Search Results

This paper begins with a discussion of a cognitive engineering model, the operator function model (OFM), to guide design of artifacts for human interaction with complex systems. Such artifacts include operator aids, associates, and tutors. The paper presents an overview of the current implementation and evolution of the operator function model (OFM) and OFMspert, its computational implementation. It describes how OFMspert has been extended to support the design of two intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) for operational control of safety-critical systems. Proof-of-concept demonstrations and evaluation teaching MD-11 transition pilots vertical navigation and a case-based tutor teaching currently certified MD-11 pilots new procedures, adapted since their certification training.

Engine designers have been investigating the potential of valve actuation mechanisms leading to the development of camless engines for many years [Ref. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5]. There have been a number of obstacles to the introduction of these mechanisms including power consumption, control of valve seating velocity and integration of the mechanism with the engine structure and systems.

Intelligent Vehicle-Highway Systems (IVHS) are based on the amalgamation of information technology with automotive and highway technologies to help relieve traffic congestion, improve safety, and reduce pollution and energy wastes. IVHS have been developing rapidly in the past few years in industrialized countries around the world -- Europe, Japan, and North America. On the other hand, the needs for IVHS in the newly industrialized countries (NICs), and the possible roles that these countries may play in the IVHS development, have not been well recognized. Available data suggest that the problems of traffic congestion and fatalities in the large cities of NICs are just as bad as, if not worse than, those in the industrially mature countries. NICs are therefore potential users of IVHS. The city of Singapore has actually gone ahead of the rest of the world in applying IVHS technologies to implement road pricing as a practical means for automotive traffic demand management.

When the Automatic Vehicle Identification Concept (AVI) started it was simply an Electronic Tag. Today with a two-way communication capability, programmability and intelligence it has graduated to a full fledged Close-Range Road/Vehicle Communication System (CRCS). Its applications are numerous: from vehicle identification and location, two-way vehicle communication, to fleet management. This paper is one of a series of complementary papers that cover the enhanced AVI system/CRCS concept and describe a number of the different applications of this low cost, high impact technology that is revolutionizing the road transportation system. Certain sections are common to all papers and form the background to the core of each of the papers. This paper in particular gives an overall view of the CRCS concept and concentrates on applications to the commercial vehicle operations.

Prior to 1991, there had been a lot of discussion about Intelligent Vehicle Highway systems (IVHS), but very little implementation action. This changed dramatically with the formation of IVHS-AMERICA and the congressional passage of a $151 Billion, six-year Surface Transportation Bill. The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) allocates $200 Million annually for IVHS Operational Field Tests and Advanced Transportation System R&D. Within this framework, Siemens has been awarded a Federal Grant to field test its Ali-Scout Advanced Traveler Information System (ATIS) in parallel with the test of an Advanced Traffic Management System (ATMS) in Oakland County, Michigan. This project named FAST-TRAC, will cover approximately 200 square miles, with 100 infra-red beacon systems and up to 1000 vehicles. The ATMS will include 200-plus computer controlled traffic signals with video monitoring and vehicle detection video equipment.

Transportation safety agencies are working to consider how to best incorporate the potential safety benefits of intelligent vehicle lighting systems such as adaptive driving beam headlights and other systems on vehicles used by the general public. As these deliberations continue, additional data on the impacts of lighting technological developments are important to generate and share. An analytical study was performed to assess how different vehicle lighting configurations including ADB and other technologies can assist drivers in achieving visual acquisition of potential hazards along the road. The investigation also compared drivers varying in age and whose visual performance differs because of optical changes in the visual system. The importance of considering visibility for older drivers is critical because this group is an increasingly large proportion of the overall driving population.

The challenges posed by connected and autonomous vehicles fall beyond the scope of current version of ISO 26262. According to the current functional safety standard, controllability, largely affected by human intervention, is a large contributor to the definition of the Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL). Since the driver involvement in CAVs will decrease in future, this gives no clear definition for future functional safety design. On the other hand, CAVs bring additional capabilities such as advance sensors, telematics-based connectivity etc. which can be used to devise efficient approaches to address functional safety (FuSa) challenges. The caveat to these additional capabilities is issues like cybersecurity, complexity, etc.

