Implementation and Evaluation of a Cooperative Vehicle-to-Pedestrian Safety Application

While the development of Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) safety applications based on Dedicated Short-Range Communications (DSRC) has been extensively undergoing standardization for more than a decade, such applications are extremely missing for Vulnerable Road Users (VRUs). Nonexistence of collaborative systems between VRUs and vehicles was the main reason for this lack of attention. Recent developments in Wi-Fi Direct and DSRC-enabled smartphones are changing this perspective. Leveraging the existing V2V platforms, we propose a new framework using a DSRC-enabled smartphone to extend safety benefits to VRUs. The interoperability of applications between vehicles and portable DSRC enabled devices is achieved through the SAE J2735 Personal Safety Message (PSM). However, considering the fact that VRU movement dynamics, response times, and crash scenarios are fundamentally different from vehicles, a specific framework should be designed for VRU safety applications to study their performance. In this article, we first propose an end-to-end Vehicle-to-Pedestrian (V2P) framework to provide situational awareness and hazard detection based on the most common and injury-prone crash scenarios. The details of our VRU safety module, including target classification and collision detection algorithms, are explained next. Furthermore, we propose and evaluate a mitigating solution for congestion and power consumption issues in such systems. Finally, the whole system is implemented and analyzed for realistic crash scenarios

Automotive Collision Warning System Retrofit

In the early 2000s, few automakers began implementing forward collision warning systems in their cars. As technology advanced this system became available on more and more luxury cars. In recent years, this technology has spread to more affordable vehicles driven every day. However, as this technology has only recently advanced to less expensive, more economical cars, older vehicles of the same model may not have this advanced and important safety feature. This project investigates and creates a preliminary design for an affordable, easy-to-install, forward collision warning system that can be retrofitted to vehicles without the system currently installed. Using a density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise (DBSCAN) clustering algorithm, an extended Kalman filter, and a time-to-collision algorithm, a forward collision warning system was developed and simulated using the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS) test scenarios. Software testing and implementation was done in MATLAB and has provided a foundation for future hardware implementation using Texas Instruments mmWave automotive radar (AWR1843BOOST)

Making Transport Safer: V2V-Based Automated Emergency Braking System

An important goal in the field of intelligent transportation systems (ITS) is to provide driving aids aimed at preventing accidents and reducing the number of traffic victims. The commonest traffic accidents in urban areas are due to sudden braking that demands a very fast response on the part of drivers. Attempts to solve this problem have motivated many ITS advances including the detection of the intention of surrounding cars using lasers, radars or cameras. However, this might not be enough to increase safety when there is a danger of collision. Vehicle to vehicle communications are needed to ensure that the other intentions of cars are also available. The article describes the development of a controller to perform an emergency stop via an electro-hydraulic braking system employed on dry asphalt. An original V2V communication scheme based on WiFi cards has been used for broadcasting positioning information to other vehicles. The reliability of the scheme has been theoretically analyzed to estimate its performance when the number of vehicles involved is much higher. This controller has been incorporated into the AUTOPIA program control for automatic cars. The system has been implemented in Citroën C3 Pluriel, and various tests were performed to evaluate its operation

Reducing Work Zone Crashes By Using Vehicle's Warning Flashes As a Warning Sign

Rural two-lane highways constitute a large percentage of the highway system in Kansas. Preserving, expending, and enhancing these highways require the set-up of a large number of one-lane, two-way work zones where traffic safety has been a severe concern. Aimed at reducing the work zone crashes attributable to inattentive driving, the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) initiated a research project to evaluate the effectiveness of a traffic warning sign that is assembled by using the emergency warning flashers of the vehicles in one-lane, two-way work zones. This warning sign was named as the Emergency Flasher Traffic Control Device (EFTCD). It works in the following fashion. When a vehicle entering a one-lane, two-way work zone where stopping is required for waiting to pass the work zone, the driver is required to turn on its emergency warning flashers to warn the following vehicles of the work zone stopping condition. The EFTCD is flexible and cost-effective and may particularly benefit those work zones that are frequently moved due to the construction progress. To accurately evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed EFTCD, researchers conducted experiments in three one-lane, two-way work zones in Kansas including two with a 55-mph speed limit and one with a 65-mph speed limit. During experimental period, researchers collected vehicle speed data with and without the EFTCD and surveyed drivers for their interpretation of this warning sign and recommendation on its potential implementation. Analyses results showed that the EFTCD effectively reduced the mean speeds in work zones as well as the proportions of notably high speeds. In addition, survey results indicated that the EFTCD successfully captured the attention of most drivers when they approached the work zones. A majority of drivers recommended the implementation of this warning sign in the work zones. Therefore, researchers concluded that the EFTCD was effective in one-lane, two-way work zones. Recommendations on future research were also presented based on the results of this study. The outcomes of this research project benefit not only Kansas, but also other States where rural two-lane highways constitute a high percentage of their highway systems

A survey of new technology for cockpit application to 1990's transport aircraft simulators

