Potential field-based cooperative adaptive cruising control for longitudinal following and lane changing of vehicle platooning

Vehicle platooning often needs to execute lateral lane changing on highways while maintaining longitudinal following. This simultaneous lateral and longitudinal movement presents a significant challenge to maintaining the stability of vehicle platooning. To address the issue of stability during longitudinal following and lane changing, a control method based on the artificial potential field (APF) is proposed. The controller combines the obstacle potential field with the target gravitational potential field to guide the follower vehicle. The virtual trailing vehicle is added to enhance the convergence of the following error in the platooning. In the two-dimensional plane, the lateral error is redefined through the implementation of a look-ahead control concept. The proposed controller was tested under New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) working conditions, a traffic flow oscillation experiment, and a double lane changing test. The results demonstrate that the controller is capable of ensuring string stability and achieving an exceptional following effect.