T3 Webinar Files

Transit Safety and Mobility Applications in a Connected Vehicle Worlds
(May 14, 2014)

Transit Safety Retrofit Package

Presenter: David Valentine
Presenter's Org: Battelle Memorial Institute

HTML version of the presentation
Image descriptions are contained in brackets. [ ]
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T3 Webinars are brought to you by the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Professional Capacity Building Program (PCB) of the U.S. Department of Transportation's (U.S. DOT) ITS Joint Program Office (JPO). References in this webinar to any specific commercial products, processes, or services, or the use of any trade, firm, or corporation name is for the information and convenience of the public, and does not constitute endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the U.S. DOT.

[All the slides in this presentation contain the Battelle: The Business of Innovation logo.]

Slide 1: Transit Safety and Mobility Applications in a Connected Vehicle World

Transit Safety Retrofit Package
David Valentine
Battelle

[This slide contains two photographs: (1) the driver's area of the University of Michigan transit bus, which shows the dashboard, the steering wheel, an onboard monitor, a fare collection mechanism, and a control panel and (2) a front view of three parked University of Michigan transit buses, which are painted the school's colors (blue and yellow) and have the University's yellow “M” logo on the front.]

Slide 2: Transit Safety Retrofit Package (TRP)

• Part of USDOT Safety Pilot Model Deployment
  • Large-scale field demonstration of Connected Vehicle (CV) technology based on 5.9GHz Dedicated Short-Range Communications (DSRC) wireless radio
  • TRP provides the only source for retrofitted transit vehicle applications for vehicle and pedestrian safety leveraging vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications

[This slide contains two images: (1) a map of the safety pilot model deployment sites around Ann Arbor, Michigan and (2) a photograph of a University of Michigan transit bus painted the school colors (blue and yellow) and with the University name on the side.]

Slide 3: TRP Applications

5 Collision Avoidance Safety Applications on 3 University of Michigan Transit Buses -

• Transit-specific, identified as high-priority concerns by transit agencies
  • Pedestrian in Signalized Crosswalk Warning (PCW)
  • Vehicle Turning Right in Front of Bus Warning (VTRW)
• Common with other Safety Pilot vehicles
  • Forward Collision Warning (FCW)
  • Emergency Electronic Brake Lights (EEBL)
  • Curve Speed Warning (CSW)

[This slide contains two photographs: (1) the driver's area of the University of Michigan transit bus, which shows the dashboard, the steering wheel, an onboard monitor, a fare collection mechanism, and a control panel and (2) a front view of three parked University of Michigan transit buses, which are painted the school's colors (blue and yellow) and have the University's yellow “M” logo on the front.]

Slide 4: TRP Phases/Schedule

• Phase 1: FCW, EEBL, and CSW
  • August 2012: completed integration on buses; began live testing
• Phase 2: Data Acquisition System (DAS)
  • October 2012: completed integration on buses; began live testing
• Phase 3: PCW, VTRW, and bus driver training
  • January 2013: completed integration on buses
  • February-September 2013: 8 months of full-up live testing
• Phase 4: TRP revisions for Phase 3 lessons
  • January 2014: completed integration on buses
  • February-March 2014: 1 month of full-up live testing

Slide 5: TRP and DAS Components

[This slide contains six photographs of Transit Safety Retrofit Package (TRP) and Data Acquisition System (DAS) components: the TRP System (power supply, mini-WSU, and network components), a DSRC antenna and camera, a driver display, three front facing cameras, and a DAS.]

Slide 6: TRP System Architecture

[This slide contains three photographs of TRP System components and a diagram of the TRP System Architecture. The photographs are of a transit bus driver's monitor, a set of electronic components, and an antenna. The diagram shows the communication paths throughout TRP System architecture modules.]

Slide 7: PCW Overview (Functional)

• Application relies on infrastructure for pedestrian detection
  • Option 1 - This option includes sending an alert when the crosswalk call button has been activated (Caution alert)
  • Option 2 - This option includes the use of a pedestrian detector to detect the presence of a pedestrian in the crosswalk (Warning alert)

[This slide contains a diagram that illustrates two options of the pedestrian warning application for transit vehicles. The options are listed above. The diagram shows a four-way intersection with a single pedestrian at each of two different corners and one transit vehicle approaching.]

