tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12474025024941444812024-02-07T07:00:30.171+01:00Cooperative cars - A blog on Intelligent Transportation SystemsKristoffer writes about his research and other news in the field of vehicular ad-hoc networks and ITS.Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comBlogger90125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-18275366767576156502013-08-07T21:38:00.001+02:002013-08-07T21:38:27.711+02:00From road traffic to web traffic - Blog is being archivedThis blog has served as a good outlet for updates mainly during my PhD studies. As I have just started working on other interesting stuff at <a href="http://www.google.com">Google</a> I have decided to stop updating it.
Thank you for following my work on cooperative cars, and drive safely ;)Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-75331193639689197332013-01-23T18:34:00.000+01:002013-01-23T18:34:16.982+01:00Remote control carsIn an <a href="http://cooperativecars.blogspot.se/2011/10/valeo-park4u.html">earlier post</a> I wrote about automated parking functions that let you step out of your car and watch it park itself. Chinese manufacturer BYD are now marketing a remote control feature that lets you remote-control your car from your key-fob.<br />
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Although it might be an oddball feature used to stand out in the crowded automotive market, the ability to tele-operate a vehicle is interesting. When talking about cooperative and automated vehicles we often only consider either fully autonomous vehicles or driver support functions. Maybe "fake autonomy" using remote human feedback to handle some parts of the driving task is one way forward? Similar to how UAV drones are partially tele-operated, a remote valet driver could park your car for you after having control handed over to him.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/b2bv0E1w2q8" width="400"></iframe>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-13180824629164963972013-01-18T15:59:00.000+01:002013-01-18T15:59:02.469+01:00Reading tip: KPMG report on automated vehicles<a href="http://www.kpmg.com/us/en/issuesandinsights/articlespublications/pages/self-driving-cars-next-revolution.aspx" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbrEyUXrtoDWrNVwX7CVgLvjLaAkwGIYEIX-S6hb6Vf611Og3IPjYouGFwMXpN6a9S97FDMD46NBgduVLGUfT_Os1B4WdtF7kP2LNFu3LfRXlrxqJ-oZf98m0ScdPkD5Yfo8msPO9fuAJU/s200/Screen+Shot+2013-01-18+at+15.55.35+.png" width="153" /></a>The report <a href="http://www.kpmg.com/us/en/issuesandinsights/articlespublications/pages/self-driving-cars-next-revolution.aspx">"Self-driving cars: The next revolution"</a> from KPMG gives a condensed view of the convergence between sensor-based automated vehicles and cooperative vehicles using wireless communication.
Besides the basic technical premises it also delves into areas such as adoption and legal frameworks, well worth a read over the weekend.Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-65183979811874437472013-01-14T16:24:00.001+01:002013-01-14T16:26:28.732+01:00First gen autonomous drivingThe inevitable combination of adaptive cruise-control and lane-following functions into a system that takes over both lateral and longitudinal control is becoming reality. The videos below show both the Mercedes and Volvo versions of such systems.<br />
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The Mercedes video explicitly states the need for the driver to keep his/her hands on the wheel, which is one way of addressing the difficulties of taking a driver out and then back in the driving loop. Will be interesting to see if Volvo chooses the same approach.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/uAtiKk_JSlU" width="400"></iframe>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-53918544892427030332012-08-06T22:15:00.000+02:002012-08-06T22:15:23.105+02:00GCDC Paper Accepted for IEEE Transactions on ITSReally excited about having our write-up of our CACC system for the <a href="http://www.gcdc.net/">Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge</a> accepted to the <a href="http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/RecentIssue.jsp?punumber=6979">IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems</a> (ranked number 13 of all IEEE Electrical and Electronic engineering journals by impact factor).<br />
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In the paper titled "A Modular CACC System Integration and Design" we describe the design principles behind our implementation, details of the various subsystems and results from testing and competition.<br />
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<b>Abstract:</b> <i>This paper describes the Halmstad University entry in the Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge, which is a competition in vehicle platooning. Cooperative platooning has the potential to improve traffic flow by mitigating shock wave effects, which otherwise may occur in dense traffic. A longitudinal controller that uses information exchanged via wireless communication with other cooperative vehicles to achieve string-stable platooning is developed. The controller is integrated into a production vehicle, together with a positioning system, communication system, and human–machine interface (HMI). A highly modular system architecture enabled rapid development and testing of the various subsystems. In the competition, which took place in May 2011 on a closed-off highway in The Netherlands, the Halmstad University team finished second among nine competing teams.</i><br />
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You can find an "early access" version over at <a href="http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/articleDetails.jsp?tp=&arnumber=6236177">IEEE Xplore</a>.Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-21894624220246983812012-06-04T20:43:00.000+02:002012-06-04T20:45:43.449+02:00The Connected HelmetSo for the past few months I have been working on a project we call Safe Social Cycling which takes connectedness beyond just the car. What we have been looking into is how bicycle helmets can be made more attractive by adding functionality beyond just plain old protection.
