Incorporating non-linear tire dynamics into a convex approach to shared steering control

Active safety systems enabled by steer-by-wire technology can share control with a driver, augmenting the driver's steering commands to avoid collisions and prevent loss of control. The extent to which this can be done is limited by the controller's ability to anticipate dangerous scenarios in order to appropriately intervene and steer the vehicle to safety. However, the non-linear nature of tire dynamics poses a challenge in predicting and modifying vehicle behavior in real-time. In this paper, online successive linearizations of the future planned vehicle trajectory approximates these non-linear dynamics in a real-time, model predictive controller that shares control with a human driver. Simulation results of aggressive maneuvers demonstrate the usefulness of this approach as well as illustrate interesting interactions between the sometimes competing objectives of vehicle stability and collision avoidance.

Publication Location

Proceedings of the 2014 American Control Conference