button or F1 key to display the relevant part of
.HLP.
>New Save and Linkage Features Provided When Exiting the Program.
Warning message for unsaved data
has been reversed with option to Save.
-- message now consistent with most other Windows programs
-- -- (in the way the question is asked)
-- option to Save or not save, or to Cancel the exit
New ability to link to another program using the
File-Control-Stop dialog.
-- name the next program to run, as well as file to use, if
desired
-- can be used from a control file to link programs or control
files
-- also link from Manual Mode
The Quit menu which duplicated the File-Exit menu has been
removed.
>Command History in Manual Mode.
Remembers last 10 manual mode
commands used.
Use up- and down-arrows to see history of commands.
Re-use previous command or adjust to create new command.
>WinTEAPAC2000 Ver 5 Menu Program Enhanced.
A data file can be named in the
display for the next selected program.
A Browse button has been added to assist in naming the data file
to be used.
-- provides standard extensions for typical files of supported
programs
A data file from a TEAPAC2000 Version 5 program can be dragged to
WinTEAPAC.
-- will launch the program that created the file and use the
dragged file
-- can drag the file to the WinTEAPAC window or desktop icon
The .FOR extension used by TEAPAC is registered when WinTEAPAC
runs.
-- allows double-clicking .FOR files in Explorer and START
command in .BAT
>Other Changes:
A 'Getting Started' help button is
now available in the main window.
The option to Save output to a text file now allows the user to
name a file.
A more informative message is issued if a file to open is already
in use.
Better message if attempt to Open a non-TEAPAC file.
TEAPAC programs can now be installed in a folder with spaces in
path name.
A new option exists to automatically close subsequent warnings
and errors.
-- stays in effect until control returned to user
-- for stacked files and control files
Files can now be dragged to a desktop icon to launch the program.
-- uses the dragged file
All keywords now display using title-case instead of all-caps.
All dialog boxes have been enhanced with a more modern look.
-- using depressed input fields
Protect the Options-Setup fields which should not be changed.
-- except by re-installing
Browse buttons have been added for the data and host path
entries.
-- to simplify changes
The current data file path from Options-Setup is shown in the
FILES dialog.
Reading data from a file during control file execution doesn't
set flag.
-- so won't get prompted with message to save data from a control
file
Better closure of main window if control file halts program.
-- same function improved if control file dragged to main window
halts prog
Hourglass mouse cursor displays while printing.
WARRANTS Ver 2.00 25SEP01 Build 10
>2000 MUTCD Warrant Analysis Implemented.
The 2000 MUTCD method for performing a Traffic Signal Warrant Analysis has been implemented in the WARRANTS program. The inputs required for the analysis are the same as the previous 1988 method. Note that the 2000 method now requires that the un-disrupted progression condition be met for any of the warrants to be satisfied. With this in mind, the sample problem data in the WARRANTS.FOR sample data file has been modified to include this condition, as well as measured stop sign delay and accident history, as a more realistic example.
A new parameter has been added to the WARRANTS command which describes which version of the warrant analysis is desired. Selecting 2000 (the default) produces a 2000 MUTCD signal warrant analysis, while selecting 1988 produces a signal warrant analysis using the 1988 method as produced by earlier versions of WARRANTS.
>Machine Counts Using TAS File Format Can Be Imported.
WARRANTS is now able to import electronic machine (tube) count files which use the TAS file format. This includes Jamar and TimeMark electronic traffic counters. This new feature allows machine counts to be easily input into WARRANTS for the purposes of a traffic signal warrant analysis. Multiple machine counts can be combined to include the counts for all approaches of the intersection, and multi-channel (multi-tube) counts can be processed by selecting which channel to use, or the sum of the channels, or the difference of the channels. A specific day of a multi-day count can also be selected, and the count can be directed to any of the twelve movements in the program.
TURNS Ver 3.50 25SEP01 Build 10
>2000 MUTCD Warrant Analysis Implemented.
