Safety

Integrated Roadway/Adaptive Cruise Control System: Safety, Performance, Environmental and Near Term Deployment Considerations

Ioannou, Petros
Wang, Yun
Chang, Hwan
2007

In this project, we present the design, analysis and performance evaluation of the Integrated Roadway/Adaptive Cruise Control System (IRAC) proposed in Task Order (TO) 4242 and studied further in the continuation of TO4242 under TO5501. The IRAC system is a highway traffic control system which integrates ramp metering strategies and a speed control strategy by taking into account highway to vehicle communication, and adaptive cruise control (ACC) system technologies on board of the vehicles. The IRAC system closes the loop of an almost open loop highway traffic system by controlling both...

Platoon Collision Dynamics And Emergency Maneuvering I: Reduced Order Modeling Of A Platoon For Dynamical Analysis

Tongue, Benson H.
Yang, Yean-tzong
White, Matthew T.
1991

The purpose of this three-year project is to develop an operational model of vehicle platoon dynamics under emergency conditions and to evaluate the platoon's dynamical behavior under non-nominal, or emergency, conditions. New platoon protocols and/or controller modifications will be formulated after analyzing the platoon response data in order to minimize damage to the platoon and the vehicles' occupants. This progress report discusses the results of the modeling phase of this work. A detailed literature review is included as Appendix B.

A Mobile Platform for Roadway Incident Documentation

Su, Ray J.
Chan, Ching-Yao
2004

This report is part of the final report and the deliverables for TR0002, Collision Recording and Documentation, sponsored by California Office of Traffic Safety, and contracted through California Department of Transportation. Roadway incidents, especially collisions, often result in traffic congestion and travel delays, in addition to the direct damage to the vehicles and the injuries to the people involved. The subsequent congestion is mainly caused by stopped vehicles or lane closure, but it is often intensified by slowing vehicles with drivers observing the accident scene. The effects...

Augmented Speed Enforcement Project at UC Berkeley

Chan, Ching-Yao
Gupta, Somak Datta
Huang, Jihua
Chiu, Guan-Ling
Nelson, David
Lian, Thang
2013

This report describes the development of an automated speed enforcement (aSE) system. The main function of the aSE system is to communicate relevant speed, violation, and hazard information to the stakeholders in the work zone context: drivers, CHP officers, and workers. The system consists of two sub-systems that can work jointly in an integrated manner as a whole but they can also be deployed and tested separately.

Develop Methods to Reduce or Prevent Backing Crashes

Cooper, Douglas L.
Duffy, Sarah
Orrick, Phyllis
Ragland, David R.
2010

Workplace motor vehicle incidents at Caltrans are a significant cause of injuries, employee lost time, and property damage. Because backing crashes are major contributors to motor vehicle incidents, identifying and promoting methods of reducing backing accidents is a top priority. According to internal Caltrans’ data, 92.3% of workplace backing crashes were preventable by the driver. Backing crashes are the single largest category of preventable crashes, representing 30% of preventable crashes in the Caltrans fleet. From 1998 through 2007, preventable backing crashes cost Caltrans at least...

A Multi-channel VANET Providing Concurrent Safety and Commercial Services

Mak, Tony K.
Laberteaux, Kenneth P.
Sengupta, Raja
2005

One of the key goals of a vehicular ad-hoc network (VANET) is providing sufficient quality of service (QoS) for real-time safety applications while concurrently supporting commercial services. This paper proposes a multi-channel wireless communication architecture and protocol for the scenario where commercial services are provided by roadside infrastructure. This solution extends the IEEE 802.11 wireless LAN protocol to schedule periodic safety messages in a "safety channel". It explicitly supports concurrent non-time-critical communications in separate, non-safety "service channels"....

Simulation and Animation Tools for Analysis of Vehicle Collision: SMAC (Simulation Model of Automobile Collisions) and Carmma (Simulation Animations)

Hongola, Bruce
Chan, Ching-Yao
1999

This document describes part of the work conducted under MOU324, related to the studies of vehicle collisions in vehicle-following operations. The goal of the study is to conduct vehicle dynamics and control analysis and to explore display methods so that analytical results can be visualized. This working paper is a description of the functional capabilities of a series of computer programs that can be used to investigate the consequences of vehicle collisions. The core element of the simulation tools for vehicle collision dynamics is SMAC (Simulation Model of Automobile Collisions)...

Brake Dynamics Effect On IVHSLane Capacity

Maciua, Dragos B.
1994

This paper attempts to assess the effects of brake system dynamics and inter-vehicle communication delays (microscopic characteristics) on the capacity of an automated highway system (macroscopic characteristics). Simulations were conducted to investigate the relationship between the microscopic and macroscopic characteristics. Recommendations are made regarding the maximum desired delays, intra-platoon and inter-platoon distances and platoon size in order to achieve the highest possible capacity while maintaining a high degree of safety.

A Focus Group Study of Automated Highway Systems and Related Technologies

Yim, Youngbin
1997

The paper presents the findings of a focus group study of the automated highway system and its related technologies, specifically adaptive cruise control and collision avoidance systems, in the San Francisco Bay Area. A majority of the participants had a favorable reaction to AHS despite the fact that almost all were concerned about its safety and funding capability. Responses to the adaptive cruise control were generally positive. The focus group participants recognized the safety benefits, the convenience, and especially the stress reduction of using the automated highway system, when...

Effect of Longitudinal Control on Capacity

Beji, Yousser
1987

This paper focuses on what benefits a longitudinal control system can be expected to render to the present highway system.There are three major reasons why longitudinal control should be expected to improve traffic flow and to reduce accidents.(1) It may permit higher traffic densities with uniform spacing forming an even distribution with increased travel speeds and consequently higher capacity.(2) It may reduce the rate of rear-end collisions that occur on urban freeways.(3) It can provide increased stability in traffic flow (shockwaves due to human response characteristics are the main...