Slide 8: PCW Overview (Infrastructure)

[This slide contains a diagram that demonstrates the pedestrian collision warning (PCW) infrastructure. The diagram is of one corner of an intersection with pedestrians on the sidewalk and a pedestrian crossing the street in front of a vehicle CAN bus. The diagram shows the equipment used in this scenario, including a SmartWalk Crosswalk Motion Sensor, UMTRI DAS, and a DENSO miniWSU OBE Unit (pedestrian warning application).]

Slide 9: PCW Roadside Equipment

[This slide contains three photographs of PCW roadside equipment: a SmartWalk XP pedestrian detection sensor (24.125 GHz microwave transmitter/receiver that uses a microprocessor-analyzed Doppler detection method) which is mounted on the top of a pole containing pedestrian cross/do not cross signals, Savari roadside equipment (RSE), and two shelves of electronic equipment with a SPaT interface device. Each photograph is overwritten with a red circle or oval that identifies the equipment listed.]

Slide 10: PCW Location

Fuller Rd/Medical Center Dr

• Provides SPaT-enabled intersection with heavy pedestrian traffic, well suited for PCW application purpose
• On Commuter bus route which provides best VTRW bus stop locations

[This slide contains three maps and an aerial photograph of the PCW location. A small map of the state of Michigan is marked with a rectangle of the Ann Arbor area, which connects to the second map of the Ann Arbor area, which is marked with a rectangle that connects to the third map, which shows the PCW location, which is between the University of Michigan's off campus housing and the University Medical Center. The aerial photograph shows the PCW location intersection and is marked with distance markings.]

Slide 11: PCW Driver Interface

Computer-generated speech accompanies alerts:

Caution = pedestrian button pushed

• “Pedestrian Alert Left”
• “Pedestrian Alert Right”

Warning = pedestrian detected in crosswalk

• “Pedestrian Warning Left”
• “Pedestrian Warning Right”

[This slide contains diagrams that demonstrate the PCW driver interface for westbound left turns and northbound right turns. Caution areas are colored yellow and indicate that the pedestrian has pushed the button. Warning areas are colored red and indicate that the pedestrian has been detected in the crosswalk.]

Slide 12: PCW Demo Video

[This slide contains a screenshot of a PCW Demo video of the TRP Pedestrian Detection/Left Turn filmed near Medical Center Drive at the University of Michigan.]

Slide 13: PCW Deployment (Feb-Sept 2013)

[This slide contains four images: (1) an aerial photograph of the PCW location intersection marked with numerous colored markers that detail the PCW deployment from February through September 2013, (2) the markers key table (replicated above), (3) the northbound right turn warning diagram from the previous slide, and (4) the northbound right turn caution diagram from the previous slide.]

Slide 14: PCW Redeployment (Feb 2014)

[This slide contains four images: (1) an aerial photograph of the PCW location intersection marked with numerous colored markers that detail the PCW Redeployment in February of 2014, (2) the markers key table (replicated above), (3) the northbound right turn warning diagram from the previous two slides, and (4) the northbound right turn caution diagram from the previous two slides.]

Slide 15: VTRW Overview (Functional)

Provides bus driver a warning when a vehicle turns right in front of a bus as the bus pulls away from a bus stop

[This slide contains two images: (1) a photograph of an automobile turning right into the path of a transit bus and (2) an aerial view diagram showing an automobile coming from behind a transit bus on the left and then cutting across the bus' path to make a right turn. These images illlustrate the Vehicle Turning Right in Front of Bus Warning (VTRW) function.]

Slide 16: VTRW Overview (Infrastructure)

[This slide contains a diagram of the VTRW infrastructure. The diagram displays a stopped transit bus at an intersection and an automobile attempting to turn right in front of the bus. The displayed equipment used in this scenario are UMTRI DAS and DENSO miniWSU OBE Unit. Solid blue represents TRP Hardware/Software, dotted blue represents Hardware/Software also being used in other Safety Pilot projects, a white striped vehicle represents Safety Pilot Model Deployment Equipment, and yellow represents TRP Transit Safety Applications.]