The 2000 MUTCD method for performing a Traffic Signal Warrant Analysis has been implemented in the Usage Level 2 option of the TURNS program. The inputs required for the analysis are the same as the previous 1988 method. Note that the 2000 method now requires that the un-disrupted progression condition be met for any of the warrants to be satisfied. With this in mind, the sample problem data in the TURNS.FOR sample data file has been modified to include this condition, as well as measured stop sign delay and accident history, as a more realistic example.
A new parameter has been added to the WARRANTS command which describes which version of the warrant analysis is desired. Selecting 2000 (the default) produces a 2000 MUTCD signal warrant analysis, while selecting 1988 produces a signal warrant analysis using the 1988 method as produced by earlier versions of TURNS.
>Machine Counts Using TAS File Format Can Be Imported.
TURNS is now able to import electronic machine (tube) count files which use the TAS file format. This includes Jamar and TimeMark electronic traffic counters. This new feature allows machine counts to be easily input into TURNS for the purposes of a traffic signal warrant analysis. Multiple machine counts can be combined to include the counts for all approaches of the intersection, and multi-channel (multi-tube) counts can be processed by selecting which channel to use, or the sum of the channels, or the difference of the channels. A specific day of a multi-day count can also be selected, and the count can be directed to any of the twelve movements in the program.
PRETRANSYT Ver 2.70 25SEP01 Build 10
>Direct Support for TRANSYT-7F Release 9.
PRETRANSYT has been updated so that it directly supports the new Release 9 of TRANSYT-7F. This includes the new IMPORT format which is now recognized by PRETRANSYT, as well as the new default installation folder used by Release 9.
The default OUTPUT format for EXPORT from PRETRANSYT is now 7F9. Note that if data files saved with earlier versions of PRETRANSYT are being used with Release 9, the OUTPUT value in the file will over-ride the 7F9 default and needs to be changed to 7F9 prior to using EXPORT.
>Enhanced Dialog Buttons to Navigate Through Intersection Data.
New buttons have been added to each dialog which contains intersection data which makes it easy to move through the NODELIST of intersections when viewing that dialog's data. Pressing the '+' button in the dialog will change the intersection being viewed to the next one in the NODELIST, while pressing the '-' button will change to the previous intersection in the NODELIST.
PRENETSIM Ver 1.30 25SEP01 Build 10
>Direct Support for TSIS 5.
PRENETSIM has been updated so that it directly supports the newest version of CORSIM, TSIS 5. This includes the new executable name used by TSIS 5, as well as the new default installation folder used by TSIS 5.
>Enhanced Dialog Buttons to Navigate Through Intersection Data.
New buttons have been added to each dialog which contains intersection data which makes it easy to move through the NODELIST of intersections when viewing that dialog's data. Pressing the '+' button in the dialog will change the intersection being viewed to the next one in the NODELIST, while pressing the '-' button will change to the previous intersection in the NODELIST.
PREPASSR Ver 1.60 25SEP01 Build 10
>Enhanced Dialog Buttons to Navigate Through Intersection Data.
New buttons have been added to each dialog which contains intersection data which makes it easy to move through the NODELIST of intersections when viewing that dialog's data. Pressing the '+' button in the dialog will change the intersection being viewed to the next one in the NODELIST, while pressing the '-' button will change to the previous intersection in the NODELIST.
>IMPORT Enhanced.
IMPORT has been enhanced so that only a single set of PASSER data is imported, rather than the two sets which have been imported in the past. The two sets resulted from the way that the results file from PASSER is structured. IMPORT now recognizes this format and halts the import when a single complete set of import data has been imported. No change in the imported data results from this change, merely a less confusing and less redundant IMPORT report.
SITE Ver 4.10 25SEP01 Build 10
>Enhanced Dialog Buttons to Navigate Through Intersection and Type Data.
New buttons have been added to each dialog which contains either intersection data or distribution type data. These buttons make it easy to move through the intersections and types when viewing that dialog's data. Pressing the '+' button in the dialog will increase the intersection or type number being viewed by one, while pressing the '-' button will decrease to the previous intersection or type.
