Research Needs Vehicle Track

1
Research Needs Vehicle Track

• Prepared for
• AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety
• Donna C. Nelson, Ph.D.
• Transportation Perspectives, Inc
• dcnelson_at_t-perspectives.com

2
Scope Focus of Vehicle Track

• Workshop Tracks
• Human Factors
• Vehicles
• Highway/Infrastructure

• Vehicle Track Scope
• Vehicle performance and design
• In-vehicle technologies
• Vehicle-related regulatory and policy research
• ??

• Focus
• Focus is on long-term research needs 5 to 10
  years out.
• Discussion of basic research at discretion of
  participants

3
Whitepaper Objectives

• Identify future research needs related to vehicle
  safety.
• Provide an overview of current and planned
  research related to vehicle safety
• Set out a preliminary or strawman list of
  future research needs and gaps.

Paper developed to stimulate discussion,
complete review and synthesis not intended.
4
Where will we be in five years?

• Changes in vehicle fleet
• Introduction market penetration of advanced
  vehicle technologies
• Alternative fuel vehicles
• Fuel efficiency
• Results from current round of DOT initiatives
• Large-scale field tests of VII underway
• Changes in US population demographics

5
Literature Review
Focused on

• Existing USDOT Research and Program Plans with
  vehicle-safety elements.
• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
  (NHTSA)
• Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
  (FMCSA)
• Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)
• New USDOT Initiatives and Exploratory
  Initiatives.
• Emerging vehicle technologies and systems
• Other materials and documents identifying
  emerging and future safety-related research gaps
  and needs, and discussions with vehicle-safety
  experts.

6
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Safety Rulemaking and Research Priorities

• Priority Areas (2001-2004)
• Increasing safety belt use, reducing impaired
  driving, addressing vehicle rollovers and vehicle
  crash incompatibility, improving data systems.

• Near term (2005-2006) regulatory priorities
• Rollovers, large truck tires, side impact
  protection, tire pressure monitoring systems,
  event data recorders, performance of child
  restraint systems (CRS) for larger children.
• Longer term (2007-2009) potential actions
• Research on tire bead unseating and tire
  strength, rulemaking on truck trailer antilock
  brake (ABS) performance.

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Federal Motor Carrier Safety Admin.

• (FMCSA) Office of Research Federal Motor Carrier
  Safety Administration and Technology Plan
• Reduce commercial motor vehicle-related crashes,
  fatalities, injuries, and losses, and enhance
  operational efficiency.
• Improve truck and motorcoach performance through
  vehicle-based safety technologies.
• Safety focus areas address safety belt use,
  tires, conspicuity, car/truck compatibility, and
  the impact of new technologies.

8
Vehicle Infrastructure Cooperation

• Communication between individual vehicles, and
  between vehicles and the infrastructure enables
  applications which
• Improve safety, operations and maintenance.
• Support the needs of the vehicle manufacturers
  and other private interests.
• Safety applications include
• Active safety warning system applications,
• Crash and incident response applications,
• Advance warnings of hazards, and
• Data collection to improve traffic and roadway
  safety
• Maintenance applications with safety
  implications.

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US DOT ITS Initiatives

• Integrated Vehicle-based Safety Systems
• Integrated solutions that address rear-end,
  run-off-road, and lane change crashes.
• Communication of an integrated warning to the
  driver,
• Objective tests and criteria for performance of
  systems
• Field test of integrated vehicle-based safety
  systems

Lane deviation systems
Lane keeping assistance
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US DOT ITS Initiatives

• Cooperative Intersection Collision Avoidance
  Systems
• Develop and demonstrate cooperative intersection
  collision avoidance systems for both violations
  and gaps
• Assess the value and acceptance of CICA systems
• Develop tools to support industry deployments
  and
• Support research, systems integration activities
• Produce a system prototype and a large-scale
  field operational test by 2009.
• Formal work plan under development

11
USDOT Exploratory Initiatives

• Exploratory short-duration initiatives underway
• Vehicle Infrastructure Integration (VII) for
  Mobility,
• Vehicle Assist and Automation Systems,
• ITS Technologies to Reduce Pedestrian Injuries
  and Fatalities
• Teen Driving Electronic Report Card, and
• Wireless Truck and Bus Inspection.
• Evaluated within a year of start-up, continued as
  "Tier One" initiatives or will be discontinued.

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USDOT Exploratory Initiatives

• Vehicle Assist Automation Systems for Transit
  Operations
• Address safety in difficult operating conditions,
  such as main-tenance yards, narrow lanes or
  bus-only shoulders on freeways.
• Builds on research and development of collision
  warning systems, integrated warning systems and
  lane-assist systems.

• Teen Driving Electronic Report card
• Develop and evaluate the usability, effectiveness
  and acceptability of a vehicle-based Teen Driving
  Electronic Report Card.
• Vehicle-based technologies integrated into a
  device that can operate in real time to sense,
  record, evaluate and provide feedback on driving
  practices.

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Preliminary list

• Research needs topic areas for discussion in
  breakout group

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Vehicle Compatibility Crash Worthiness
Develop vehicle designs that better protect their
own occupants and cause less harm to occupants of
the struck vehicle.

