An extended car-following model integrating average speed and electronic throttle dynamics of multiple preceding vehicles

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore the influence of the electronic throttle (ET) dynamics and the average speed of multiple preceding vehicles on the stability of traffic flow. Design/methodology/approach An extended car-following model integrating the ET dynamics and the average speed of multiple preceding vehicles is presented in this paper. The novel model’s stability conditions are obtained by using the thought of control theory, and the modified Korteweg–de Vries equation is inferred in terms of the nonlinear analysis method. In addition, some simulation experiments are implemented to explore the properties of traffic flow, and the results of these experiments confirm the correctness of theoretical analysis. Findings In view of the results of theoretical analysis and numerical simulation, traffic flow will become more stable when the average speed and ET dynamics of multiple preceding vehicles are considered, and the stability of traffic flow will also be enhanced by increasing the number of preceding vehicles considered. Research limitations/implications This study leaves the factors such as the mixed traffic flow, the multilane and so on out of account in real road environment, which more or less influences the traffic flow’s stability, so the real traffic environment is not fully reflected. Originality/value There is little research integrating ET dynamics and the average velocity of multiple preceding vehicles to study the properties of traffic flow. The enhanced model constructed in this study can better reflect the real traffic, which can also give some theoretical reference for the development of connected and autonomous vehicles.