scholarly journals Coordination of Autonomous Vehicles

2021 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-33
Author(s):  
Stefano Mariani ◽  
Giacomo Cabri ◽  
Franco Zambonelli
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Autonomous Vehicles ◽  
Shared Resources ◽  
Coordination Problems ◽  
Research Challenges ◽  
Global View ◽  
Coordination Process ◽  
Near Future

In the near future, our streets will be populated by myriads of autonomous self-driving vehicles to serve our diverse mobility needs. This will raise the need to coordinate their movements in order to properly handle both access to shared resources (e.g., intersections and parking slots) and the execution of mobility tasks (e.g., platooning and ramp merging). The aim of this article is to provide a global view of the coordination issues and the related solutions in the field of autonomous vehicles. To this end, we firstly introduce the general problems associated with coordination of autonomous vehicles by identifying and framing the key classes of coordination problems. Then, we overview the different approaches that can be adopted to deal with such problems by classifying them in terms of the degree of autonomy in decision making that is left to autonomous vehicles during the coordination process. Finally, we overview some further research challenges to address before autonomous coordinated vehicles can safely hit our streets.

Multi-Cameras based Decision Making at Mini-Roundabouts for Autonomous Vehicles

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weichao Wang ◽  
Quang A Nguyen ◽  
Paul Wai Hing Chung ◽  
Qinggang Meng
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Autonomous Vehicles

Knowing bears: An ethnographic study of knowledge and agency in human–bear cohabitation

2021 ◽  
pp. 251484862110150
Author(s):  
Svetoslava Toncheva ◽  
Robert Fletcher
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Ursus Arctos ◽  
Conservation Management ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Human Research ◽  
Research Challenges ◽  
Living Together ◽  
Growing Body ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Attitudes And Behavior

This article explores a case of human–wildlife cohabitation in the Rodopi mountains of Bulgaria, wherein people and brown bears ( Ursus arctos) have adapted to living together in relative harmony. While this is due to a variety of factors, chief among these is the way both people and bears appear to pursue knowledge of one another and act on this knowledge so as to actively minimize potential for conflict. We draw on this case to contribute to growing discussion concerning how nonhumans should be understood and included within conservation policymaking. While conservation has conventionally been understood as something humans do on behalf of other species, a growing body of “more-than-human” research challenges this perspective as “anthropocentric” in arguing that nonhumans should be considered “co-constitutive actors” of the spaces they occupy. Based on this understanding, some go so far as to assert that a “multispecies ethics” demands that nonhumans be actively included in decision-making concerning such spaces’ governance. While our study indeed demonstrates that both humans and bears seem to mold their behavior in relation to their sensing of the other’s behavior, it also demonstrates that knowledge of bears’ behavior is ultimately always interpreted by humans in conservation management. Moreover, different groups of stakeholders hold different knowledge of bears that influence their attitudes and behavior towards the animals. The study thus raises important questions concerning how to incorporate bears (and other nonhumans) within conservation decision-making, and whose knowledge should be privileged in the process.

scholarly journals A Game Theory-Based Approach for Modeling Autonomous Vehicle Behavior in Congested, Urban Lane-Changing Scenarios

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 1523
Author(s):  
Nikita Smirnov ◽  
Yuzhou Liu ◽  
Aso Validi ◽  
Walter Morales-Alvarez ◽  
Cristina Olaverri-Monreal
Keyword(s):  
Game Theory ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Autonomous Vehicles ◽  
Autonomous Vehicle ◽  
Urban Traffic ◽  
Road User ◽  
Lane Change ◽  
Traffic Light ◽  
User Interactions ◽  
Lane Changing

Autonomous vehicles are expected to display human-like behavior, at least to the extent that their decisions can be intuitively understood by other road users. If this is not the case, the coexistence of manual and autonomous vehicles in a mixed environment might affect road user interactions negatively and might jeopardize road safety. To this end, it is highly important to design algorithms that are capable of analyzing human decision-making processes and of reproducing them. In this context, lane-change maneuvers have been studied extensively. However, not all potential scenarios have been considered, since most works have focused on highway rather than urban scenarios. We contribute to the field of research by investigating a particular urban traffic scenario in which an autonomous vehicle needs to determine the level of cooperation of the vehicles in the adjacent lane in order to proceed with a lane change. To this end, we present a game theory-based decision-making model for lane changing in congested urban intersections. The model takes as input driving-related parameters related to vehicles in the intersection before they come to a complete stop. We validated the model by relying on the Co-AutoSim simulator. We compared the prediction model outcomes with actual participant decisions, i.e., whether they allowed the autonomous vehicle to drive in front of them. The results are promising, with the prediction accuracy being 100% in all of the cases in which the participants allowed the lane change and 83.3% in the other cases. The false predictions were due to delays in resuming driving after the traffic light turned green.