At the forefront of intelligent vehicle technologies are vehicle-to-vehicle communication (V2V) and vehicle-infrastructure integration (VII). Their capabilities can be added to currently-available systems, such as adaptive cruise control (ACC), to drastically decrease the number and severity of collisions, to ease traffic flow, and to consequently improve fuel efficiency and environmental friendliness. There has been extensive government, industry, and academic involvement in developing these technologies. This paper explores the capabilities and challenges of vehicle-based technology and examines ways that policymakers can foster implementation at the federal, state, and local levels.

Traffic congestion has become a major problem in the United States. Advanced technologies, referred to as Intelligent Vehicle/Highway Systems (IVHS), offer the best solution. IVHS allow communication between vehicle and highway. IVHS include Advanced Traffic Management Systems, Advanced Driver Information Systems, Commercial Vehicle Operations, and Automated Vehicle Control Systems. IVHS offer to reduce congestion, enhance safety, increase productivity, and improve U.S. competitiveness. IVHS development programs are underway in Europe and Japan. No national IVHS program exists in the United States. Three questions are asked. Is there need for a national IVHS program? Which system is intelligent, the vehicle or the highway? Which system comes first, the vehicle or the highway? Public and private sector cooperation is needed. The federal government will coordinate efforts between state and local governments and private industry.

The Intelligent Ground Vehicle Competition (IGVC) is a multidisciplinary exercise in product realization for college engineering students. They design, build, and compete with autonomous vehicles in events ranging from lane following, obstacle avoidance, platooning, to Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation. Technologies involved include electronic controls, computer-based vision systems, object detection, rangefinding, and global positioning. The real world applications are in intelligent transportation systems, the military, and manufacturing automation. Students have been creative and have learned a great deal. Industry recruiters have been highly supportive.

The Corporate Research of Infineon Technologies AG developed an intelligent vision system, which fulfills the requirement of a programmable, compact and cheap solution with high computational power. The core of our vision system is a processor called VIP (Vision Instruction Processor). A prototype is available and executes 53 GOps at 120 MHz. Furthermore a CMOS-camera was developed. The next design in 0.1 μm CMOS-technology (ready in 2004) allows the integration of camera, VIP and memory on an area of 60mm2. Prototypes in the field of driver assistance were developed. Performance results will be presented.

Today, commercially available drones have limited use-cases in the rapidly evolving community. However, with advances in drone and software technology, it is possible to utilize these aerial machines to solve problems in a variety of industries such as mining, medical, construction, and law enforcement. For example, in order to reduce time of investigation, Indiana State Police are currently utilizing ad-hoc commercial drones to reconstruct crash scenes for insurance and legal purposes. In this paper, we illustrate how to effectively integrate drones for in-vehicle services and real-time prediction for automotive applications. In order to accomplish this, we first integrate simpler controls such as voice-commands to control the drone from the vehicle. Next, we build smart prediction software that monitors vehicle behavior and reacts in real-time to collisions.

Warning lights and beacons on service vehicles such as maintenance trucks, tow trucks, utility service vehicles and delivery vehicles are an important line of defense for the workers who operate them. These flashing lights can also contribute to visual chaos making it difficult to navigate through a work zone location. Research on the flashing configuration and spatial and temporal coordination of warning lights that could adapt to ambient conditions and situations is described, leading to recommendations for preliminary performance specifications

Due to alternate local heating and cooling (Thermal cycles) during welding, complex stresses occur and so residual stresses and angular distortion occur after welding. The residual stresses and angular distortion present in the welded components cause internal cracks and mismatching of welded automobile structures. Also the tensile residual stresses in area near the weldment may cause fractures under certain conditions whereas compressive residual stresses in the base plate may reduce buckling strength of structural members. Hence a welding system which is capable of predicting and acting according to it is the need of the hour. It is difficult to obtain a more reliable complete analytical solution to predict angular distortion and maximum residual stresses for a wide range of welding processes, materials and process parameters.