We looked at it from a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persuasive_technology">persuasive technology</a> perspective and came up with a prototype based on the new <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluetooth_low_energy">Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy</a> protocol which is just starting to establish itself in more and more devices. Coupled with accelerometers and a heart rate sensor a lot of neat features can be implemented.
Take a look at the video below to see some examples of what a connected helmet might be used for!
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/GCjXkeIzkew" width="380"></iframe>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-54536841833848333242011-10-10T08:00:00.000+02:002011-10-10T08:00:00.428+02:00Valeo Park4UOne natural step as autonomous vehicle functions evolve and cars become more and more connected are functions like the Valeo Park4U showed in the video below. This takes park-assist to the next step by allowing the user to initiate a parking maneuver form outside the vehicle using a smartphone. <div><br /><br /><iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/nZP8xaV3lCM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><div><br /></div><div>What's cool here is that it is so close to production. Autonomous "valet-style" parking as showcased by Stanford in the video below suddenly doesn't seem so far away!</div></div> As with many of these functions, it's not so much of an engineering problem as a legal problem...<br /><br /><iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/YVuG7HAt-r4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-80006645592438811942011-10-06T12:53:00.003+02:002011-10-06T13:02:03.207+02:00Halmstad GCDC team wins Swedish Student Embedded Award<a href="http://www.hh.se/images/18.13608a35132c9ae00928000626/111005-embedded-460x300.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 460px; height: 300px;" src="http://www.hh.se/images/18.13608a35132c9ae00928000626/111005-embedded-460x300.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />Yesterday it was announced that the <a href="http://www.gcdc.net">Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge</a> student team from Halmstad University won the <a href="http://www.embeddedpriset.nu/">Swedish Embedded Award</a> in the "Student" category. The prestigious prize is awarded every year to promising projects and products that make use of intelligent embedded systems. Congratulations!<div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-54029266666194981962011-09-13T14:53:00.004+02:002011-09-13T15:06:06.748+02:00I am now @ Viktoria Institute<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJErAdppC5D5Q5F0EPSt2hbORZhhN_YGDM5I74vkq5cigvwmgSzL6173hl4WcxtyAUIySEZayVxHujOuxwWUPBblz4JDS2fBJ3XnF5h7jWit9a7S9bseMIHJSiNf1ouH8y3iSqBtR-D_EJ/s1600/vilogo.gif" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 43px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJErAdppC5D5Q5F0EPSt2hbORZhhN_YGDM5I74vkq5cigvwmgSzL6173hl4WcxtyAUIySEZayVxHujOuxwWUPBblz4JDS2fBJ3XnF5h7jWit9a7S9bseMIHJSiNf1ouH8y3iSqBtR-D_EJ/s320/vilogo.gif" border="0" /></a><div style="text-align: left;">September 1st I started as a researcher at the <a href="http://www.viktoria.se/">Viktoria Institute</a>, a non-profit research institute, within the <a href="http://www.viktoria.se/node/6136">cooperative systems group</a> where I will continue to work with research questions in the domain of intelligent transportation systems.</div><div><div><br /></div><div>Viktoria Institute is located on <a href="http://www.lindholmen.se/en">Lindholmen</a> in Gothenburg which is a vibrant cluster combining industry, academia and institutes efforts in a number of areas, transportation and transportation safety being one.</div><div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div></div>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-58673425601560110462011-06-26T22:53:00.004+02:002011-06-26T23:13:46.675+02:00Finishing up<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.cafepress.com/+thesis_writing_in_progress_large_mug,187174913"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 213px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3RTaHhAMWN-94wQDwNMKlbdQtrug-CVV02qu0gu0VQKZ7smEzbAfpBLJE1v5N-VsKXreFQ0-iZgQL1xAhNxAcjVx6kH_VuvYOfJFVrGen0MRurG1yDqM9yuaAvqR0VFjBXF9vsuAnTwN1/s320/187174913v5_480x480_Front.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5622634741184448002" border="0" /></a>A brief status update: With the Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge over (until the next edition) I am focusing on getting my thesis together during the summer. In it I look not only at how high-frequency short-range wireless communication between vehicles can be utilized to improve for example traffic safety but also at how to address the unreliability of such wireless links. I believe higher-level "awareness" of the communication environment is the way to go to enable applications to adapt to degradations in communication quality.<br /><br />It turns out that a large proportion of situations in which vehicle-to-vehicle communication fails are site-specific and pretty "mappable". In the paper I am finishing up now we show how maps of the radio environment can be built collaboratively by vehicles in the network and also how to evaluate application requirements using a radio map.<br /><br />After the summer there are many new adventures lined up, but for now have a great summer!Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-79826736814162597352011-06-05T23:09:00.002+02:002011-06-05T23:13:42.085+02:00Going to LyonTomorrow 80% of the Halmstad GCDC team are leaving for the <a href="http://2011.itsineurope.com/">8th European ITS Congress</a> in Lyon, France. We have an article in the TS21 session "Coopdriving tests" on Wednesday called "ITS as a tool for teaching cyber-physical systems". Although the title is slightly cryptic the talk will focus on some of the experiences we had participating in the GCDC with a student team.<br /><br />If you're attending and want to meet up, don't hesitate to drop me an email!Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-61604825249924775112011-05-23T11:25:00.005+02:002011-05-23T11:29:09.075+02:00The GCDC diaries: Reuters coverageThis is Reuters take on the GCDC that took place in Helmond, Holland:<br /><br /><iframe frameborder="0" width="350" height="196" src="http://www.dailymotion.com/embed/video/xiqt1b?width=350"></iframe><br /><a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xiqt1b_clever-cars-the-next-generation_news" target="_blank">Clever cars - the next generation</a> <i>by <a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/tvnportal" target="_blank">tvnportal</a></i>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-36158339000065852882011-05-20T16:49:00.003+02:002011-05-20T16:51:18.302+02:00The GCDC diaries: Movie from the competitionThe media students from Halmstad that have been following the Swedish teams put together a short movie from the competition this past week. They are also working on a longer movie about the Swedish GCDC effort in the CoAct project.<br /><br /><iframe width="400" height="300" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/hN6Yv0yG8dg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-86567369349414223292011-05-15T19:55:00.002+02:002011-05-15T20:12:35.983+02:00The GCDC diaries: Second place!The results are in, Halmstad University finished a close second after team Annieway from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology.<br /><br />The final ranking in the Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge 2011 is as follows:<br /><br />1. Team Annieway, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, DE<br />2. Team Halmstad, Halmstad University, SE<br />3. Team Chalmers, Chalmers University of Technology, SE<br />4. Scoop, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), SE<br />5. Team Autopia, Center for Automation and Robotics, Spain<br />6. ATeam, Technical University Eindhoven, NL<br />7. Team Mekar, Istanbul Technical University, Turkey / Ohio State University USA<br />8. Team Futurum, Fontys Hogenscholen, Univ. of Twente and Waterloo Univ., NL<br />9. University of Latvia, LV<br /><br />We are proud to have participated in the GCDC with all these great teams!Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-70475222222935940742011-05-15T07:13:00.004+02:002011-05-15T07:15:56.145+02:00The GCDC diaries: GCDC movieThe GCDC organization produced this great movie of the preparations for the competition.<br /><br /><iframe width="350" height="300" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/lmRifLzw8iA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-78740921628757436962011-05-14T20:29:00.003+02:002011-05-14T20:40:39.642+02:00The GCDC diaries: First day of competition<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3aSDwUgYj5Je1lPKkJTMEIMuDigJ0pdNQnoN3kWLF66gXYjL59XXuHnu62_JdjFFPBttZe99vjiz_CE1LgNkyLQtadqafxtzOddWPSvUmUoinK7xBtL5x430J0PPoKCnYnzxVphKg5o4d/s1600/IMG_2505_small.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3aSDwUgYj5Je1lPKkJTMEIMuDigJ0pdNQnoN3kWLF66gXYjL59XXuHnu62_JdjFFPBttZe99vjiz_CE1LgNkyLQtadqafxtzOddWPSvUmUoinK7xBtL5x430J0PPoKCnYnzxVphKg5o4d/s320/IMG_2505_small.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606643493889611266" /></a><br />Saturday was the first day of the actual GCDC competition heats. We had a long day with multiple heats where vehicles of all shapes and sizes competed together. Although some teams were less cooperative than others, mainly by transmitting information of dubious quality, we managed to run a number of heats with successful multi-vendor platooning.<br /><br />After this first competition day the preliminary results indicate that out of 9 competing teams Chalmers is in the lead, closely followed by Halmstad/Autopia/Futurum at a shared second place and Scoop/Annieway in third. The results are based on quite a small set of runs so performance during tomorrow's competition, especially regarding string-stability, will definitely define the final ranking.Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-6920597882398424332011-05-11T09:02:00.005+02:002011-05-11T09:10:16.394+02:00The GCDC diaries: Teaser video<iframe width="400" height="300" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/KA8m1AAyAus" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br />We put together a short video of some of the testing action up until now.Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-9665299269166970392011-05-10T19:00:00.003+02:002011-05-10T19:05:35.462+02:00The GCDC diaries: Tuesday testing<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ATHJl3tPAk9cxhMXcS9f21M6pKcfYJj6PxLWeKyWClECAUAgwZihBdBPSw_LSIk-hNBhx-jctUuxhwESJwkDMZfX1j-AmjKMU2f2hRhWNEU66K9gWww3VtW4MDR7Unm2moF7BaSupoPO/s1600/GCDC+065_small.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ATHJl3tPAk9cxhMXcS9f21M6pKcfYJj6PxLWeKyWClECAUAgwZihBdBPSw_LSIk-hNBhx-jctUuxhwESJwkDMZfX1j-AmjKMU2f2hRhWNEU66K9gWww3VtW4MDR7Unm2moF7BaSupoPO/s320/GCDC+065_small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605134665746447202" border="0" /></a><br />Today we spent a lot of time testing communication between our vehicle and the infrastructure. In the competition there will be an urban scenario where the platoons start standing still and then proceed together past two cooperative traffic lights. By knowing exactly when the traffic light changes all the vehicles can start at the same time and pass through more quickly, this increases the capacity of the road and helps avoid traffic congestion.Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-52513024685170596742011-05-09T11:59:00.003+02:002011-05-09T12:04:04.542+02:00The GCDC diaries: Rainy morningYesterday we passed a few important testing milestones. We successfully showed that our vehicle could follow both a conservative as well as aggressive acceleration profile autonomously and that all our safety override functions work as expected.<br /><br />The A270 highway was closed down for most of the day for GCDC testing and we got an opportunity to do a trial-run with the actual speed profile that will be used next weekend.<br /><br />As rainstorms roll in over Helmond we continue testing comfortably in the VeHIL hall.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibACaby4-Rovdvccsz6VxRaKW3-d-HvaSeSQ7dkJchB8YTbcu28MDIrLkAwSCQxcM9602kqqslH2DvU24by50ZRAskev5t68IWZMRiSGHqu3d8_pcCC9qKxYDK18z-uE92P83_F_bZ_d_T/s1600/GCDC+048_small.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibACaby4-Rovdvccsz6VxRaKW3-d-HvaSeSQ7dkJchB8YTbcu28MDIrLkAwSCQxcM9602kqqslH2DvU24by50ZRAskev5t68IWZMRiSGHqu3d8_pcCC9qKxYDK18z-uE92P83_F_bZ_d_T/s320/GCDC+048_small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5604654968189351746" border="0" /></a>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-54974866932154113982011-05-07T15:03:00.004+02:002011-05-07T22:43:26.200+02:00The GCDC diaries: On-site in HelmondAfter a 12 hour non-stop drive the Halmstad and Chalmers teams arrived safely in the Netherlands on Friday night. Saturday morning we set up at TNO's facilities, in the <a href="http://www.tno.nl/content.cfm?context=thema&content=markt_product&laag1=894&laag2=59&laag3=216&item_id=1416&Taal=2">VeHIL facility</a> which is used for testing intelligent vehicles. VeHIL is absolutely huge and we were able to do some cooperative driving tests indoors for the first time.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCJigTrblesITv212B2KMKYTqCpOtV0NjJWfrP6Epmb5-mvsXgs6VwqLhDNSkx9b2-On5iKYEYb85FO353u7xyiAHcVqhdv_ikdB8vEaZ4hNaFKdNjrsufFMogCwQS4t8PLBUFmfLuD6T2/s1600/GOPR0203_small.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCJigTrblesITv212B2KMKYTqCpOtV0NjJWfrP6Epmb5-mvsXgs6VwqLhDNSkx9b2-On5iKYEYb85FO353u7xyiAHcVqhdv_ikdB8vEaZ4hNaFKdNjrsufFMogCwQS4t8PLBUFmfLuD6T2/s320/GOPR0203_small.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5604074164146069666" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWAhJBH-H45Hf_DVKODdYXOnH6cQDIs6RZYGeD58hrF4l9-W9P-rVZCU_oJxT55sFjaQhnzz7lkFICFCYuAVmDmfh-Rc92hluHI4q4lX2J_3SA6gm-KN8Ls_JXUYkNMgwzarMzmnXa97GY/s1600/GOPR0206_small.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWAhJBH-H45Hf_DVKODdYXOnH6cQDIs6RZYGeD58hrF4l9-W9P-rVZCU_oJxT55sFjaQhnzz7lkFICFCYuAVmDmfh-Rc92hluHI4q4lX2J_3SA6gm-KN8Ls_JXUYkNMgwzarMzmnXa97GY/s320/GOPR0206_small.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5604075505171213218" border="0" /></a><br />During Saturday we took care of the administrative checks as well as braking and vehicle inspections. Coming up tomorrow Sunday is a dress-rehearsal for the competition; the A270 highway between Eindhoven and Helmond has been shut down for GCDC testing purposes. This will be as close as we can come to the real competition scenario before the actual competition weekend.Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-778822794045745132011-05-05T11:54:00.004+02:002011-05-05T13:22:49.891+02:00The GCDC diaries: About to leave for HelmondFor the past year I have had the pleasure to lead a team made up of students from Halmstad University working on adapting a Volvo S60 into a vehicle capable of cooperatively following other vehicles in a so-called platoon. The plan is to take part in an international competition called the Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge (GCDC). Tomorrow we set off for a week of testing at the competition site in Helmond, NL before the actual competition on the 14:th and 15th of May.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-MoGejG2HMXAhUXzv9XPM-PYDC4uHPUufemEBG0e3rL5-0leHdoQkNDYHvKZKuynIBs4fuK9qwK7aKWIM6s1idu9mSG14u62ZuWVnsebe3AE9JRz5PvM6MKkdwFOBBgZFvFw_kLhV3XxF/s1600/StoraHolmDay2_040_small.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-MoGejG2HMXAhUXzv9XPM-PYDC4uHPUufemEBG0e3rL5-0leHdoQkNDYHvKZKuynIBs4fuK9qwK7aKWIM6s1idu9mSG14u62ZuWVnsebe3AE9JRz5PvM6MKkdwFOBBgZFvFw_kLhV3XxF/s320/StoraHolmDay2_040_small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5603177772674432130" border="0" /></a><br />I plan to dedicate the blog to regular posts about what is happening at the GCDC test site over the coming days, and of course during the competition weekend. For those of you that are reading this blog for the first time I have tried to sum up some key points about the GCDC and cooperative driving in the form of questions and answers below.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">What is the Grand Cooperative Driving Challenge?</span><br />-<a href="http://www.gcdc.net/">The GCDC</a> is a competition to promote, develop and explore cooperative technologies for increasing traffic safety, efficiency and comfort. It is organized by the Dutch organization TNO for the first time this year.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Do you drive real cars?</span><br />Yes, we use a new <a href="http://www.volvocars.com/us/all-cars/volvo-s60/Pages/default.aspx">Volvo S60</a> adapted so that gas and brake can be controlled by our software. Lateral control is performed by a safety driver who can also override the system at any time.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">What do you mean by "cooperative technologies"?</span><br />Vehicles in the GCDC use wireless communication (a variant of good old WLAN adapted to the vehicular domain) to send information about themselves to other vehicles. This information includes the precise location, speed and heading of the vehicle but also platooning specific messages. A platoon is a group of vehicles that have negotiated with each other and agreed to form a group where the lead vehicle determines the speed for the followers. By communicating with each other the vehicles can react quickly to changes in speed, thus enabling them to better use the road surface and drive more economically as well as more safely.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">I've seen platooning before, what's new about this?</span><br />Platooning is an old concept and demos have been performed (e.g. <a href="http://www.path.berkeley.edu/nahsc/">Demo '97</a> as part of the PATH project). What is a defining aspect of the GCDC is that we have no idea how the other teams have chosen to implement their platooning system. Just like in the real world we cannot expect to be in a platoon with vehicles that have been developed and tested together, instead we must address the uncertainty about other vehicles behavior in our system design. Recognizing and addressing this uncertainty is key to successful deployment of these types of technologies.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">How do you compete in cooperation?</span><br />Teams are randomly divided into platoons and scoring is based on both individual performance as well as on the collective performance of the platoon in an urban and a highway scenario. By reorganizing the platoons between heats a vehicle that has been on winning teams often is likely to have been a good team player. See the <a href="http://www.gcdc.net/mainmenu/Home/technology/Rules_and_Technology/Rules_%26_Technology_Document_v2_12042011">Rules and Technology Document</a> for details on judging.Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-18130856503906944182011-04-11T11:12:00.003+02:002011-04-11T11:23:48.508+02:00Testing@CityArena<div style="text-align: left;">Last week we were invited up to test with the Chalmers team at the "<a href="http://www.cityarena.se/">City Arena</a>" (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%B6teborg_City_Race">wiki</a>) track in Gothenburg. The track has been used for touring car racing and is located pretty much right in the middle of Gothenburg. An interesting effect we saw was how far our 5.9GHz radio range was extended, even in non-line of sight. We speculate that the metal guard-rails and shipping containers placed along the track might give rise to a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waveguide">wave-guide</a> effect.<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx90zFcR-AL7s9h2uDezqVzmC0Ga6gJeSnwLQ7DI34JDXqvBlCrNfddQ_HvaDuKt5phsN_CGZa5fHrHc6nl2h5WH72woA_p1ovYWc1kuq_f-FmNSqrmhm3lWzrmbYuAne-XdzzQ9VcdYXU/s1600/TL+035.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx90zFcR-AL7s9h2uDezqVzmC0Ga6gJeSnwLQ7DI34JDXqvBlCrNfddQ_HvaDuKt5phsN_CGZa5fHrHc6nl2h5WH72woA_p1ovYWc1kuq_f-FmNSqrmhm3lWzrmbYuAne-XdzzQ9VcdYXU/s320/TL+035.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5594252945171681698" border="0" /></a>The clip below shows a (slightly faster than ours) lap of the track.