Cooperative Driving Research Articles

Guest Editorial Introduction to the Special Issue on the 2016 Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge

Cooperative driving is based on wireless communications between vehicles and between vehicles and roadside infrastructure, aiming for increased traffic flow and traffic safety, while decreasing fuel consumption and emissions. To support and accelerate the introduction of cooperative vehicles in everyday traffic, in 2011, nine international teams joined the Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge (GCDC). The challenge was to perform platooning, in which vehicles drive in road trains with short intervehicle distances. The results were reported in a Special Issue of IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems, published in September 2012 [item 1 in the Appendix].

Making Bertha Cooperate–Team AnnieWAY’s Entry to the 2016 Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge

This paper presents the concepts and methods utilized by Team AnnieWAY for the 2016 Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge. The paper introduces the automated vehicle BerthaOne . The vehicle, even though being based on the Bertha platform, distinguishes itself from its siblings by its software modules and algorithms. We, therefore, describe its system architecture and algorithms for perception, cooperation and motion planning. In Particular, we present a motion planner that plans different maneuvers flexibly by augmenting the cost function with situation specific cost terms. We subsequently describe the requirements of the 2016 GCDC and evaluate our performance during the competition.

The Best Rated Human–Machine Interface Design for Autonomous Vehicles in the 2016 Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge

This paper provides an in-depth description of the best rated human-machine interface that was presented during the 2016 Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge. It was demonstrated by the Chalmers Truck Team as the envisioned interface to their open source software framework OpenDLV, which is used to power Chalmers’ fleet of self-driving vehicles. The design originates from the postulate that the vehicle is fully autonomous to handle even complex traffic scenarios. Thus, by including external and internal interfaces, and introducing a show, don’t tell principle, it aims at fulfilling the needs of the vehicle occupants as well as other participants in the traffic environment. The design also attempts to comply with, and slightly extend, the current traffic rules and legislation for the purpose of being realistic for full-scale implementation.

Design and Experimental Validation of a Cooperative Driving Control Architecture for the Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge 2016

In this paper, we present the cooperative driving system developed by the Chalmers car team for the grand cooperative driving challenge 2016. This paper gives an overview of the system architecture and describes in detail the communication, signal processing, and decision-making sub-systems. Experimental results demonstrate the system’s performance and operation according to the rules and requirements of the competition.

A Survey of Cooperative Driving between Auxiliary Autonomous System and Human Driver

The cooperative driving is a main direction of intelligent vehicle development since safety-critical tasks must be executed by human and autonomous system. An intelligent vehicle is equipped with a full range of sensors, which are larger and faster than the perception and computational ability of a human driver, while the latter has a comprehensive ability to adapt to unexpected events. According to their respective advantages, the cooperative driving between human and autonomous system can have new synergies. The emphasis of this paper is to survey the current state of the art of cooperative driving, with a specific focus on decision-making and motion planning levels and correlative algorithms. Such researches enable the autonomous system to compensate the human driver in dangerous or uncomfortable circumstance. This paper provides insights into the scope of decision-making and motion planning for cooperative driving, as well as the shortcomings and tendencies.

Cooperative Driving and Lane Changing Modeling for Connected Vehicles in the Vicinity of Traffic Signals: A Cyber-Physical Perspective

The vicinity of traffic signals is one of the most critical areas in road systems. New information technology paradigms like vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication are applied to improve traffic operations at intersections; for example, a typical cyber-physical system enables efficient traffic state estimation and traffic modeling. A new model of vehicle cooperative driving under a typical scenario vicinity of traffic signals and Vehicle to X environment was proposed in this paper. Based on the intelligent driver model, the model planned trajectories for vehicles in the vicinity of traffic signals in advance to reduce stopping frequency and travel time and improve the throughput of the road according to traffic conditions, such as signal cycle state, the distance to traffic signals, and the situation regarding adjacent vehicles. In accordance with the relationship between the host vehicle and the surrounding vehicles, the model also planed the cooperative lane changing strategy in this scenario to improve safety and comfort in the process of lane changing. A simulation experiment compared the proposed model with the traditional intelligent driver model, and analyzed its performance in different traffic conditions. The feasibility and superiority of the model were confirmed.