NOSTOP Ver 4.40 25SEP01 Build 10
No other changes have been made to NOSTOP other than implementing the new WinTEAPAC2000 Ver 5 Interface.
SIGNAL2000 Ver 1.10 25SEP01 Build 10
No other changes have been made to SIGNAL2000 other than implementing the new WinTEAPAC2000 Ver 5 Interface.
TED Ver 3.70 25SEP01 Build 10
No other changes have been made to TED other than implementing the new WinTEAPAC2000 Ver 5 Interface.
TUTOR Ver 5.00 25SEP01 Build 10
No other changes have been made to TUTOR other than implementing the new WinTEAPAC2000 Ver 5 Interface.
:TEAPAC Ver 4.01 15JAN00
>Changes to Standard TEAPAC2000 Interface, Ver 4.01.
All TEAPAC programs which have Windows versions use the new TEAPAC2000 Interface which was introduced in November, 1999. The following changes have been made to this interface to further enhance its effectiveness:
>Spaces Allowed in Folder Names for Data Files.
Folders which contain data files may now contain spaces in the folder name. Data files themselves are still limited to 11 characters including the extension and may not have embedded spaces (for continued compatibility with supported DOS products), but the restriction on path names (folders) has been removed.
>File Name Can Be Inserted in Title Lines.
The name of the current open file can be inserted anywhere in a title line (PROJECT, DESCRIPTION or NOTE entry) by placing %F at the desired location of the title line. The file name can be placed at a specific column location in a title line by using the +XX form of a title entry (see Help for any of the title commands).
>Bigger Output Window for Higher Resolution Displays.
Output windows containing program results which are displayed at resolutions of 1024x768 or higher now use a larger window so that more results can be displayed and less scrolling is required to observe all of the results.
>Additional Help and Shortcut Features Added.
Several new help features have been added. One of these is a new Help button on the toolbar for direct access to the on-line manual. Help notes in the status line at the bottom of the window for each of the menu items in the File menu have also been added. The File-Close menu item in the main window now uses a shortcut of 'C' instead of 'L' for consistency with other programs, and the File-Exit menu item in the Results window has been changed to File-CloseResults to avoid confusion with the File-Exit menu item of the main window. Lastly, the last used file name is retained in the File-Open and File-SaveAs dialogs, even when a previous dialog was cancelled.
>New Warning Messages.
A new warning message has been generated to warn users if unsaved data values are about to be reset to default values by the File-New menu item. A new message also warns if the installed folder has spaces in its name, which will cause problems in certain operations like printing.
>Potential Problem Running Under Windows NT Eliminated.
In the initial release of the TEAPAC 2000 interface (07NOV99), a technique for dynamic menu building was used which had a conflict with certain service packs and memory configurations of Windows NT. To avoid this potential problem on any given machine, the dynamic menu building has been removed and replaced with a method that will work on all configurations of Windows NT.
HCS2HCS
>Problem Converting Non-zero Grades Solved.
A problem converting approach grade entries has been discovered and resolved in this version of HCS2HCS. The problem only manifested itself when grade values other than zero were encountered in the HCS-2 data file. These non-zero grades would be converted improperly and wrong grade values may have been placed in the HCS-3 file. In some cases, data files with grade values of zero could have caused the Win32 versions of HCS2HCS to produce an HCS-3 data file which prevented final delay and level of service calculations to be produced, but in no case would wrong answers be produced when grade values of zero were the only values being converted.
NOSTOP
>Minor Adjustments for Added Clarity.
The allowed input range for the ADJUST command has been changed from 0.000..9.999 to 0.01..9.99. This avoids the possibility of entering a 0.00 value which causes a crash, as well as a slightly misleading upper range display value of 10.00 in the corresponding error-check message. The wording of the DISTANCES dialog has been modified slightly to remove the word 'average' which may confuse the intended input value.
PRENETSIM
>New CORSIM Ver 4.32 Unpublished Rules for Channelizations.