Slide 17: VTRW Locations (17)

Commuter North/South Routes

• Provide best nearside and non-pullout bus stops (where bus blocks traffic before intersection), well suited for VTRW application purpose
• Include Fuller Rd/Medical Center Dr intersection which provides best PCW location

[This slide contains maps of the University of Michigan's Commuter North and Commuter South routes marked with VTRW locations.]

Slide 18: VTRW Driver Interface

Computer-generated speech accompanies alerts:

• “Right Turn Vehicle Warning”
• “Right Turn Vehicle Alert”

[The slide contains two VTRW Driver Interface diagrams: a vehicle turning to the right into the front left side of a transit vehicle and a vehicle driving on the left side of a transit vehicle.]

Slide 19: VTRW Demo Video

TRP - Right Turn Vehicle: Vehicle on Left Warning

[This slide contains a screenshot of a VTRW Demo video of the TRP Right Turn Vehicle on left warning filmed at the University of Michigan.]

Slide 20: VTRW Deployment (Feb-Sept 2013)

[This slide contains four images: (1) an aerial photograph marked with yellow and red markers that show the VTRW deployment locations from February through September 2013, (2) the markers key table (replicated above), (3) the vehicle front left right turn warning diagram from slide 18, and (4) the vehicle on left caution diagram from slide 18.]

Slide 21: VTRW Redeployment (Feb 2014)

[This slide contains four images: (1) an aerial photograph marked with yellow and red markers that show the VTRW redeployment locations from February 2014, (2) the markers key table (replicated above), (3) the vehicle front left right turn warning diagram from slide 18, and (4) the vehicle on left caution diagram from slide 18.]

Slide 22: Analysis

• PCW and VTRW event data was analyzed compared to ground truth (DAS), to assess the performance of the applications and determine lessons learned
• Original deployment analysis resulted in limited near-term TRP revisions for the redeployment
• Longer term recommendations for future systems

[This slide contains two photographs: (1) a screenshot from a sample DAS video used to validate PCW warning and (2) a screenshot from a sample DAS video used to validate VTRW warning.]

Slide 23: Near-term Revisions

• PCW revisions
  • Adjustments to crosswalk detectors to decrease false alerts for detection of vehicles in the crosswalk rather than pedestrians
  • Adjustments to lane tracking algorithm to decrease false alerts for buses traveling straight through the intersection instead of turning through the subject crosswalk
  • Revisions had intended impact, though the false alert rate remained significant due to limitations of underlying technologies

Slide 24: Near-term Revisions (cont.)

• VTRW revision
  • Revised to include transmission gear position as an additional criteria for determining the bus driver's “intent to proceed” to decrease nuisance alerts when no real collision threat
• Other
  • Minor adjustments to the Driver Vehicle Interface, including longer alert display times and verbal alerts instead of beeps

Slide 25: Lessons Learned

• On-bus software implementation was effective at providing alerts to transit drivers
• Transit drivers expressed acceptance of the TRP concept
• DSRC radios performed well - no TRP problems traced to DSRC performance
• Significant rate of false alerts for the PCW application due to combination of GPS limitations and pedestrian detector limitations

Slide 26: Lessons Learned (cont.)

• WAAS-enabled GPS accuracy is insufficient for PCW application
  • Typical lane width is 3.35 meters, thus accuracy within 1.675 meters is required, which cannot reliably be achieved with WAAS-enabled GPS
  • Significant improvements could be achieved with more accurate technology, such as Differential GPS for specific localized TRP implementations

Slide 27: Lessons Learned (cont.)

• Doppler microwave-based detector technology is insufficient for the PCW application
  • Cannot adequately distinguish between pedestrians and slow moving vehicles in the crosswalks
  • Significant improvements could be achieved with more discerning technology, such as high-speed imaging (computer vision)

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