Developing frameworks for addressing cut-in maneuvers in connected environments

An, Gihyeob

Permalink

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/125768 Copy

Description

Title

Developing frameworks for addressing cut-in maneuvers in connected environments

Author(s)

An, Gihyeob

Issue Date

2024-07-02

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Talebpour, Alireza

Doctoral Committee Chair(s)

Talebpour, Alireza

Committee Member(s)

• Ouyang, Yanfeng
• Meidani, Hadi
• Mehr, Negar Z

Department of Study

Civil & Environmental Eng

Discipline

Civil Engineering

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

Ph.D.

Degree Level

Dissertation

Keyword(s)

Connected and autonomous vehicles, Traffic flow

Abstract

In recent years, the field of connected automated vehicles (CAVs) has witnessed significant advancements aimed at enhancing driving comfort and safety through the utilization of vehicle automation technologies. Furthermore, these developments have facilitated the exchange of information among vehicles and infrastructure components, further improving various aspects of driving. Instead of solely relying on on-board sensors, CAVs are now equipped with more advanced technologies to better understand the driving environment. Regrettably, the majority of early studies on CAV development have primarily focused on the automation aspect of the problem, often overlooking the potential impacts on traffic flow dynamics, despite CAVs having the capacity to significantly influence traffic flow in both positive and negative ways. Therefore, the primary goal of this dissertation is to present innovative methods for enhancing autonomous driving safety and efficiency, while considering the opportunities presented by the characteristics of a connected driving environment. As a major source of congestion, lane-changing maneuvers (or equivalently merging maneuvers in this dissertation) can significantly benefit from CAV-related technologies. However, the majority of efforts to minimize disruption resulting from a lane-changing maneuver have primarily focused on the lane-changing behavior itself, such as lane-changing trajectory design, without explicitly considering the impacts on traffic flow dynamics. In fact, many such approaches result in shockwave formation and congestion. The main objective of this dissertation is to enhance the safety and efficiency of lane-changing maneuvers considering the impacts of such maneuvers on traffic flow dynamics. Considering the above discussion, this dissertation begins by focusing on the interaction between the merging vehicle and its immediate follower in the target lane. It is evident that both the merging maneuver itself and the response of the follower wield a significant influence over traffic flow. Consequently, this dissertation focuses on two aspects of this process: (1) developing Model Predictive Control (MPC) and trajectory generation methodology for the lane-changing vehicle that specifically considers the role of the immediate follower in the target lane and its behavior, and (2) developing the trajectory generation algorithm for the immediate follower in the target lane that optimizes the car-following behavior in response to a lane-changing vehicle in a connected driving environment. Results show that the approach produces a safe trajectory curve that adjusts according to the preferred driving pattern when provided with a lane-changing trajectory. These approaches result in safe and efficient car-following and lane-changing behavior while considering the impacts on upstream traffic. In the subsequent part, this dissertation introduces a decision-making system for gap acceptance. Assuming the availability of information on MPC, the gap acceptance model evaluates the merging gap for a specific trajectory to avoid a pre-defined level of impact on traffic flow. Simulation results illustrate the practical implications of utilizing this merging gap acceptance model on traffic flow dynamics. In the final section, this dissertation shifts its focus to enhancing traffic conditions to facilitate merging maneuvers. In this context, the dissertation introduces leader vehicles within the target lane as components of the process. The proposed approach presents a systematic methodology for coordinating platoon control, grounded in a control framework that takes into account the flow of information. Assuming connectivity between vehicles, the proposed approach combines Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) and MPC for platoon control. This hybrid algorithm generates a forward-moving shockwave, thereby creating an additional gap for the lane-changing vehicle. Simulation results indicate the capability of the proposed approach to generate an additional gap for the lane-changing vehicle without compromising the overall traffic flow, ultimately minimizing and potentially eliminating disruptions caused by the lane-changing maneuver.

Graduation Semester

2024-08

Type of Resource

Thesis

Handle URL

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/125768

Copyright and License Information

Copyright 2024 Gihyeob An

Owning Collections