Lateral control system for vehicle platoon considering vehicle dynamic characteristics

Longitudinal vehicle platoon control has attracted much attention due to its potential for significantly mitigating traffic congestion, reducing the incidence of traffic accidents and improving fuel economy. To include platoon motion control in the two-dimensional situations, this study proposes a lateral control system for vehicle platoon considering vehicle dynamic characteristics for enhancing the traditional longitudinal platoon control (one-dimensional). The lateral control strategies are applied into two specific driving conditions: moving in parallel and moving in order which are representative in platoon lateral control applications and can be extended into a broader driving scenario. An integrated controller with motion control layer and actuator control layer is introduced to achieve the proposed lateral spacing control strategies. Three corresponding simulations are used to validate the proposed control system, and the results demonstrate that: during the two specific driving scenario, moving in order and moving in parallel, show different motion characteristics; platoon with proposed control system of platoon can realise a general curved driving task with a changing speed; the lateral following errors are influenced by the difference of dynamics characteristics between the four-wheel independent driving vehicle and the front steering vehicle which should be taken into consideration in determination of expected lateral space.