Analysis of Cooperative Driving Characteristics of Vehicles by Two Humans

Analysis of Cooperative Driving Characteristics of Vehicles by Two Humans

System Architecture of a Driverless Electric Car in the Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge

This paper presents the complete system architecture of a connected driverless electric car designed to participate in the Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge 2016. One of the main goals of this challenge was to demonstrate the feasibility of multiple autonomous vehicles cooperating via wireless communications on public roads. Several complex cooperative scenarios were considered, including the merging of two lanes and cooperation at an intersection. We describe in some detail an implementation using the open-source PACPUS framework that successfully completed the different tasks in the challenge. Our description covers localization, mapping, perception, control, communication and the human-machine interface. Some experimental results recorded in real-time during the challenge are reported.

Development of Platform-Independent System for Cooperative Automated Driving Evaluated in GCDC 2016

Cooperative automated driving is a promising development in reducing energy consumption and emissions, increasing road safety, and improving traffic flow. The Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge (GCDC) 2016 was an implementation oriented project with the aim to accelerate research and development in the field. This paper describes the development of the two vehicle systems with which KTH participated in GCDC 2016. It presents a reference system architecture for collaborative automated driving as well as its instantiation on two conceptually different vehicles: a Scania truck and the research concept vehicle, built at KTH. We describe the common system architecture, as well as the implementation of a selection of shared and individual system functionalities, such as V2X communication, localization, state estimation, and longitudinal and lateral control. We also present a novel approach to trajectory tracking control for a four-wheel steering vehicle using model predictive control and a novel method for achieving fair data age distribution in vehicular communications.

Switched Cooperative Driving Model towards Human Vehicle Copiloting Situation: A Cyberphysical Perspective

Development of highly automated and intelligent vehicles can lead to the reduction of driver workload. However, it also causes the out-of-the-loop problem to drivers, which leaves drivers handicapped in their ability to take over manual operations in emergency situations. This contribution puts forth a new switched driving strategy to avoid some of the negative consequences associated with out-of-the-loop performance by having drivers assume manual control at periodic intervals. To minimize the impact of the transitions between automated and manual driving on traffic operations, a switched cooperative driving model towards human vehicle copiloting situation is proposed by considering the vehicle dynamics and the realistic intervehicle communication in a cyberphysical view. The design method of the switching signal for the switched cooperative driving model is given based on the Lyapunov stability theory with the comprehensive consideration of platoon stability and human factors. The good agreement between simulation results and theoretical analysis illustrates the effectiveness of the proposed methods.

Cooperative Automated Maneuvering at the 2016 Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge

Cooperative adaptive cruise control and platooning are well-known applications in the field of cooperative automated driving. However, extension toward maneuvering is desired to accommodate common highway maneuvers, such as merging, and to enable urban applications. To this end, a layered control architecture is adopted. In this architecture, the tactical layer hosts the interaction protocols, describing the wireless information exchange to initiate the vehicle maneuvers, supported by a novel wireless message set, whereas the operational layer involves the vehicle controllers to realize the desired maneuvers. This hierarchical approach was the basis for the Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge (GCDC), which was held in May 2016 in The Netherlands. The GCDC provided the opportunity for participating teams to cooperatively execute a highway lane-reduction scenario and an urban intersection-crossing scenario. The GCDC was set up as a competition and, hence, also involving assessment of the teams’ individual performance in a cooperative setting. As a result, the hierarchical architecture proved to be a viable approach, whereas the GCDC appeared to be an effective instrument to advance the field of cooperative automated driving.

