Next-generation Vehicles Research Articles

Impact Analysis on Next-generation Vehicles to Chubu Economy, by using Chubu-region Multi-regional Input Output Table

Impact Analysis on Next-generation Vehicles to Chubu Economy, by using Chubu-region Multi-regional Input Output Table

Recycling Potentials of Precious Metals from End-of-Life Vehicle Parts by Selective Dismantling.

Recycling of some minor but essential scarce metals used in vehicles may serve as an important strategy to strengthen sustainable management of natural resources. Accordingly, this study focused on five precious metals (PMs): Au, Ag, Pt, Pd, and Rh, in both end-of-life conventional and next-generation vehicles. To explore their recycling potentials in Japan, we developed substance flow and scenario analyses based on estimations of PM contents per end-of-life vehicle (ELV) and ELV generations. The study predicts that in Japan, from 2015 to 2040, the content of PMs per ELV will range from 2 to 6 g, and the annual amount of PMs in ELVs will remain largely stable, at 14-15 t, but the proportions of PMs utilized in different vehicles, parts, and components will gradually change; in particular, increased proportions will occur in the printed wiring boards (PWBs) of next-generation vehicles. The results also show that, in Japan, totals of 33-53% of PMs in ELVs were recycled in 2015, and that by selective dismantling of PWBs and heating wires in the rear windows of ELVs, the recycling potentials of PMs could be optimally increased to a maximum of 62-83% by 2040.

Depressing Start-Up Current Overshoot for a Laser Headlight Driver in High-Temperature and Forward Voltage Drift Conditions

High-optical-output-power laser diodes (HOO-PLDs) are a new option for the next-generation vehicle headlights. This paper develops a laser headlight driver (LHD) combining a safety standard circuit, dc–dc converter, and feedback controller. The dc–dc converter topology is a two-switch two-diode buck–boost converter (TSTDBBC), which could be operated in both step-up or step-down conversion modes for variable battery voltage input to the LHD, enabling the driving voltage and current of the HOOPLD to be obtained from the TSTDBBC output. Because the operating ambient temperature (OAT) can cause forward voltage drift in the HOOPLD, the feedback controller could be used to stabilize the driving current to cope with forward voltage drift. Moreover, in the start-up phase, a current overshoot occurs when the TSTDBBC operation changes from the constant-voltage output mode to the constant-current output mode. This can be further aggravated when HOOPLDs operate under a high OAT. Therefore, proportional switching proportional-integral control technology was applied to the current-feedback controller to depress the current overshoot, enabling the driving current of the HOOPLDs to be maintained at the rated specification to ensure operating lifespan. Complete design procedures are presented. Simulations and experimental results validate that the proposed control technology is effective for solving the ignition problem.

Public policy strategies for next-generation vehicle technologies: An overview of leading markets

Governments apply a range of policy instruments to promote the electrification of personal transport using technologies such as Plug-in Hybrid, Battery Electric, and Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles. We introduce a framework for comparing public policies cross-nationally used to support the research, development, and deployment of electric vehicles. We use this framework to identify whether governments are using similar policy instruments to promote vehicle electrification in the period 2006-2016. We also examine the extent to which policy instruments are neutral across technologies, presenting country case studies for China, the United States, Japan, and, within the regulatory framework of the European Union, Germany, and France. We find that governments have largely adopted technology neutral policies and are employing similar policy mixes in promoting vehicle electrification, despite differences in governing institutions between the countries examined. We conclude by suggesting a future research agenda, including identifying plausible explanations for this outcome.

Coverage and connectivity analysis of millimeter wave vehicular networks

The next generations of vehicles will require data transmission rates in the order of terabytes per driving hour, to support advanced automotive services. This unprecedented amount of data to be exchanged goes beyond the capabilities of existing communication technologies for vehicular communication and calls for new solutions. A possible answer to this growing demand for ultra-high transmission speeds can be found in the millimeter-wave (mmWave) bands which, however, are subject to high signal attenuation and challenging propagation characteristics. In particular, mmWave links are typically directional, to benefit from the resulting beamforming gain, and require precise alignment of the transmitter and the receiver beams, an operation which may increase the latency of the communication and lead to deafness due to beam misalignment. In this paper, we propose a stochastic model to characterize the beam coverage and connectivity probability in mmWave automotive networks. The purpose is to exemplify some of the complex and interesting tradeoffs that are to be considered when designing solutions for vehicular scenarios based on mmWave links. The results show that the performance of automotive nodes in highly mobile mmWave systems strictly depends on the specific environment in which the vehicles are deployed, and must account for several automotive-specific features such as the nodes speed, the beam alignment periodicity, the density of base stations and the antenna geometry.

