Critical review of handling diagram and understeer gradient for vehicles with locked differential

The steady-state cornering behaviour of rear-wheel drive vehicles fitted with locked differential is critically analysed by means of simple, albeit carefully formulated, vehicle models, which allow for a rigorous theoretical analysis. Results obtained for some classical manoeuvres, with either constant forward speed, steer angle or turning radius, clearly show that, in the case of locked differential, the vehicle cornering behaviour is strongly affected by the manoeuvre. As an important consequence, the handling diagram is not unique and the understeer gradient is no longer dependent only upon the lateral acceleration, as in vehicles equipped with an open differential. Accordingly, this study shows that some typical tools and concepts of vehicle dynamics are indeed inadequate in the case of locked differential.     

Driver requirements and road traffic informatics

Initially the driver's role as a link in the driver-vehicle-road-traffic control-chain is discussed in a historical perspective. The gradual changes and the advantages and problems arising from these changes are discussed from behavioural point of view.Then the driver tasks are analyzed. A separation is made between trip planning, navigation, road following, traffic interaction, rule compliance, other than traffic tasks, car handling and speed choice. The relations between and the weights of these subtasks are discussed. Some existing driver behaviour models are reviewed in relation to the above mentioned tasks.Finally an effort is made based on the analyses of driver tasks and driver models to specify some general and some more specific potential advantages and problems with expected future RTI-systems.     

“锦江”轮座滩后的安全性分析

本文介绍一大型客轮搁座于浅水区域，作为水上游乐设施的可行性研究成果。根据实际航道情况，确定就位和座滩的状态，计算了压载量并分析了在该状态时船舶的强度状况、地基反力及船体变形，认为船舶在座滩状态是安全和稳定的，能满足使用要求。     

Teleworking in the Netherlands: an evaluation of changes in travel behaviour

This article describes the first experiment on teleworking in the Netherlands, and presents the results of an analysis of the impact of teleworking on the travel behaviour of the participants in the experiment and their household members. It was concluded that teleworking has resulted in a significant decrease in the total number of trips by teleworkers (–17%). Peak-hour traffic by car has been reduced even more (–26%). An unexpected result was that the household members of the teleworkers also appeared to travel less than before the experiment.     

Habitual travel behaviour: Evidence from a six-week travel diary

This paper introduces different methods to measure similarity of travel behaviour addressing the question of how repetitious travel behaviour actually is. It compares empirical results of the different methods based on the data from a six-week travel diary. In general, the results show that the day-to-day behaviour is more variable if measured with trip-based methods instead of methods based on time budgets. Furthermore, it is confirmed that the similarity declines if the method captures more of the complexity of the travel pattern. It is also shown that travel behaviour is neither totally repetitious nor totally variable. Even for the whole observation period, it is demonstrated that two days always have some common elements. Additionally, it is found that the different methods yield the same pattern of variability for different types of day. Travel behaviour is clearly more stable on work days. Similar results for all methods are also obtained concerning the question of how long the minimum period of observation should be. All measures show that the period should not be less than two weeks if one aims at measuring variability.     

Is the intention to use public transport for different travel purposes determined by different factors?

The objective of this study was to examine the psychological predictors of the intention to use public transport for three travel purposes: work or study, shopping, and leisure. An expanded version of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) which contains overall image and past behaviour is used. Data were gathered through the survey of 392 residents living in the central parts of Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. These data were analysed using the partial least squares technique. The results indicate that attitude and perceived behavioural control are significant predictors of the intention to use public transportation for various purposes. Further, they explain between 34.6% and 49.8% of the intention variance. By adding the overall image and past behaviour to the original predictors in the TPB, the explained variance, with regard to work or study, shopping, and leisure purposes, increased by 5.6%, 5.1%, and 6.8%, respectively.     

Insights into vehicle trajectories at the handling limits: analysing open data from race car drivers

Race car drivers can offer insights into vehicle control during extreme manoeuvres; however, little data from race teams is publicly available for analysis. The Revs Program at Stanford has built a collection of vehicle dynamics data acquired from vintage race cars during live racing events with the intent of making this database publicly available for future analysis. This paper discusses the data acquisition, post-processing, and storage methods used to generate the database. An analysis of available data quantifies the repeatability of professional race car driver performance by examining the statistical dispersion of their driven paths. Certain map features, such as sections with high path curvature, consistently corresponded to local minima in path dispersion, quantifying the qualitative concept that drivers anchor their racing lines at specific locations around the track. A case study explores how two professional drivers employ distinct driving styles to achieve similar lap times, supporting the idea that driving at the limits allows a family of solutions in terms of paths and speed that can be adapted based on specific spatial, temporal, or other constraints and objectives.     

A comparison of modelled and real-life driving profiles for the simulation of railway vehicle operation

A key factor in determining the performance of a railway system is the speed profile of the trains within the network. There can be significant variation in this speed profile for identical trains on identical routes, depending on how the train is driven. A better understanding and control of speed profiles can therefore offer significant potential for improvements in the performance of railway systems. This paper develops a model to allow the variability of real-life driving profiles of railway vehicles to be quantitatively described and predicted, in order to better account for the effects on the speed profile of the train and hence the performance of the railway network as a whole. The model is validated against data from the Tyne and Wear Metro, and replicates the measured data to a good degree of accuracy.     

Artificial forces for virtual autonomous ships with encountering situations in restricted waters

ABSTRACT

Even if the same two ships operate in the same encountering situation, the actual strategies and timing of operations may be different. Therefore, the fixed collision avoidance trajectory and ship movements are no longer suitable for simulating the real ship behaviour. This paper tries to develop an artificial intelligent system that fully sensitive to the local circumstances and command a ship in virtual environment. Based on AIS (Automatic Identification System) data, this study has developed artificial forces which help decision makings on-board independently under different situations and catching the stochastic nature of ship behaviours during collision avoidances manoeuvring. Actual ship tracks are helpful for ascertaining the parameters that contribute to artificial forces in collision avoidances, while the correlation coefficient analysis is helpful to distinguish the parameters. This study will help to develop a navigation traffic simulation to reflect the realistic ship behaviour and provide reliable information for port and waterway planning, risk analysis, and mitigation measures. The method can be used in developing algorithms for autonomous ships. The method introduced in this study lays a foundation for developing artificial forces at intersections or bends, although the model is only applicable in straight channels at the moment.