CORSIM Ver 4.32 processes lane channelizations differently than earlier versions of NETSIM and CORSIM, leading to erroneous lane usage by CORSIM 4.32 if the unrestricted channelization code is used. This is an unpublished change in the processing rules of CORSIM. This means that CORSIM data files which ran fine under previous versions of CORSIM will no longer produce valid results under 4.32, and there will be no message or warning to this effect. The only place it can be observed is in the animation where users will see vehicles turning from incorrect lanes.
Ver 1.24 of PRENETSIM follows the new rules of CORSIM 4.32, and the method implemented will work for older versions of CORSIM as well. Since up until now PRENETSIM has used the unrestricted channelization code, this means files exported from prior versions of PRENETSIM will not create valid CORSIM files for Ver 4.32.
Another unpublished change in CORSIM Ver 4.32 is the need for the project file to have a lower case .tcf extension. This was not required previously and prior versions of PRENETSIM used uppercase .TCF. As a result, prior versions of PRENETSIM will not launch these project file correctly (the TSIS screen will display briefly, then control will return to PRENETSIM with no further action by CORSIM). Ver 1.24 of PRENETSIM addresses this problem.
>Other Minor Changes to Improve Performance.
It has been found that TRAFVU objects to certain information found beyond card column 72 in Record Type 1, even when this information is processed without error by CORSIM. This error could occur when Exporting data from PRENETSIM which includes a long NOTE entry. In order to avoid this problem, the generation of the Record Type 1 has been modified to make sure this area of the record remains empty by shortening the amount of title information from PROJECT, DESCRIPTION and NOTE which is used to create Record Type 1. This is accomplished by using only the first 22 characters of each of these entries to create Record Type 1.
>Minor Change in NETSIM Export Choices.
Prior versions of PRENETSIM allowed exporting to different versions of CORSIM's predecessor (NETSIM) using the keyword entries of 4.2 and 5.0 on the OUTPUT command. These have been changed to 4.2_NETSIM & 5.0_NETSIM to prevent any confusion with an earlier version of CORSIM also called 4.2, as well as a pending version of CORSIM which will be called 5.0. No change in the Export process occured with this keyword change.
>Intersection Descriptions Displayed in TIMINGS Output.
Signal timing outputs produced by the TIMINGS command now display the intersection description in addition to the intersection number, if such a description has been provided.
PREPASSR
>Intersection Descriptions Displayed in TIMINGS Output.
Signal timing outputs produced by the TIMINGS command now display the intersection description in addition to the intersection number, if such a description has been provided.
PRETRANSYT
>New Support for Windows Version of TRANSYT-7F (Release 8.2).
PRETRANSYT now supports the Export function for all of the new calling sequences, program names and installation changes for the new Windows version of TRANSYT-7F (Release 8.2). PRETRANSYT maintains continued support for the DOS version of Release 8 (Release 8.1), as well as previous versions of TRANSYT-7F.
>Intersection Descriptions Displayed in TIMINGS Output.
Signal timing outputs produced by the TIMINGS command now display the intersection description in addition to the intersection number, if such a description has been provided.
SIGNAL97
>Export to HCS-3 (Signals) Fully Supported.
SIGNAL97 now supports the Export function for all of the new data file formats, calling sequences, program names and installation changes for the new Windows version of HCS-3 (Signals Patch b and beyond). SIGNAL97 maintains continued support for the previous DOS version of HCS Signals (Ver 1 and 2) through use of the data file extensions for those versions, if needed. In the Export to HCS-2, the lane utilizations export has been corrected to use the inverted value from those input into SIGNAL97.
>New Input Values Displayed in Data Summary and Results.
Input values which are new for the 1997 HCM methodology in comparison to the SIGNAL94 inputs are now listed in the data summary produced by the View-Summary menu item or the SUMMARISE command. These include the inputs for STARTUPLOST, ENDGAIN and UPSTREAMVC. If unit extensions are input for ACTUATIONS entries, these values are now displayed properly. Also, the duration of the analysis period used in the analysis is displayed in the Level of Service Worksheet, and a few additional values for the protected-permitted left turn adjustment factor worksheet are zeroed out for Case 6 analyses so they all display as zero.
>Zero Overlap Time Allowed for Sequence 8 Analyses.