Analysis of Potential for Critical Metal Resource Constraints in the International Energy Agency’s Long-Term Low-Carbon Energy Scenarios

As environmental problems associated with energy systems become more serious, it is necessary to address them with consideration of their interconnections—for example, the energy-mineral nexus. Specifically, it is unclear whether long-term energy scenarios assuming the expansion of low carbon energy technology are sustainable in terms of resource constraints. However, there are few studies that comprehensively analyze the possibility of resource constraints in the process of introducing low carbon energy technology from a long-term perspective. Hence, to provide guidelines for technological development and policy-making toward realizing the low carbon society, this paper undertakes the following: (1) Estimation of the impact of the expansion of low carbon energy technology on future metal demand based, on the International Energy Agency (IEA)’s scenarios; (2) estimation of the potential effects of low carbon energy technology recycling on the future supply-demand balance; (3) identification of critical metals that require priority measures. Results indicated that the introduction of solar power and next-generation vehicles may be hindered by resource depletion. Among the metals examined, indium, tellurium, silver, lithium, nickel and platinum were identified as critical metals that require specific measures. As recycling can reduce primary demand by 20%~70% for low carbon energy technology, countermeasures including recycling need to be considered.

Vehicle dynamic state estimation: state of the art schemes and perspectives

Next-generation vehicle control and future autonomous driving require further advances in vehicle dynamic state estimation. This article provides a concise review, along with the perspectives, of the recent developments in the estimation of vehicle dynamic states. The definitions used in vehicle dynamic state estimation are first introduced, and alternative estimation structures are presented. Then, the sensor configuration schemes used to estimate vehicle velocity, sideslip angle, yaw rate and roll angle are presented. The vehicle models used for vehicle dynamic state estimation are further summarized, and representative estimation approaches are discussed. Future concerns and perspectives for vehicle dynamic state estimation are also discussed.

Can Next-Generation Vehicles Sustainably Survive in the Automobile Market? Evidence from Ex-Ante Market Simulation and Segmentation

Introduced autonomous and connected vehicles equipped with emerging technologies are expected to change the automotive market. In this study, using stated preference (SP) data collected from choice experiments conducted in Korea with a mixed multiple discrete-continuous extreme value model (MDCEV), we analyzed how the advent of next-generation of vehicles with advanced vehicle technologies would affect consumer vehicle choices and usage patterns. Additionally, ex-ante market simulations and market segmentation analyses were conducted to provide specific management strategies for next-generation vehicles. The results showed that consumer preference structures of conventional and alternative fuel types primarily differed depending on whether they were drivers or non-drivers. Additionally, although the introduction of electric vehicles to the automobile market is expected to negatively affect the choice probability and mileage of other vehicles, it could have a positive influence on the probability of purchasing an existing conventional vehicle if advanced vehicle technologies are available.

Life cycle cost as a criterion in purchase of rolling stock

The key parameter in assessing the economic viability of purchasing and operating rolling stock is the total cost incurred by the ordering party, starting from the preparation of the rolling stock purchase plan to the end of its operation, including its disposal. The methodology for calculating these life cycle costs (LCCs) has been developed especially in recent years based on the experience of the next-generation vehicle deployment. In Poland first vehicles purchase using the LCC method was carried out in few recent years - by PKP Intercity and by Lodz Agglomeration Railway. Despite the use of simplified criteria for the economic efficiency of vehicles, optimal offers were selected. This article describes examples of rolling stock purchase based on the low cost of life of the vehicle and the economic and operational results that have been achieved after several years of operation. Further possibilities for optimizing these costs were also indicated. Examples showing the proportion between the cost of vehicle purchase, its technical maintenance and its operation, where the electricity consumption is the main factor are given.

Study of Recycling Technology about Lithium-ion Batteries Using Roasting Process

The need for large lithium-ion rechargeable batteries (hereinafter abbreviated as “LIBs”) recycling technology is increasing along with the growing use of next-generation vehicles. The existing techniques to recycle LIBs remain the technical issues; catching fire when directly crushed, requiring a large amount of energy, producing the exhaust gas (containing combustible gas and detoxify hydrogen fluoride gas) by heat treatment, recovering high concentrations of base metals and rare metals. This study demonstrates LIBs recycling technology using roasting process that a roasting furnace is installed near a cement kiln to resolve the technical issues mentioned above. The results of demonstration test indicate that the optimum roasting temperature is about 723K to stabilize internal temperature of basket, prevent aluminium from melting, and efficiently recover base metals and rare metals.

