In-Vehicle Virtual Traffic Lights

IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems, 2016

In 2012, 683 000 crashes occurred at stop-signcontrolled intersections, with 2434 of those crashes being fatal and composing 5.3% of all fatal traffic incidents in the United States. Roughly 50% of all fatal crashes at stop-sign-controlled intersections involve crossing over (i.e., running) the traffic control device. With the advent of connected-vehicle technology, it is possible to provide a salient in-vehicle adaptive stop display to a driver. This display could alert a driver when he or she will have to stop at an intersection due to oncoming traffic. The same display could also permit drivers to pass through an intersection without stopping when a conflicting vehicle is not present. The purpose of this paper was to evaluate these potential improvements in safety and mobility through an empirical research study. An in-vehicle adaptive stop display was developed and tested on the Virginia Smart Road. Forty-nine drivers were exposed to multiple intersection scenarios they would experience in the real world while using connected-vehicle technology. The scenarios included variations in adjacent traffic, equipment malfunctions, and total equipment failures. There were no indications of a safety detriment to using the adaptive stop display in terms of compliance (likelihood of driver adhering to the information presented), driver complacency, or driver risk taking. Furthermore, the study indicates that, with a higher measured rate of compliance, an in-vehicle adaptive stop display would have a positive impact on safety.

Transportation Research Part F-traffic Psychology and Behaviour, 2004

There are compelling research findings that using landmarks such as traffic lights as navigation cues can enhance the acceptability, usability and safety of vehicle navigation systems. In this study, 30 participants undertook an on-road trial using simulated navigation instructions that omitted any reference to distance-to-turn, and instead incorporated information requiring drivers to count traffic lights and pedestrian lights. The study results confirmed that traffic lights can be used as navigation cues even when the density of traffic lights along a stretch of road is high and that the term “set of traffic lights” results in slightly better performance than “traffic lights” alone. Factors other than density were found to have an effect on navigation performance. More errors were made if the target turn was at a pedestrian light and if the turn was visually complex or concealed. In the absence of a navigation task, most drivers did not differentiate between traffic and pedestrian lights when counting the occurrences and only experienced difficulty in counting when the number exceeded 4. Implications for the design of future navigation systems are highlighted.

2003

This paper presents the results of a study that evaluated driver’s comprehension,of several experimental,five-section protected/permissive left-turn (PPLT) signal displays using a full-scale driving simulator and static driver study. Study methods,were compared,while evaluating driver’s comprehension,and response to various combinations,of five-section PPLT signal display arrangements (horizontal, vertical, and cluster) and permissive left-turn indications

1993

Abstract: The purpose of these experiments was to examine the safety and ease of use of simulated driver information system interfaces and to provide data that might be used to certify those qualities. In the first experiment, 6 pairs of drivers (12 participants) drove an ...

IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems, 2016

Architectures, Applications, and Test Fields

There is great concern over growing road accidents and associated fatalities. In order to reduce accidents, improve congestion and offer smooth flow of traffic, several measures, such as providing intelligence to transport, providing communication infrastructure along the road, and vehicular communication, are being undertaken. Traffic safety information broadcast from traffic lights using Visible Light Communication (VLC) is a new cost effective technology which assists drivers in taking necessary safety measures. This chapter presents the VLC broadcast system considering LED-based traffic lights. It discusses the integration of traffic light Roadside Units (RSUs) with upcoming Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) architecture. Some of the offered services using this technology in vehicular environment together with future directions and challenges are discussed. A prototype demonstrator of the designed VLC systems is also presented.

2017

This study provided baseline data on how subjects approached intersections to support a follow-on study of augmented reality crash warnings. Twenty-four licensed drivers (12 ages 18-30, 12 greater than age 65) drove through 71 urban, signalized intersections in a fixed-base driving simulator while following a lead vehicle. Five types of conflicts were simulated at 10 intersections, straight crossing path (SCP), left turn across pathopposite direction (LTAP/OD), left turn across pathlateral direction (LTAP/LD), left turn into path (LTIP), and right turn into path (RTIP). The probability of stopping at yellow light was = e x /(1+e x), where x =-5.84-0.01*gap to stop line + 1.49*yellow light timing-2.93*pedal position + 0.29*age + 0.15*gender, accounting for 19% of the variance because of individual differences. Subject vehicle approach speed to the intersection varied by conflict type and traffic light color and timing. When approaching a green light, 21% of subjects slowed down for LTAP/OD conflicts and 27% slowed down for RTIP. For yellow lights, when subjects chose to run light, they never slowed down for LTAP/OD. The approach speed to an intersection was = 13.70-0.17*gap to stop line-5.38*run or not + 0.07*conflict or not + 3.21*yellow light timing 2.8 s-0.18*yellow light timing 3.5 s-1.58*age, with an R 2 of 0.74.

