A Hybrid Submicroscopic-Microscopic Traffic Flow Simulation Framework

Current lane-based microscopic traffic simulators combine car-following and lane changing logic to describe the (often discrete) lateral vehicle motion on multi-lane road segments. However, the simulated lateral trajectories are physically unplausible and inside-lane behavior such as lane-keeping and curve negotiation cannot be modelled. In this...

Comparative Safety Assessment of Automated Driving Strategies at Highway Merges in Mixed Traffic

We present a simulation-based approach to assess the safety impacts of vehicles equipped with Automated Driving Systems (ADS) in mixed traffic with Human-driven Vehicles (HV). Specifically, we compare two generic longitudinal strategies of ADS to handle a cut-in: Reactive ADS acting only when the cut-in vehicle crosses the target lane boundary,...

An Empirical Analysis to Assess the Operational Design Domain of Lane Keeping System Equipped Vehicles Combining Objective and Subjective Risk Measures

Lower levels of automation are designed to work in specific conditions referred to as the Operational Design Domain (ODD). Beyond these conditions, the human driver is expected to take control. A mismatch between a driver's understanding and expectations of the automated vehicle capabilities and its actual capabilities as prescribed in the...

Probabilistic field approach for motorway driving risk assessment

We present an approach to assess the risk taken by on-road vehicles within the framework of artificial field theory, envisioned for safety analysis and design of driving support/automation applications. Here, any obstacle (neighboring entity on the road) to the subject vehicle is treated as a finite scalar risk field that is formulated in the...

Empirics and models of fragmented lane changes

Existing microscopic traffic models represent the lane-changing maneuver as a continuous and uninterrupted lateral movement of the vehicle from its original to the target lane. We term this representation as Continuous Lane-Changing (CLC). Recent empirical studies find that not all lane-changing maneuvers are continuous; the lane-changer may...

Automated driving reduces perceived workload, but monitoring causes higher cognitive load than manual driving

Driver mental workload is an important factor in the operational safety of automated driving. In this study, workload was evaluated subjectively (NASA R-TLX) and objectively (auditory detection-response task) on Dutch public highways (∼150 km) comparing manual and supervised automated driving in a Tesla Model S with moderators automation...

Submicroscopic framework to model mixed highway traffic

Comparative assessment of safety indicators for vehicle trajectories on the highway

Safety measurement and analysis have been a challenging and well-researched topic in transportation. Conventionally, surrogate safety measures have been used as safety indicators in simulation models for safety assessment, in control formulations for driver assistance systems, and in data analysis of naturalistic driving studies. However,...

Driver behavior and workload in an on-road automated vehicle

Driver mental underload is an important concern in the operational safety of automated driving. In this study, workload was evaluated subjectively (NASA RTLX) and objectively (auditory detection-response task) on Dutch public highways (~150km) in a Tesla Model S comparing manual and supervised automated driving with moderators automation...

Design and analysis of full range adaptive cruise control with integrated collision a voidance strategy

Current Full Range Adaptive Cruise Control (FRACC) systems switch between separate adaptive cruise control and collision avoidance systems. This can lead to jerky responses and discomfort during the transition between the two control modes. We propose a Full Range Adaptive Cruise Control (FRACC) design integrating adaptive cruise control and...