On the Performance of IEEE 802.11p and LTE-V2V for the Cooperative Awareness of Connected Vehicles

To improve safety on the roads, next-generation vehicles will be equipped with short-range communication technologies. Many applications enabled by such communication will be based on a continuous broadcast of information about the own status from each vehicle to the neighborhood, often referred as cooperative awareness or beaconing. Although the only standardized technology allowing direct vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication has been IEEE 802.11p until now, the latest release of long-term evolution (LTE) included advanced device-to-device features designed for the vehicular environment (LTE-V2V) making it a suitable alternative to IEEE 802.11p. Advantages and drawbacks are being considered for both technologies, and which one will be implemented is still under debate. The aim of this paper is thus to provide an insight into the performance of both technologies for cooperative awareness and to compare them. The investigation is performed analytically through the implementation of novel models for both IEEE 802.11p and LTE-V2V able to address the same scenario, with consistent settings and focusing on the same output metrics. The proposed models take into account several aspects that are often neglected by related works, such as hidden terminals and capture effect in IEEE 802.11p, the impact of imperfect knowledge of vehicles position on the resource allocation in LTE-V2V, and the various modulation and coding scheme combinations that are available in both technologies. Results show that LTE-V2V allows us to maintain the required quality of service at even double or more the distance than IEEE 802.11p in moderate traffic conditions. However, due to the half-duplex nature of devices and the structure of LTE frames, it shows lower capacity than IEEE 802.11p if short distances and very high vehicle density are targeted.

Diffusion of Next-Generation Vehicles through the Smart City Policy in Saitama

Diffusion of Next-Generation Vehicles through the Smart City Policy in Saitama

Driver Modeling for Detection and Assessment of Driver Distraction: Examples from the UTDrive Test Bed

Vehicle technologies have advanced significantly over the past 20 years, especially with respect to novel in-vehicle systems for route navigation, information access, infotainment, and connected vehicle advancements for vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) connectivity and communications. While there is great interest in migrating to fully automated, self-driving vehicles, factors such as technology performance, cost barriers, public safety, insurance issues, legal implications, and government regulations suggest it is more likely that the first step in the progression will be multifunctional vehicles. Today, embedded controllers as well as a variety of sensors and high-performance computing in present-day cars allow for a smooth transition from complete human control toward semisupervised or assisted control, then to fully automated vehicles. Next-generation vehicles will need to be more active in assessing driver awareness, vehicle capabilities, and traffic and environmental settings, plus how these factors come together to determine a collaborative safe and effective driver-vehicle engagement for vehicle operation. This article reviews a range of issues pertaining to driver modeling for the detection and assessment of distraction. Examples from the UTDrive project are used whenever possible, along with a comparison to existing research programs. The areas addressed include 1) understanding driver behavior and distraction, 2) maneuver recognition and distraction analysis, 3) glance behavior and visual tracking, and 4) mobile platform advancements for in-vehicle data collection and human-machine interface. This article highlights challenges in achieving effective modeling, detection, and assessment of driver distraction using both UTDrive instrumented vehicle data and naturalistic driving data

Carboxymethyl chitosan nanoparticles coupled with CD59-specific ligand peptide for targeted delivery of C-phycocyanin to HeLa cells

The combination of nanotechnology and medicine will be the next generation of vehicles for targeted drug delivery. Carboxymethyl chitosan loaded with the anticancer drug C-phycocyanin and the CD59-specific ligand peptide for cancer cell targeting were used to create C-phycocyanin/carboxymethyl chitosan-CD59-specific ligand peptide nanoparticles using the ionic-gelation method. Optimal synthesis conditions, selected by response surface methodology, comprised the ratio carboxymethyl chitosan:C-phycocyanin = 3:1, and carboxymethyl chitosan and CaCl2 concentrations of 2.0 and 1.0 mg/mL, respectively. The resulting nanoparticles were spherical, with diameters of approximately 200 nm; the entrapment efficient was about 65%; and the drug loading was about 20%. The release of C-phycocyanin from C-phycocyanin/carboxymethyl chitosan nanoparticles was pH sensitive and had a sustainable effect in vitro. Guided by the CD59-specific ligand peptide, the nanoparticles efficiently targeted the surface of HeLa cells and had an obvious inhibitory effect on HeLa cell proliferation as determined by methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium assays. The nanoparticles were hemocompatible and induced apoptosis by upregulation of cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved polyADP-ribose polymerase proteins, and downregulation of Bcl-2 proteins. Our study provides a novel approach to the research and development of marine drugs, and support for targeted therapy using anticancer drugs.