Critical traffic problems such as accidents and traffic congestion require the development of new transportation systems. Research in perceptual and human factors assessment is needed for relevant and correct display of this information for maximal road traffic safety as well as optimal driver comfort. One of the solutions to prevent accidents is to provide information on the surrounding environment of the driver. The development and deployment of cooperative vehicular safety systems undeniably require a combination of dedicated wireless communications, computer vision, and AR technologies as the building blocks of cooperative safety systems. Augmented Reality Head-Up Display (AR-HUD) can facilitate a new form of dialogue between the vehicle and the driver; and enhance ITS by superimposing surrounding traffic information on the users view and keep drivers view on roads. In this paper, we propose a fast deeplearning-based object detection approaches for identifying and recognizing road obstacles types, as well as interpreting and predicting complex traffic situations. A single Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) predicts region of interest and class probabilities directly from full images in one evaluation. We also investigated potential costs and benefits of using dynamic conformal AR cues in improving driving safety. A new AR-HUD approach to create real-time interactive traffic animations was introduced in terms of types of obstacle, rules for placement and visibility, and projection of these on an in-vehicle display.

2016

In recent years, a wave of technological innovations have turned many of the gadgets we use into smart devices. However, some areas of industry remain somewhat isolated from modernization with little to no improvements in their overall functionality. Traffic lights at an intersection are a perfect example of a technology that has remained behind the times. While there is a lot of potential for reducing CO2 gas emissions, oil consumption, and commuting times, research in this area has resulted in minor changes. In this thesis, we improve on what others have learned to provide a solution in vehicle coordination that is smart, practical and innovative. We leverage the power of Vehicle Ad-hoc Networks (VANET’s) to develop a Vehicle Traffic Dashboard Light System that can gather realtime traffic information to effectively coordinate vehicles crossing a 4-way intersection. In detail, we developed a Lazy Algorithm that focuses on reducing vehicular average waiting times, maximizing interse...

We are very pleased to introduce the Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference on Automotive User Interfaces and Interactive Vehicular Applications (AutomotiveUI'14). This is the premier forum for user interface (UI) research in the automotive domain. As with previous conferences, the papers and presentations as part of AutomotiveUI'14 addresses novel in-vehicle services, models of and concepts for enhancing the driver experience, driver performance and behavior, development of semi and fully autonomous driving, and the needs of different user groups.

Transportation Research Part F-traffic Psychology and Behaviour, 2005

The relationship between distraction and driving performance: towards a test regime for in-vehicle information systems Commonly special issues are prepared on a specific topic, either on the basis of invited papers to cover a certain research area, or they are based on selected papers from a conference. However, occasionally the common accomplished mission and coherence of a multi-partner project warrant a special issue as well. The now completed European project HASTE (Human machine interface And the Safety of Traffic in Europe) aimed to develop methodologies and guidelines for the assessment of In-Vehicle Information Systems (IVIS). To date, there have been several attempts to provide manufacturers and testing authorities with a set of guidelines to assess the likely impacts of IVIS on the driving task, usually in the form of a checklist. Such checklists provide a tool that enables the identification of likely problems but they do not enable the quantification of safety problems. This project is fundamental to the development of a valid, reliable and efficient tool that will aid testing authorities in their safety evaluation of IVIS. The raison dÕêtre of the effort is quite straightforward. Lately, a large number of technological developments have enabled the rapid increase of applications that can be applied for delivering in the vehicle traffic information and other forms of driver support. In the past the main targeted group was professional drivers but more recently there has been an explosion in systems catering to drivers of private cars. Advanced traffic information and support systems and services potentially contribute to a safe, efficient and environmentally friendly traffic flow. Accurate and timely traffic information can decrease travel times and costs, and also momentary workload as the driver does not have to divert his/her attention to other sources of travel information. However, a potential negative side effect from certain aspects of these new methods of traffic information provision arises from the growing amount of information addressed at road-users. Every new information source could add to the information load of drivers, potentially counteracting the potential benefits of decreased workload from the same information. In order to control negative traffic safety effects, it is necessary to adapt traffic information presentation to current traffic situations and road-user requirements. Only if traffic information is easily accessible, carefully timed, understandable and matched to user needs, will information overload on drivers be

