Abstract Manager

As the increase in active transportation meets the continued growth of connected and automated vehicles (CAVs), safety of vulnerable road users (VRUs) in this environment becomes an ever-larger concern.  One opportunity to mitigate such risk is through smart infrastructure.

Area X.O and the City of Ottawa, in partnership with Transport Canada and industry partners are creating best practices for the safe adoption of smart infrastructure that protects vulnerable road users (VRUs).  This research project looked at the role of machine vision sensors, communication infrastructure, and security (SCMS) to ensure CAVs can navigate safely and have increased time to avoid collision.

Testing was first conducted at the Area X.O private test facility to examine the effectiveness of devices such as radar, LiDAR, CCTV and thermal cameras for detecting VRUs and the speed at which these detections can then be communicated to a CAV.  The project utilized motorized test target VRU platform to create high risk scenarios and train algorithms for machine vision effectiveness.  By applying WEF AAM Safe Driving -scenario-based CAV testing framework, this project is contributing data to the University of Warwick’s Safety Pool Scenario Database.

Having established results in a controlled test environment, the project moved to analyzing the data from the radar, LiDAR, thermal and CCTV cameras in a real-world intersection to better understand the high-risk activities and evaluate and compare the sensor accuracy/ time to detect- in predicting objects under different weather and lighting conditions. A subsequent project is now investigating the opportunities and potential of these technologies at level rail crossings.

The advanced CAV has an integrated on-board unit (OBU) and radio frequency analyzer to detect, receive, and act on encrypted safety messages through the Security Credential Management System (SCMS).  The project is also looking at Vehicle to Vehicle communication test the security and the range/ distance that vehicles can communicate with each other enabling them to share safety information.