Autonomous vehicle-following systems : a virtual trailer link model

Through the use of a virtual trailer link model, autonomous vehicle following capabilities have been demonstrated. The principle is based on the modelling of the trailer link, used in the off-hooked trailer system, as a virtual link between the leading and led vehicles. The leader vehicle is modelled as the tractor (towing vehicle) and the follower vehicle as the trailer (towed vehicle). This method enables our autonomous vehicle to follows the estimated trajectory of the virtual trailer, which is predicted from observations of the maneuvers of the lead vehicle. Unlike conventional methods, in our system, neither communication links between two vehicles nor the installation of special road infrastructures are needed for the implementation. Communication system may failed and the installation of road infrastructures are costly. We show that system response of the virtual trailer link model is much smoother. A series of simulations and experimental results have indicated the validity of the proposed method.