Two problems were investigated: inter-equipment data transfer, both on board the aircraft and between air and ground; and crew equipment communication via the cockpit displays and controls. Inter-equipment data transfer is discussed in terms of data bus and data link requirements. Crew equipment communication is discussed regarding the availability of CRT display systems for use in research simulators to represent flat panel displays of the future, and of software controllable touch panels

An avionics sensitivity study. Volume 1: Operational considerations

Equipment and operational concepts affecting aircraft in the terminal area are reported. Curved approach applications and modified climb and descent procedures for minimum fuel consumption are considered. The curved approach study involves the application of MLS guidance to enable execution of the current visual approach to Washington National Airport under instrument flight conditions. The operational significance and the flight path control requirements involved in the application of curved approach paths to this situation are considered. Alternative flight path control regimes are considered to achieve minimum fuel consumption subject to constraints related to air traffic control requirements, flight crew and passenger reactions, and airframe and powerplant limitations

Evaluating the use of steady burn warning lights on drums for workzone safety

Abstract EVALUATING THE USE OF STEADY BURN WARNING LIGHTS ON DRUMS FOR WORK ZONE SAFETY by PRASAD LAKSHMI VARA NANNAPANENI May 2011 Advisor: Dr. Timothy Gates Major: Civil Engineering Degree: Doctor of Philosophy Roadway maintenance and repair has become increasingly commonplace in the United States over the past several decades as our roadway infrastructure has continued to age and deteriorate. Maintenance and repair work on an existing roadway often presents the challenge of maintaining traffic on the existing roadway while work is being performed, thereby necessitating the use of what is commonly referred to as a roadway work zone . One of the most important components of traffic control in a work zone is delineation of the edge of the traveled way, which assists drivers with tasks such as: lane selection; lateral positioning within a lane; and speed control. Delineation of the edge of the traveled way is commonly provided by a series of portable devices, such as drums, cones, vertical panels, or barricades. The type and duration of the work being performed often requires that these channelizing devices remain in place at all times. Maintaining traffic through nighttime work zones poses increased risks for drivers and roadway workers due to the lack of ambient light. To help overcome nighttime visibility issues, the 2009 Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) requires work zone traffic control devices to be retroreflective or internally illuminated. To help supplement retroreflectivity, Section 6F.81 of the 2009 MUTCD allows for the use of auxiliary steady burn warning lights (SBWL) on work zone channelizing devices. Until recently, plastic drums with steady burn warning lights had been the primary channelizing device utilized in work zones throughout the State of Michigan for several years. However, the use of sheeting materials with improved retroreflectivity, including high intensity and microprismatic (i.e., prismatic) materials, has prompted investigation into the value and effectiveness provided by the steady burn warning lights. Furthermore, although previous research has explored the effectiveness of steady burn warning lights on drums both in Michigan and elsewhere, these efforts included a relatively limited number of work zone sites and/or focused on controlled human factors experiments. As a result, research was undertaken to explore the impacts associated with the use of steady burn warning lights on channelizing drums considering a variety of work zone scenarios utilized in Michigan. The primary goal of this research was to evaluate the safety impacts associated with the use of steady burn warning lights on drums in roadway work zones in Michigan. The following research objectives were addressed in this study: 1. Determine the state-of-the-art of work zone channelization through a comprehensive literature review. 2. Determine the state-of-the-practice regarding the use of steady burn warning lights by roadway agencies throughout the United States. 3. Assess the crash experiences of states with respect to the work zone steady burn warning light policy or practice. 4. Evaluate the impacts that steady burn warning lights on channelizing drums have on work zone crash occurrence in Michigan. 5. Evaluate the driver behavioral impacts associated with the use of steady burn warning lights on channelizing drums in Michigan work zones. 6. Determine the degree by which steady burn warning lights affect the overall brightness of work zone drums in Michigan. 7. Assess the overall impacts of steady burn warning lights on work zone safety. A comprehensive research methodology was developed to address these objectives. The initial tasks involved a comprehensive review of the current state-of-the-art and a state DOT survey related to the use of drums or other channelizing devices in roadway work zones, both with and without the presence of steady burn warning lights. The next tasks involved a comparison of work zone crash trends, both among states with varying policies on the use of steady burn warning lights, as well as a detailed investigation of crash data for work zones within the State of Michigan. To further supplement the crash data, a series of field studies were performed at 36 Michigan work zones to provide a more in-depth evaluation of differences in driver behavior and performance with respect to the use of steady burn warning lights. In addition to these field studies, a series of luminance tests were also conducted to assess the relative brightness levels provided by drums with and without warning lights. The luminance tests were performed both in the field and in a controlled environment to gauge the impacts of steady burn warning lights on drum visibility. Established sampling procedures were utilized to determine the target sample sizes necessary to assess statistical inference on the measures of effectiveness (MOEs). The data were collected for each study component under a variety of representative field conditions, which included different types of roadways, work zone configuration, levels of ambient lighting, roadway geometry, and other factors. Each of the MOEs were analyzed using appropriate statistical techniques to determine the impacts of steady burn warning lights and the impacts of other factors. The results showed that the presence of steady burn warning lights on work zone channelizing drums increased the occurrence of risky driver behavior, as evidenced by a higher proportion of drivers traveling too close to the drums, more frequent steering reversals, and higher vehicular speeds. These findings were further substantiated by the observance of a greater proportion of damaged drums at work zone locations with steady burn warning lights. Steady burn warning lights were not found to provide substantial increases to the luminance of the drums either in the field or in a controlled environment. It was determined that the use of microprismatic sheeting materials provide considerably greater luminance increases for the drums compared to the addition of a steady burn warning light to the drum. The state DOT survey revealed that only approximately one-third of the 42 responding state agencies utilize steady burn warning lights on channelizing devices in work zones and only one-tenth of the responding agencies utilize them on a frequent basis. The majority of agencies that use steady burn warning lights do so on an infrequent basis, typically for specific types of applications, such as at spot hazards, tapers, lane shifts, and crossovers. The investigation of nationwide work zone crash statistics revealed only slight differences between the rates of work zone crashes for the various steady burn warning light usage practices. The states that frequently use lights on drums exhibited a slightly higher aggregate work zone crash rate, while the states that infrequently use lights on drums had the lowest aggregate crash rate. No discernable differences were observed between any of the three groups of states when examining work zone crashes as a proportion of total crashes. A detailed review of Michigan work zone crash statistics revealed that a higher proportion of work zone crashes tended to occur during nighttime conditions at locations with steady burn warning lights compared to locations without steady burn warning lights. Deeper investigation showed that among those crashes occurring in the presence of drums, the proportion of the crashes that may have been affected by the drums was indistinguishable between the two samples. Based on a synthesis of all results, steady burn warning lights demonstrate no substantive value to nighttime brightness, driver behavior, or crash prevention when used on channelizing drums in work zones. Thus, it was concluded that steady burn warning lights demonstrate no additional safety benefit when used on channelizing drums in work zones. Furthermore, steady burn warning lights may actually contribute to a greater crash risk due to the increase in risky driver behavior that was observed when steady burn warning lights were present. Drums with high intensity sheeting that is in good condition will provide adequate nighttime brightness for work zone channelization regardless of whether a steady burn warning light is attached or not. Therefore, it is recommended that the use of steady burn warning lights on work zone drums be discontinued. If additional nighttime brightness of the channelizing devices is desired, the use of microprismatic sheeting on the drums provides far greater increases in brightness than the addition of a steady burn warning light