• Vehicle aggressivity
• Heavy vehicle under-runs

• Vehicle partner-protection
• Vehicle self-protection
• Vehicle-to-vehicle compatibility

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Reducing pedestrian injuries
http//world.honda.com/factbook/auto/motorshow/200
310/10.html
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Restraints Injury Prevention

• Advanced/smart restraint systems
• Seatbelt reminders/safety belt interlocks
• Adjustable restraint systems (upper anchorages)
• Roll-over Sensors to deploy air bags in a
  rollover crash.
• Improve roof crush protection and interior
  padding for occupants.

• Reduction of occupant ejection through doors and
  windows
• Improvements to head restraints, airbags

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Crash/Safety Data

• Crash dummies
• Event data recorders
• Commercial vehicle safety data
• Vehicle condition monitoring
• ???

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Pre-crash safety systems
http//www.toyota.co.jp/en/tech/its/program/functi
on/pre_clash.html
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Vehicle lighting, visibility and glare

• Advanced lighting systems
• Adaptive lighting
• New lighting technology
• Vision enhancement systems
• Blindspot camera systems

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Vehicle handling and performance

• Improved Light Vehicle Braking
• Stopping distance disparities between passenger
  cars and LTVs.
• Electronic Braking Systems (EBS) and
  electro-hydraulic systems as possible
  replacements for the hydraulic brake systems now
  in use.
• Electronic brake proportioning, brake assist,
  regenerative brake systems (RBS), and EBS and
  electro-hydraulic systems.

21
Alternative Fuel Vehicles
Ensuring that hydrogen ICE and fuel cell powered
vehicles provide a level of safety comparable to
that of other vehicles currently in use in the
United States.

• Crash-testing of AFV
• Post-crash incident response issues
• Refueling and fuels storage
• Vehicle compatibility

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Motorcoaches

• Emergency evacuation
• Evacuation plans
• Push-out windows/exits
• Window glazing

• Improved braking
• Rollover stability control
• Occupant protection
• roof crush improvements
• advanced restraint systems.

23
Schoolbus Safety

• Current NHTSA research focused on side impact
  protection.
• Topics under consideration include 
• increasing seat back height requiring
  lap/shoulder restraints on smaller buses and test
  procedures for voluntarily installed lap/shoulder
  belts.
• ??

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Older Drivers and Occupants

• Older drivers
• Use of advanced in-vehicle technologies to help
  older drivers meet their driving needs.
• Safely maintain mobility of aging populations.
• Research to evaluate in-vehicle safety technology
  to improve safety for older drivers

• Older Occupants
• Older occupants' vulnerability to injury
• Adequacy of current vehicle interiors and safety
  devices for protecting older occupants.
• Development of age dependent injury criteria

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Accessible motor vehicles
Provide vehicle safety without hindering access
to personal transportation, including allowing
persons with disabilities to drive.

• Functionality and injury potential from installed
  equipment and vehicle modifications.
• Potential for new in-vehicle technologies

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Heavy-vehicle performance

• Braking systems
• Tire pressure monitoring
• Re-tread tire performance

• Vehicle stability
• Vehicle conspicuity
• Heavy vehicle tires
• Vehicle under-runs

http//www.bsmotoring.com/2004/may22_1.htm
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Heavy Vehicles

• Concept of re-designed commercial vehicle with
  safety in mind.

• Extension of VII program to heavy vehicles
• Commercial vehicle safety screenings/wireless
  inspections
• Vehicle parts tracking and maintenance/replacement
  programs.
• Integrated vehicle diagnostics

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Personal Conveyances

• Increasing popularity of personal conveyances
• Low speed vehicles
• Hybrid, power-assisted vehicles
• Standup scooters, pocket bikes
• Evolving designs
• Intended/appropriate uses
• Safety requirements

http//www.electric-scooters-info.com/
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In-vehicle systems

• Emerging technologies
• In-vehicle safety systems
• Vehicle-Infrastructure Integration (VII)
• Cooperative collision avoidance systems
• Advanced sensor technologies
• Advanced vehicle control
• Visibility enhancement

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VII Safety Use Cases

• Turn Conflict Warning
• Advance Warning Information to Vehicles
• Commercial Vehicle Safety Data
• Commercial Vehicle Electronic Clearance
• Just-in-Time Repair Notification

Examples

• Emergency Electronic Brake Lights
• Visibility Enhancer
• Cooperative Vehicle-Highway Automation System
• Pre-Crash Sensing
• Glare Reduction and Adaptive Headlight Aiming
• Adaptive Drivetrain Management
• Cooperative Forward Collision Warning
• Blind Spot Warning and Blind Merge Warning
• Highway Merge Assistant and lane change warning
• Cooperative Collision Warning
• Safety Event Recorder
• Speed Limit Assistant

From VII Architecture and Functional
Requirements
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VII-related issues
Opportunities and challenges presented by VII

• Shared use of VII infrastructure and systems by
  safety and non-safety applications
• Security and use of data produced by vehicles
• System vulnerability to hackers
• Definition of new safety applications enabled by
  VII applications

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Workshop Challenges

• Current programs provide a context.
• We need to speculate
• Likely safety issues and concerns five years out.
• Continuation/evolution of on-going program/topic
  areas
• New/emerging opportunities and challenges

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Contact Information

• Donna Nelson
• dcnelson_at_t-perspectives.com
• 301-977-8963
• www.t-perspectives.com (under construction)