An adaptive lateral preview driver model

Successful modelling and simulation of driver behaviour is important for the current industrial thrust of computer-based vehicle development. The main contribution of this paper is the development of an adaptive lateral preview human driver model. This driver model template has a few parameters that can be adjusted to simulate steering actions of human drivers with different driving styles. In other words, this model template can be used in the design process of vehicles and active safety systems to assess their performance under average drivers as well as atypical drivers. We assume that the drivers, regardless of their style, have driven the vehicle long enough to establish an accurate internal model of the vehicle. The proposed driver model is developed using the adaptive predictive control (APC) framework. Three key features are included in the APC framework: use of preview information, internal model identification and weight adjustment to simulate different driving styles. The driver uses predicted vehicle information in a future window to determine the optimal steering action. A tunable parameter is defined to assign relative importance of lateral displacement and yaw error in the cost function to be optimized. The model is tuned to fit three representative drivers obtained from driving simulator data taken from 22 human drivers.     

Wheel-rail contact models for vehicle system dynamics including multi-point contact

Advanced modelling of rail vehicle dynamics requires realistic solutions of contact problems for wheels and rails that are able to describe contact singularities, encountered for wheels and rails. The basic singularities demonstrate themselves as double and multiple contact patches. The solutions of the contact problems have to be known practically in each step of the numerical integration of the differential equations of the model. The existing fast, approximate methods of solution to achieve this goal have been outlined. One way to do this is to replace a multi-point contact by a set of ellipses. The other methods are based on so-called virtual penetration. They allow calculating the non-elliptical, multiple contact patches and creep forces online, during integration of the model. This allows nearly real-time simulations. The methods are valid and applicable for so-called quasi-Hertzian cases, when the contact conditions do not deviate much from the assumptions of the Hertz theory. It is believed that it is worthwhile to use them in other cases too.     

Fuzzy-logic applied to yaw moment control for vehicle stability

In this paper, we propose a new yaw moment control based on fuzzy logic to improve vehicle handling and stability. The advantages of fuzzy methods are their simplicity and their good performance in controlling non-linear systems. The developed controller generates the suitable yaw moment which is obtained from the difference of the brake forces between the front wheels so that the vehicle follows the target values of the yaw rate and the sideslip angle. The simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed control method when the vehicle is subjected to different cornering steering manoeuvres such as change line and J-turn under different driving conditions (dry road and snow-covered).     

Target priority determination methods by interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy sets with unknown attribute weights

The paper aims at the problem of multi-targets threat degree being hard to be evaluated accurately in complex air defense battlefield environments. Combined with multi-sensors information fusion and interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy sets (IVIFS) theories, the target priority determination is studied. The score and accuracy functions of IVIFS are improved with thinking about the hesitating information in order to increase the rationality. Then, the influence factors of target priority and the nonlinear relationship between the influence factors and target priority are analyzed. Next, the algorithms for calculating the factor weights and sensor weights are given. Based on the theory of IVIFS and technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution (TOPSIS), two methods of target priority determination based on the IVIFS and TOPSIS are proposed. At last, an application example verifies the effectiveness and flexibility of the proposed algorithms.     

Exploring the impact of walk–bike infrastructure,safety perception,and built-environment on active transportation mode choice: a random parameter model using New York City commuter data

This study estimates a random parameter (mixed) logit model for active transportation (walk and bicycle) choices for work trips in the New York City (using 2010–2011 Regional Household Travel Survey Data). We explored the effects of traffic safety, walk–bike network facilities, and land use attributes on walk and bicycle mode choice decision in the New York City for home-to-work commute. Applying the flexible econometric structure of random parameter models, we capture the heterogeneity in the decision making process and simulate scenarios considering improvement in walk–bike infrastructure such as sidewalk width and length of bike lane. Our results indicate that increasing sidewalk width, total length of bike lane, and proportion of protected bike lane will increase the likelihood of more people taking active transportation mode This suggests that the local authorities and planning agencies to invest more on building and maintaining the infrastructure for pedestrians. Further, improvement in traffic safety by reducing traffic crashes involving pedestrians and bicyclists, will increase the likelihood of taking active transportation modes. Our results also show positive correlation between number of non-motorized trips by the other family members and the likelihood to choose active transportation mode. The model would be an essential tool to estimate the impact of improving traffic safety and walk–bike infrastructure which will assist in investment decision making.     

The merits of accelerated depreciation for promoting investment in clean transport technologies: A simulation study in the Australian rail freight industry

This article ascertains the viability of promoting accelerated depreciation for newly acquired locomotives and other rolling stock as a means of encouraging technological investment in more efficient and environmentally friendly assets. The study uses a tax-adjusted asset replacement model to evaluate the merits of accelerated depreciation, and then compares the outcomes with alternative incentive schemes. It also examines what would occur if various schemes were used simultaneously.     

Redefining activity types: Who participates in which leisure activity?

This paper analyzes the activity choices of individuals and the links between socio-demographics, daily schedules and activity attributes using a new activity choice framework. Activities are first clustered into groups based on their salient attributes, such as duration, frequency, flexibility, planning times, and number of involved persons, rather than their functional types (work, leisure and household obligations), using a K-means cluster technique. This led to the creation of several new activity groups such as “long, temporally fixed, personally flexible activities”, “short and flexible activities”. These activity groups form the choice set for the mixed logit activity choice modeling structure developed for the leisure activities in the second part of the paper. The model results reveal the significant relationships between socio-demographics, temporal characteristics, and characteristics of the schedules on leisure activity choice. The results demonstrate how changing demographics and other activities in individuals’ schedules may affect the nature of the leisure activities and present the substitution and complimentary effects that these new activity groups have on one another.     

Analysis of the effectiveness of control measures to mitigate road dust emissions in a regional network

The effectiveness of control measures to reduce road dust emissions is analyzed using a year’s data of road dust emissions collected with a mobile sampling platform and a survey of road maintenance practices in the Lake Tahoe Basin of Nevada and California US. Attributes such as sweeping practices, anti-icing, shoulder improvement, pavement condition, trackout, and abrasive material from road segments were analyzed with a feature subset selection algorithm. Street sweeping was found to be an effective means of controlling dust emissions from roads. Road dust from dirty tertiary roads served as a continuous source of suspendable material for adjacent high-speed roads in the winter time. To be most effective, emission control strategies require that not only primary roads, but all roads be swept after snow storms to recover applied abrasive material.     

Effect of interference fits on the fatigue lives of bolted composite joints

The effect of interference fits on the fatigue lives of bolted composite joints is investigated by conducting mechanical tests. Static and fatigue tests are carried out on specimens made of carbon-bismaleimide composites joined together as double-lap single-bolt joints. The bolts having interference fits ranging of 0 (neat fit), 0.5%, 0.75% and 1% are performed. The results demonstrate the relationship between fatigue life and different values of interference fits. After the fatigue tests, non-destructive evaluation (NDE) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) are used to observe the damage of the surrender and surface of the hole. The test results show that the interference fitted specimens have improved fatigue life compared to the neat fitted specimen. The NDE and SEM results reveal that the damage degree of interference fitted specimen is weaker than that for the neat fitted one.     

Delivering mobility as a service (MaaS) through a broker/aggregator business model

Transportation - Mobility as a service (MaaS) promises a bold new future where bundled public transport and shared mobility options (carsharing, ridesharing, bikesharing and microtransit) will...