Research

Urban intersections, merging roadways, roundabouts , and speed reduction zones along with the driver responses to various disturbances are the primary sources of bottlenecks in corridors that contribute to traffic congestion. The implementation of connected and automated technologies can enable a novel computational framework for real-time control aimed at optimizing energy consumption and travel time. In this paper, we propose a decentralized energy-efficient optimal control framework for two adjacent intersections. We derive a closed-form analytical solution that includes interior boundary conditions and evaluate the effectiveness of the solution through simulation. Fuel consumption and travel time are significantly reduced compared to the baseline scenario designed with conventional fixed time signalized intersections.

The implementation of connected and automated vehicle technologies enables for a novel computational framework for real-time control actions aimed at optimizing energy consumption and associated benefits. In this paper, we present a two-level control architecture for a connected and automated plug-in hybrid electric vehicle to (1) optimize vehicle speed profile in terms of energy consumption using two different control approaches and (2) optimize the powertrain efficiency of the vehicle given the optimal speed profile. We evaluate the effectiveness of the efficiency of the proposed architecture through simulation in a network of vehicles. The results show that the proposed approach yields significant fuel consumption and travel time savings.

The implementation of connected and automated vehicle (CAV) technologies enables a novel computational framework for real-time control aimed at optimizing energy consumption with associated benefits. In this paper, we implement an optimal control framework, developed previously, in an Audi A3 etron plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, and demonstrate that we can improve the vehicle’s efficiency and travel time in a corridor including an on-ramp merging, a speed reduction zone, and a roundabout. Our exposition includes the development, integration, implementation and validation of the proposed framework in (1) simulation, (2) hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing, (3) connectivity enabled virtual reality based bench-test, and (4) field test in Mcity. We show that by adopting such inexpensive, yet effective process, we can efficiently integrate and test the controller framework, ensure proper connectivity and data transmission between different modules of the system, and reduce uncertainty. We evaluate the performance and effectiveness of the control framework and observe significant improvement in terms of energy and travel time compared to the baseline scenario.

Connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) provide the most intriguing opportunity to reduce energy consumption and travel delays. In this paper, we propose a two-level control architecture for CAVs to optimize (1) the vehicle’s speed profile, aimed at minimizing stop-and-go driving, and (2) the powertrain efficiency of the vehicle for the optimal speed profile derived in (1). The proposed hierarchical control framework can be implemented onboard the vehicle in real time with minimal computational effort. We evaluate the effectiveness of the efficiency of the proposed architecture through simulation in Mcity using a 100\% penetration rate of CAVs. The results show that the proposed approach yields significant benefits in terms of energy efficiency.