This paper introduces intelligent headrest using DC motor, photo sensor, and piezo sensor. Intelligent headrest which follows driver''s head during driving can protect driver''s neck efficiently when the vehicle is crashed from rear direction. This paper, we propose an intelligent method of headrest movement. For this method, at first, we had to obtain the optimum information that is the gap between driver''s head and headrest from 10 tested people who included beginner and expert drivers. At second, we developed new control method using this data. As it were, if driver''s head moves forward, headrest has to follow to driver''s head, or else if driver push headrest, headrest has to move backward. For this method, we used photo and piezo sensors. The photo sensor was installed to check the distance between head and headrest, and the piezo sensor was installed to check pressure from driver''s head to headrest.

Stricter emission limitations for NOx and particulates in mobile applications will require the use of active aftertreatment methods like Diesel Particulate Filters (DPF), Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) with urea and Lean NOx Trap (LNT) as combinations in the 2010's. Due to the significant total space and required investments, a lot of efforts have been focused recently on the optimization of the combinatory aftertreatment systems (ATS). In this study the possibilities to intensify the catalytic ATS were analyzed and reviewed by the examples and studies with engines, laboratory reactors and simulations. The focus was on diesel applications, where the number of needed ATS units is the widest. The diesel engine modifications on SCR or EGR engines have to be also designed together with ATS. The intensification includes the principles of down-sizing and the integration of ATS units with control systems.

A number of the qualitatively new technological process in the electrotechnical installation for processing the life support products are implemented when the mass transfer in the solution is controlled by application of the magnetic fields (for Hartmann numbers Ha = 0…4). Analysis of active zones in the boundary layers, in the artificial turbulent areas in the near membrane zones modelled analytically and numerically allows to formulate principles for designing the intensive and optimal technologies and for selection of the technological modes for the electrochemical system operation. The mathematical model of interaction of the hydrodynamic, electric and magnetic fields in the electrochemical system is considered.

Impending Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations will place severe limits on exhaust emissions of heavy duty diesel engines for urban bus and highway truck applications. To meet this challenge an intensifier-injector system for natural gas fueling of diesel engines is being developed. The intensifier-injector concept employs electronically-controlled, late-cycle, direct injection of high-pressure natural gas with a pilot quantity of diesel fuel. Preliminary performance and emissions data are presented to indicate the potential for diesel engine efficiencies with reduced emissions with this method of natural-gas fueling.

This paper presents the results of computer simulation of thermal and stressed-strained states of steel parts of complicated configuration during quenching. It should be noted that there are a high level of hardware and software developed which is used for computations of thermal and stressed-strained states of steel parts. However, a further progress is restrained by a lack of material properties and heat transfer characteristics databases needed for calculations. Use of intensive steel quenching methods in practice can save millions of dollars and improve environmental conditions. In spite of this no good results of calculations can be achieved without an appropriate database. It is suggested to solve this problem by joining efforts of different companies and scientists. Two companies, the Intensive Technologies Ltd of Kyiv, Ukraine and IQ Technologies Inc of Akron, Ohio have already started this work.

Human drivers navigate by continuously predicting the intent of road users and interacting with them. For safe autonomous driving, research about predicting future trajectory of vehicles and motion planning based on these predictions has drawn attention in recent years. Most of these studies, however, did not take into account driver’s intentions or any interdependence with other vehicles. In order to drive safely in real complex driving situations, it is essential to plan a path based on other driver’s intentions and simultaneously to estimate the intentions of other road user with different characteristics as human drivers do. We aim to tackle the above challenges on highway merge scenario where the intention of other road users should be understood. In this study, we propose an intention aware motion planning method using finite state machine and model predictive control without any vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) or vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications.