A decentralized control approach for an automated highway system

A partially decentralized control hierarchy for an automated highway system, which involves a post-deterministic synchronous control policy, is presented. This hierarchy is characterized by control flexibility, an efficient distribution of the computational load, minimal communications between wayside and the controlled vehicles, minimal trip time delay and trip time variance, and energy efficiency. It incorporates a "local" solution to the most difficult problems -- saturation and conflict resolution at merging junctions -- encountered in normal (nonemergency) operations, and operations could be sustained at lower levels if a higher level(s) were to fail.