Probabilistic Lane Association

Lane association is the problem of determining in which lane a vehicle is currently driving, which is of interest for automated driving where the vehicle must understand its surroundings. Limited to highway scenarios, a method combining data from different sensors to extract information about the currently associated lane is presented. The suggested method splits the problem in two main parts, lane change identification and road edge detection. The lane change identification mainly uses information from the camera to model the lateral movement on the road and identifies the lane changes as a relative position on the road. This part is implemented with a particle filter. The road edge detection enters radar detections to an iterated Kalman filter and estimates the distances to the road edges. Finally, a combination of the filter outputs makes it possible to compute an absolute position on the road. Comparing the relative and absolute positioning then leads to the desired lane association estimate. The results produced are reliable and encourages to continue approaching this problem in a similar manner, but the current implementation is computationally heavy

Microwave detection of buried mines using non-contact, synthetic near-field focusing

Existing ground penetrating radars (GPR) are limited in their 3-D resolution. For the detection of buried land-mines, their performance is also seriously restricted by `clutter'. Previous work by the authors has concentrated on removing these limitations by employing multi-static synthetic focusing from a 2-D real aperture. This contribution presents this novel concept, describes the proposed implementation, examines the influence of clutter and of various ground features on the system's performance, and discusses such practicalities as digitisation and time-sharing of a single transmitter and receiver. Experimental results from a variety of scenarios are presented

Adaptive driver modelling in ADAS to improve user acceptance: A study using naturalistic data

Accurate understanding of driver behaviour is crucial for future Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving. For user acceptance it is important that ADAS respect individual driving styles and adapt accordingly. Using data collected during a naturalistic driving study carried out at the University of Southampton, we assess existing models of driver acceleration and speed choice during car following and when cornering. We observe that existing models of driver behaviour that specify a preferred inter-vehicle spacing in car-following situations appear to be too prescriptive, with a wide range of acceptable spacings visible in the naturalistic data. Bounds on lateral acceleration during cornering from the literature are visible in the data, but appear to be influenced by the minimum cornering radii specified in design codes for UK roadway geometry. This analysis of existing driver models is used to suggest a small set of parameters that are sufficient to characterise driver behaviour in car-following and curve driving, which may be estimated in real-time by an ADAS to adapt to changing driver behaviour. Finally, we discuss applications to adaptive ADAS with the objectives of improving road safety and promoting eco-driving, and suggest directions for future researc