Shared control strategies for automated vehicles

188 p.Los vehículos automatizados (AVs) han surgido como una solución tecnológica para compensar las deficiencias de la conducción manual. Sin embargo, esta tecnología aún no está lo suficientemente madura para reemplazar completamente al conductor, ya que esto plantea problemas técnicos, sociales y legales. Sin embargo, los accidentes siguen ocurriendo y se necesitan nuevas soluciones tecnológicas para mejorar la seguridad vial. En este contexto, el enfoque de control compartido, en el que el conductor permanece en el bucle de control y, junto con la automatización, forma un equipo bien coordinado que colabora continuamente en los niveles táctico y de control de la tarea de conducción, es una solución prometedora para mejorar el rendimiento de la conducción manual aprovechando los últimos avances en tecnología de conducción automatizada. Esta estrategia tiene como objetivo promover el desarrollo de sistemas de asistencia al conductor más avanzados y con mayor grade de cooperatición en comparación con los disponibles en los vehículos comerciales. En este sentido, los vehículos automatizados serán los supervisores que necesitan los conductores, y no al revés. La presente tesis aborda en profundidad el tema del control compartido en vehículos automatizados, tanto desde una perspectiva teórica como práctica. En primer lugar, se proporciona una revisión exhaustiva del estado del arte para brindar una descripción general de los conceptos y aplicaciones en los que los investigadores han estado trabajando durante lasúltimas dos décadas. Luego, se adopta un enfoque práctico mediante el desarrollo de un controlador para ayudar al conductor en el control lateral del vehículo. Este controlador y su sistema de toma de decisiones asociado (Módulo de Arbitraje) se integrarán en el marco general de conducción automatizada y se validarán en una plataforma de simulación con conductores reales. Finalmente, el controlador desarrollado se aplica a dos sistemas. El primero para asistir a un conductor distraído y el otro en la implementación de una función de seguridad para realizar maniobras de adelantamiento en carreteras de doble sentido. Al finalizar, se presentan las conclusiones más relevantes y las perspectivas de investigación futuras para el control compartido en la conducción automatizada

A Review of Shared Control for Automated Vehicles: Theory and Applications

The last decade has shown an increasing interest on advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) based on shared control, where automation is continuously supporting the driver at the control level with an adaptive authority. A first look at the literature offers two main research directions: 1) an ongoing effort to advance the theoretical comprehension of shared control, and 2) a diversity of automotive system applications with an increasing number of works in recent years. Yet, a global synthesis on these efforts is not available. To this end, this article covers the complete field of shared control in automated vehicles with an emphasis on these aspects: 1) concept, 2) categories, 3) algorithms, and 4) status of technology. Articles from the literature are classified in theory- and application-oriented contributions. From these, a clear distinction is found between coupled and uncoupled shared control. Also, model-based and model-free algorithms from these two categories are evaluated separately with a focus on systems using the steering wheel as the control interface. Model-based controllers tested by at least one real driver are tabulated to evaluate the performance of such systems. Results show that the inclusion of a driver model helps to reduce the conflicts at the steering. Also, variables such as driver state, driver effort, and safety indicators have a high impact on the calculation of the authority. Concerning the evaluation, driver-in-the-loop simulators are the most common platforms, with few works performed in real vehicles. Implementation in experimental vehicles is expected in the upcoming years

Lateral Evasive Maneuver with Shared Control Algorithm: A Simulator Study

Shared control algorithms have emerged as a promising approach for enabling real-time driver automated system cooperation in automated vehicles. These algorithms allow human drivers to actively participate in the driving process while receiving continuous assistance from the automated system in specific scenarios. However, despite the theoretical benefits being analyzed in various works, further demonstrations of the effectiveness and user acceptance of these approaches in real-world scenarios are required due to the involvement of the human driver in the control loop. Given this perspective, this paper presents and analyzes the results of a simulator-based study conducted to evaluate a shared control algorithm for a critical lateral maneuver. The maneuver involves the automated system helping to avoid an oncoming motorcycle that enters the vehicle’s lane. The study’s goal is to assess the algorithm’s performance, safety, and user acceptance within this specific scenario. For this purpose, objective measures, such as collision avoidance and lane departure prevention, as well as subjective measures related to the driver’s sense of safety and comfort are studied. In addition, three levels of assistance (gentle, intermediate, and aggressive) are tested in two driver state conditions (focused and distracted). The findings have important implications for the development and execution of shared control algorithms, paving the way for their incorporation into actual vehicles.This research is supported by the EU Commission HADRIAN project. HADRIAN has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 875597. The publication is supported by the EU Commission Aware2All project, under grant agreement No 97878