<br /><br /><CENTER><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/-ZwJ_WQPd_8" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="290" width="400"></iframe></CENTER>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-66227983886026390022011-04-02T22:57:00.004+02:002011-04-02T23:00:14.225+02:00Thrun@TEDBelow is a short TED presentation by Sebastian Thrun, director of the Stanford AI lab, talking about his motivation for working with autonomous vehicles and some footage from various projects like the DARPA challenges and more recently the Google project on autonomous driving.<br /><br /><object width="446" height="326"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"/><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff"></param> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talk/stream/2011/Blank/SebastianThrun_2011-320k.mp4&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/SebastianThrun_2011-embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=1109&lang=&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=sebastian_thrun_google_s_driverless_car;year=2011;theme=tales_of_invention;theme=what_s_next_in_tech;theme=a_taste_of_ted2011;theme=new_on_ted_com;theme=design_like_you_give_a_damn;event=TED2011;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;" /><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" pluginspace="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" bgColor="#ffffff" width="446" height="326" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talk/stream/2011/Blank/SebastianThrun_2011-320k.mp4&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/SebastianThrun_2011-embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=1109&lang=&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=sebastian_thrun_google_s_driverless_car;year=2011;theme=tales_of_invention;theme=what_s_next_in_tech;theme=a_taste_of_ted2011;theme=new_on_ted_com;theme=design_like_you_give_a_damn;event=TED2011;"></embed></object>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-91317842031841581242011-03-28T16:22:00.003+02:002011-03-28T16:30:12.225+02:00Truckin'The short inter-vehicle distances at high speeds that are typical for platooning can make anyone nervous but having a 15 tonne Scania truck fill up your rear view mirror (as in the platooning we did on the last day of Stora Holm) adds a bit to the experience :)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg74blXNjPypXq4jPV3K441G0-SJQrkSw9cT1S-MeE7Ewo8iHvH56IFLPrJFIuAAVBbNavoOAeOPEvBq3vP7DCiiVx2iXohGJLoFaZEtINwJWHE_TFSpcL67y8Oc9HzjhxeFJa-JbKZNJK/s1600/StoraHolmDay3+160_small.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 277px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg74blXNjPypXq4jPV3K441G0-SJQrkSw9cT1S-MeE7Ewo8iHvH56IFLPrJFIuAAVBbNavoOAeOPEvBq3vP7DCiiVx2iXohGJLoFaZEtINwJWHE_TFSpcL67y8Oc9HzjhxeFJa-JbKZNJK/s320/StoraHolmDay3+160_small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589137759119803826" border="0" /></a>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247402502494144481.post-78911699721590442372011-03-27T23:47:00.007+02:002011-03-27T23:55:07.339+02:00"The science behind traffic jams"The below infographic gives a brief overview of some of the causes of shockwave effects in dense traffic. By now we all know that we can add "cooperative platooning" to the list of countermeasures.<br /><br /><a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.autoblog.com/2011/02/28/the-science-behind-traffic-jams-infographic/" href="http://www.autoblog.com/2011/03/05/the-science-behind-traffic-jams-infographic/"><img width=400 data-cke-saved-src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2011/02/science-of-traffic-jams-opt.png" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2011/02/science-of-traffic-jams-opt.png" alt="Why Traffic Jams Happen" border="0" /></a><br />Via: <a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.carinsurance.org" href="http://www.carinsurance.org">Car Insurance Guide</a>Kristofferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09710720761208914204noreply@blogger.com