Overview of recent issues in sound design for next-generation vehicles due to their quietness

Overview of recent issues in sound design for next-generation vehicles due to their quietness

Understanding international trade network complexity of platinum: The case of Japan

In recent decades, platinum-group metals have become increasingly important to the development and diffusion of cleaner technologies being developed to achieve a “low carbon” society. Countries engaged in the development and diffusion of new energy technologies are concerned about steadily importing scarce rare metals. Nevertheless, the question of what kind of competitive relationships exist among demand countries is not well addressed. This study focused on platinum primary product used to produce greener products like next-generation vehicles and analyzed the international trade network complexity of the platinum primary product using the clustering method. From the results, we found that (1) there exit well-separated nine trade clusters (i.e., trade networks with higher exchanges) in the international trade network of 2005, (2) the group including South Africa and the group consisting of Western countries together account for approximately half the total international trade flow in platinum primary products, and (3) international coordination of purchases and sales of platinum among relevant trade partners in the identified largest cluster: South Africa, Russia, Japan, China, Hong Kong, and Switzerland is crucial in securing the stable supply and demand for platinum.

A Practical Security Architecture for In-Vehicle CAN-FD

The controller area network with flexible data rate (CAN-FD) is attracting attention as the next generation of in-vehicle network technology. However, security issues have not been completely taken into account when designing CAN-FD, although every bit of information transmitted could be critical to driver safety. If we fail to solve the security vulnerabilities of CAN-FD, we cannot expect Vehicle-Information and Communications Technology (Vehicle-ICT) convergence to continue to develop. Fortunately, secure in-vehicle CAN-FD communication environments can be constructed using the larger data payload of CAN-FD. In this paper, we propose a security architecture for in-vehicle CAN-FD as a countermeasure (designed in accordance with CAN-FD specifications). We considered the characteristics of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 26262 Automotive Safety Integrity Level and the in-vehicle subnetwork to design a practical security architecture. We also evaluated the feasibility of the proposed security architecture using three kinds of microcontroller unit and the CANoe software. Our evaluation findings may be used as an indicator of the performance level of electronic control units for manufacturing next-generation vehicles.

Longitudinal control behaviour: Analysis and modelling based on experimental surveys in Italy and the UK

This paper analyses driving behaviour in car-following conditions, based on extensive individual vehicle data collected during experimental field surveys carried out in Italy and the UK. The aim is to contribute to identify simple evidence to be exploited in the ongoing process of driving assistance and automation which, in turn, would reduce rear-end crashes. In particular, identification of differences and similarities in observed car-following behaviours for different samples of drivers could justify common tuning, at a European or worldwide level, of a technological solution aimed at active safety, or, in the event of differences, could suggest the most critical aspects to be taken into account for localisation or customisation of driving assistance solutions. Without intending to be exhaustive, this paper moves one step in this direction. Indeed, driving behaviour and human errors are considered to be among the main crash contributory factors, and a promising approach for safety improvement is the progressive introduction of increasing levels of driving automation in next-generation vehicles, according to the active/preventive safety approach. However, the more advanced the system, the more complex will be the integration in the vehicle, and the interaction with the driver may sometimes become unproductive, or risky, should the driver be removed from the driving control loop. Thus, implementation of these systems will require the interaction of human driving logics with automation logics and then an enhanced ability in modelling drivers’ behaviour. This will allow both higher active-safety levels and higher user acceptance to be achieved, thus ensuring that the driver is always in the control loop, even if his/her role is limited to supervising the automatic logic. Currently, the driving mode most targeted by driving assistance systems is longitudinal driving. This is required in various driving conditions, among which car-following assumes key importance because of the huge number of rear-end crashes.The increased availability of lower-cost information and communication technologies (ICTs) has enhanced the possibility of collecting copious and reliable car-following individual vehicle data. In this work, data collected from three different experiments, two carried out in Italy and one in the UK, are analysed and compared. The experiments involved 146 drivers (105 Italian drivers and 41 UK drivers). Data were collected by two instrumented vehicles.Our analysis focused on inter-vehicular spacing in equilibrium car-following conditions. We observed that (i) the adopted equilibrium spacing can be fitted using lognormal distributions, (ii) the adopted equilibrium spacing increases with speed, and (iii) the dispersion between drivers increases with speed. In addition, according to different headway thresholds (up to 1 second) a significant number of potentially dangerous behaviours is observed.Three different car-following paradigms are also applied to each of the experiments, and modelling parameters are calibrated and compared to obtain indirect confirmation about the observed similarities and differences in driving behaviour.