scholarly journals Advanced Driver Assistant Systems Focused on Pedestrians’ Safety: A User Experience Approach

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4264
Author(s):  
Matúš Šucha ◽  
Ralf Risser ◽  
Kristýna Honzíčková
Keyword(s):  
Autonomous Vehicles ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Expert Interviews ◽  
Driver Assistance ◽  
Driver Assistance Systems ◽  
Assistant Systems ◽  
Vehicle Technology ◽  
Assistance Systems ◽  
Technical Solutions ◽  
Near Future

Globally, pedestrians represent 23% of all road deaths. Many solutions to protect pedestrians are proposed; in this paper, we focus on technical solutions of the ADAS–Advanced Driver Assistance Systems–type. Concerning the interaction between drivers and pedestrians, we want to have a closer look at two aspects: how to protect pedestrians with the help of vehicle technology, and how pedestrians–but also car drivers–perceive and accept such technology. The aim of the present study was to analyze and describe the experiences, needs, and preferences of pedestrians–and drivers–in connection with ADAS, or in other words, how ADAS should work in such a way that it would protect pedestrians and make walking more relaxed. Moreover, we interviewed experts in the field in order to check if, in the near future, the needs and preferences of pedestrians and drivers can be met by new generations of ADAS. A combination of different methods, specifically, an original questionnaire, on-the-spot interviewing, and expert interviews, was used to collect data. The qualitative data was analyzed using qualitative text analysis (clustering and categorization). The questionnaire for drivers was answered by a total of 70 respondents, while a total of 60 pedestrians agreed to complete questionnaires concerning pedestrian safety. Expert interviews (five interviews) were conducted by means of personal interviews, approximately one hour in duration. We conclude that systems to protect pedestrians–to avoid collisions of cars with pedestrians–are considered useful by all groups, though with somewhat different implications. With respect to the features of such systems, the considerations are very heterogeneous, and experimentation is needed in order to develop optimal systems, but a decisive argument put forward by some of the experts is that autonomous vehicles will have to be programmed extremely defensively. Given this argument, we conclude that we will need more discussion concerning typical interaction situations in order to find solutions that allow traffic to work both smoothly and safely.

scholarly journals Joint Initiatives Instead of Multilateralism: A New Reality for the WTO?

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 167-186
Author(s):  
O. V. Biryukova
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
Active Part ◽  
Trading System ◽  
Joint Statement ◽  
International Trading ◽  
Near Future ◽  
International Trading System

The article examines the complexities of the negotiation function of the WTO, in which consensus in decision-making plays an important role. The author systematizes the possibilities and limitations for incorporating the results of plurilateral negotiations (i.e., with a limited number of participants) held within the framework of the so-called joint statement initiatives into the organization's law. The article also analyzes the prospects for integrating specific joint initiatives (internal regulation in services, simplification of investments in development, e-commerce) into the WTO system. The article emphasizes that despite standard features, all initiatives are unique in their content, format, and history and are at different stages of readiness, for Russia, which takes an active part in these joint initiatives, bringing the negotiations to a conclusion. The article criticizes joint initiatives from their primary opponents (India and South Africa), who insist that plurilateral initiatives' participation ignores existing multilateral mandates reached by consensus. Thus, they destroy the multilateral system.The purpose of the article is to review conceptual and practical approaches to forming new trade rules in the WTO system in the context of the multilateral crisis. The author concludes that plurilateral agreements can become a way out of the crisis in the negotiation function of the WTO, as well as the basis for future trade agreements in the system of organization. However, for plurilateralism to be effective and sustainable, it must be linked to multilateral norms and principles. Any plurilateral approach must allow flexibility in forming the basis for negotiating trade rules at multilateral level. It seems that if in the near future the WTO does not take decisive actions to adjust the rules and procedures for the new agreements, the prospects for advancing negotiations and maintaining the relevance of the leading institution of the international trading system will become even bleaker.

scholarly journals Heuristics-oriented overtaking decision making for autonomous vehicles using reinforcement learning

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 417-424
Author(s):  
Teng Liu ◽  
Bing Huang ◽  
Zejian Deng ◽  
Hong Wang ◽  
Xiaolin Tang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Reinforcement Learning ◽  
Autonomous Vehicles
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