Directional Motion: Electric Field and Gradient Microstructure for Cooperative Driving of Directional Motion of Underwater Oil Droplets (Adv. Funct. Mater. 44/2016)

Directional Motion: Electric Field and Gradient Microstructure for Cooperative Driving of Directional Motion of Underwater Oil Droplets (Adv. Funct. Mater. 44/2016)

Electric Field and Gradient Microstructure for Cooperative Driving of Directional Motion of Underwater Oil Droplets

Driving a liquid droplet with control of directional motion on a solid surface, by introducing a surface wettability gradient or external stimuli, has attracted considerable research attention. There still remain challenges, however, due to the slow response rate and slow speed of continuous liquid droplet motion on the structured surface. Here, an approach to continuously drive the underwater oil droplet with control of directional motion by the cooperative effects of an electric field and the gradient of a porous polystyrene microstructure is demonstrated. The gradient microstructure induces the liquid droplet to take on an asymmetrical shape, causing unbalanced pressure on both ends to orient the droplet for motion in a particular direction. Meanwhile, the electric field decreases the contact area and the corresponding viscous drag between the droplet and the gradient‐structured surface. Then, the unbalanced pressure pushes the underwater oil droplet to move directionally and continuously at a certain voltage. This work provides a new strategy to control underwater oil droplets and realize unidirectional motion. It is also promising for the design of new smart interface materials for applications such as electrofluidic displays, biological cell and particle manipulation, and other types of microfluidic devices.

Manoeuvre Prediction as a Building Block for Safe and Cooperative Driving

Manoeuvre Prediction as a Building Block for Safe and Cooperative Driving

The Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge 2016: boosting the introduction of cooperative automated vehicles

The Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge (GCDC), with the aim to boost the introduction of cooperative automated vehicles by means of wireless communication, is presented. Experiences from the previous edition of GCDC, which was held in Helmond in the Netherlands in 2011, are summarized, and an overview and expectations of the challenges in the 2016 edition are discussed. Two challenge scenarios, cooperative platoon merge and cooperative intersection passing, are specified and presented. One demonstration scenario for emergency vehicles is designed to showcase the benefits of cooperative driving. Communications closely follow the newly published cooperative intelligent transport system standards, while interaction protocols are designed for each of the scenarios. For the purpose of interoperability testing, an interactive testing tool is designed and presented. A general summary of the requirements on teams for participating in the challenge is also presented.

Study on Cooperative Driving of Automated Driving Vehicles through Shared Spatial Information Infrastructure

Study on Cooperative Driving of Automated Driving Vehicles through Shared Spatial Information Infrastructure

Cooperative Maneuver Planning for Cooperative Driving

The worthwhile goal of reducing fatalities in road systems inspires people ever since the appearance of the first vehicles. Policy makers, researchers, developers, and others have adopted various measures with a positive effect on the number of fatalities. In Germany, the number dropped from a peak of 21,095 in 1970, to 3,339 in 2013 [1]. Measures include new laws and restrictions by policy makers such as reducing speed limits, penalizing drunken drivers, and enhancing education by driving schools [2]. Researchers and developers mainly focus on technical safety and assistance systems. These systems include the anti-lock braking system (ABS), the electronic stabilization control (ESC), the emergency brake system, adaptive cruise control (ACC), and the lane-keeping control [3].

Multivehicle Cooperative Driving Using Cooperative Perception: Design and Experimental Validation

In this paper, we present a multivehicle cooperative driving system architecture using cooperative perception along with experimental validation. For this goal, we first propose a multimodal cooperative perception system that provides see-through, lifted-seat, satellite and all-around views to drivers. Using the extended range information from the system, we then realize cooperative driving by a see-through forward collision warning, overtaking/lane-changing assistance, and automated hidden obstacle avoidance. We demonstrate the capabilities and features of our system through real-world experiments using four vehicles on the road.

Cooperative Driving Experiments Based on a 3D Components Environment

Microscopic traffic simulations are considered to experiment the performance of connected vehicles operations such as observing the behaviour of several vehicles within a shared environment; nevertheless, many of them lack important details of the vehicles’ motion in order to optimize the accuracy of performance measurements. This paper presents the design of an experimentation environment in three dimensions to incorporate vehicles’ kinematic variables to consider accurately the vehicles movements such as lane changes and cross intersections. Knowing the precise angle of the steering wheel and the wheel rotation proves to be important to evaluate the performance of the cooperative driving. The proposed experimentation environment serves as a platform to be integrated with a multiagent system for cooperative driving to test the performance of scenarios related to potential collisions.

협력주행 서비스를 위한 차량통신시스템 성능 분석

협력주행 서비스를 위한 차량통신시스템 성능 분석