Effects of Initial SOC of 270-Volt Battery on Operating Performance of Gasoline Engine and Electric motor in a Parallel Hybrid Vehicle under IM240 Driving Cycle Mode

Next-generation vehicles are under energy and environmental pressure to increase fuel economy and reduce emissions of green-house-gases (GHG) such as carbon dioxide, which is the main cause of global warming, while maintaining the performance and drivability characteristics of conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) automobiles. So, hybridization of both conventional ICE and electric motor powertrain systems hold great promise for environmentally friendly vehicles (EFV) to meet stringent CO2 regulation and fuel economy requirements. This paper presents the effects of the initial state of charge (SOC) stored in the vehicle’s battery on tractive propulsion characteristics as vehicle drivability performance that is obtained from both ICE and an electric motor simultaneously. Especially, the battery management system (BMS) plays a key role in a hybridized system based on an electric device. And a regenerative braking system recovers kinetic energy from braking and uses it to recharge the battery. In this study, in order to investigate the effects of various initial SOCs in a parallel hybrid gasoline-electric vehicle (HEV), an experiment was carried out on a vehicle chassis dynamometer with IM240 vehicle driving mode and a CAN protocol analyzer to collect data from a full HEV. A unique hybrid electric signal processor was designed to monitor the operational state of the ICE including fuel injection duration, hybrid starter-generator (HSG) and propulsion motor which depend on the initial SOC. The amount of energy recovered through the regenerative braking system was measured to investigate the collect rates of currents. The results show that the initial SOC stored in the battery causes big differences in the electric current balance in hybrid operating mode, and that careful coordination of ICE and motor is necessary to achieve vehicle propulsion capacity as well as to maintain the battery SOC at a reasonable level.

SUSTAINABILITY EFFECTS OF NEXT-GENERATION INTERSECTION CONTROL FOR AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES

Transportation sustainability is adversely affected by recurring traffic congestions, especially at urban intersections. Frequent vehicle deceleration and acceleration caused by stop-and-go behaviours at intersections due to congestion adversely impacts energy consumption and ambient air quality. Availability of the maturing vehicle technologies such as autonomous vehicles and Vehicle-To-Vehicle (V2V) / Vehicle-To-Infrastructure (V2I) communications provides technical feasibility to develop solutions that can reduce vehicle stops at intersections, hence enhance the sustainability of intersections. This paper presents a next-generation intersection control system for autonomous vehicles, which is named ACUTA. ACUTA employs an enhanced reservation-based control algorithm that controls autonomous vehicles’ passing sequence at an intersection. Particularly, the intersection is divided into n-by-n tiles. An intersection controller reserves certain time-space for each vehicle, and assures no conflict exists between reservations. The algorithm was modelled in microscopic traffic simulation platform VISSIM. ACUTA algorithm modelling as well as enhancement strategies to minimize vehicle intersection stops and eventually emission and energy consumption were discussed in the paper. Sustainability benefits offered by this next-generation intersection were evaluated and compared with traditional intersection control strategies. The evaluation reveals that multi-tile ACUTA reduces carbon monoxide (CO) and Particulate Matter (PM) 2.5 emissions by about 5% under low to moderate volume conditions and by about 3% under high volume condition. Meanwhile, energy consumption is reduced by about 4% under low to moderate volume conditions and by about 12% under high volume condition. Compared with four-way stop control, single-tile ACUTA reduces CO and PM 2.5 emissions as well as energy consumption by about 15% under any prevailing volume conditions. These findings validated the sustainability benefits of employing next-generation vehicle technologies in intersection traffic control. In addition, extending the ACUTA to corridor level was explored in the paper.