A sequence code 8 phasing (Lead-Lag) should permit zero time being allocated to the overlap phase as long as the other phases have non-zero time, since no vehicle sees this phase by itself. However, the initial release if SIGNAL97 objected to such timings unless they came directly from DESIGN via the DESIGN 1 entry. This condition has been fixed so that no objection is made to zero overlap time by the ANALYZE function, regardless of the source of the timings.
TURNS
>Improved Wording for Progression Condition.
The wording describing the input progression condition used for a warrant analysis has been modified to more closely match that which appears in the MUTCD. Previously, the expressions 'good progression (no/yes)' and 'conducive to progressive traffic flow (no/yes)' were used, but these suggested that a signal must in fact promote progression to be warranted, which is not the intent of the MUTCD. The intent of the MUTCD is that a signal should not be disruptive to an existing progression if such a progression exists. In response to this situation, the phrase 'not disrupt progression (no/yes)' is now used. This fine point is especially important for an isolated signal location or a location where a progression does not exist. Although the double-negative now used in the input phrase is also potentially confusing, it mimics the language used in the MUTCD, and also allows all of the default CONDITION inputs to be 'NO' so that a 'YES' entry always means that a required condition has been met. This change has been made in all locations of the program, including the input dialog and output reports which document that input condition.
WARRANTS
>Improved Wording for Progression Condition.
The wording describing the input progression condition used for a warrant analysis has been modified to more closely match that which appears in the MUTCD. Previously, the expressions 'good progression (no/yes)' and 'conducive to progressive traffic flow (no/yes)' were used, but these suggested that a signal must in fact promote progression to be warranted, which is not the intent of the MUTCD. The intent of the MUTCD is that a signal should not be disruptive to an existing progression if such a progression exists. In response to this situation, the phrase 'not disrupt progression (no/yes)' is now used. This fine point is especially important for an isolated signal location or a location where a progression does not exist. Although the double-negative now used in the input phrase is also potentially confusing, it mimics the language used in the MUTCD, and also allows all of the default CONDITION inputs to be 'NO' so that a 'YES' entry always means that a required condition has been met. This change has been made in all locations of the program, including the input dialog and output reports which document that input condition.
:TEAPAC Ver 4.00 07NOV99
>New TEAPAC2000 Interface Version 4.00.
All TEAPAC programs have been released with the new TEAPAC2000 Interface (Interface Version 4.00) which offers many new features to enhance the computing experience with TEAPAC programs. The following new features are among those provided by the TEAPAC2000 Interface:
-- Context-sensitive link to Help file for
error messages.
-- Context-sensitive link to Help file for program outputs.
-- Modernized dialog box design consistent with Windows 95/98/NT.
-- New radio button and drop-down list input features.
-- Sizable main window for better screen display and integration
with other running programs.
-- New Toolbar buttons for common functions.
-- File name and save status displayed in main window caption.
-- Help strings for menu options.
-- Dynamic title display during batch control file execution.
-- New accelerator keys (shortcuts) for common menu selections.
-- New File-Close menu option.
-- Sizable File-Open dialog.
-- Proportional scroll button for viewing output.
Other useful and unique features carried over from the previous Windows interface for TEAPAC include:
-- Visual Mode of input that shows
graphically what inputs are needed.
-- Optional Manual Mode of input for blazing fast input by power
users.
-- Context-sensitive link to Help file for all Visual Mode
inputs.
-- Complete, fully-indexed manual on-line as Help file.
-- Ability to create and run batch/script/macro-type control
files.
-- Ability to drag a data or control file from Explorer to the
running TEAPAC program.
-- Free program updates via Internet downloads.
-- Complete data file compatibility between old, new, DOS and
Windows versions.
-- Complete Y2K compliance.
Updates for the new TEAPAC2000 Interface can be downloaded from the www.StrongConcepts.com internet web page at no charge for users who hold an up-to-date Windows license for TEAPAC programs. These downloads are available to the general public, but will be rendered as demos for those who do not qualify for the free update.
this page last updated September 07, 2008