Cognition, Technology & Work, 2015

To develop a driver assistance system with the goal to increase driving efficiency, we aimed at understanding unassisted driving behaviour. With this knowledge we will then be able to estimate the potential of the assistance system to support drivers in avoiding unnecessary deceleration and acceleration when approaching traffic lights and to estimate the amount of influence the driver assistance system could have on normal driving. Efficient driving was defined as driving behaviour that leads to reduced fuel consumption and emissions. In a driving simulator experiment with twelve participants and a within-subjects design drivers approached intersections while the traffic light was either solid green or solid red, or changed from red to green or from green to red during the approach. In addition, we varied whether there was a lead vehicle present and manipulated visibility through the presence or absence of fog. Driving speed, acceleration and pedal usage were analysed and interpreted due to their relation with fuel consumptions and emissions, which is well known from the literature. Participants avoided strong accelerations and decelerations when approaching a solid green traffic light compared to a changing red to green traffic light. Speed was reduced earlier, when the traffic light was solid red compared to when the traffic light changed from green to red. Higher visibility in the non-fog conditions compared to the fog condition was only an advantage in terms of more efficient driving behaviour when the traffic light phase did not change during the approach. The potential for improvements in driving efficiency was higher when drivers were in free driving compared to when following a lead vehicle. We propose that approaching traffic light intersections takes place in three phases: an orientation, a preparation and a realisation phase. A driver assistance system is expected to improve drivers' anticipation of the driving scene and could recommend efficient driving behaviour in all three phases.

International Journal of Advanced Computer Science and Applications, 2021

Driving in an unfamiliar traffic regulation using an unfamiliar vehicle configuration contributes to increase number of traffic accidents. In these circumstances, a driver needs to have what is referred to as ‘situation awareness’ (SA). SA is divided into (level 1) perception of environmental cues, (level 2) comprehension of the perceived cues in relation to the current situation and (level 3) projection of the status of the situation in the near future. On the other hand, augmented feedback (AF) is used to enhance the performance of a certain task. In Driving, AF can be provided to drivers via in-vehicle information systems. In this paper, we hypothesize that considering the SA levels when designing AF can reduce the driving errors and thus enhance road safety. To evaluate this hypothesis, we conducted a quantitative study to test the usability of a certain set of feedback and an empirical study using a driving simulator to test the effectiveness of that feedback in terms of improv...

1995

Annually, thousands of highway workers risk serious injury and death from drivers who enter work zones too fast or accelerate after entering the zone and then, because of their excess speed relative to the environmental limitations, have insufficient time to avoid accidents in the zone. Slow-moving vehicles are a problem in reducing traffic flow. This research investigated the effectiveness of a system of pulsing lights, that give the illusion of movement (Phi phenomenon), in causing drivers to unknowingly synchronize their vehicle speed with the light pulses. Forty drivers participated: 20 young (10 female, 10 male; 21-42 years) and 20 older adults (10 female, 10 male; 55-87 years). Each participant made 15 passes through the work zone: a control pass with stationary white lights, two control passes with no lights, and 12 passes of test conditions -- 2 colors (red & green) x 3 apparent pulse speeds (-80, 0, & +80 mph) x 2 zone entry speeds (40 & 70 mph). Age, sex, and zone entry sp...

Lecture Notes in Computer Science

This paper describes a study where drivers' responses to an invehicle information system were tested in high and low density traffic. There were 17 participants in a study that was run using a driving simulator. Data was gathered for a comparison of how drivers react to an in-vehicle information system in low density traffic, complex traffic, and without system. Participants were also asked for their subjective evaluation of trust of the system and how they perceived it influenced their driving performance. Results show gender differences for both driving performance and attitude.