SBIR Phase I: Autonomous Warning Triangle System (aWTS) for Emergency Stopping

小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目的更广泛影响是确保商用机动车(CMV)中货物和/或乘客的安全转移，并防止商用机动车(CMV)在高速公路上紧急停车时发生二次事故的可能性。所有巨型货车在紧急停车时均须遵守交通安全规定，并设置紧急警告装置(例如安全三角)。在没有人工驾驶的情况下，自动CMV也应该能够自动放置紧急警报设备。正确放置这些警告装置可以拯救高速公路上非自动车辆的司机的生命。这项拟议计划可提高外部驾驶者的安全，防止因巨型车辆故障而引致车道/路肩阻塞的第二次事故发生，并协助在公路上部署紧急警告三角标志，以保障非自动及/或半自动车辆的驾驶者。该项目旨在消除由于缺乏标准化而导致的高阶自动化技术采用的障碍。该项目将导致设计、研究和开发一种负担得起的、售后的、可靠的、安全的自动预警三角系统(AWTS)，以确保自动和半自动商用汽车(CMV)在紧急停车时的安全，而不需要人工帮助。AWTS由三个低成本的自主三角反射器设备组成，计划以最佳方式安装在充电底座/外壳中，在待机模式下将它们安全存储在那里。当被CMV发送的紧急信号激活时，自治三角形被设计为在高速公路上连续移动到它们预定的目的地。第一阶段项目期间的研发活动包括但不限于：审查安全规范和法规，调查不同的高速公路情景和相关挑战，并进行计算机模拟；开发概念验证硬件，以证明拟议系统的技术可行性及其与自动CMV的集成；通过与汽车制造商合作，确定自主反射三角形的最佳位置和组装；调查潜在的网络安全风险，以开发CMV和AWTS之间的安全通信；并确定运营挑战和设计目标，同时考虑部署成本、生命周期成本、功能使用和互操作性。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，认为值得支持。

The broader impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to ensure the secure transfer of goods and/or passengers in commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) and prevent the likelihood of secondary incidents when a commercial motor vehicles (CMV) has made an emergency stop on a highway. All CMVs need to comply with traffic safety regulations and deploy emergency warning devices (e.g., safety triangles) during an emergency stop. Without the presence of a human driver, an automated CMV should also be able to automate emergency warning device placement. Proper placement of these warning devices can be life-saving for drivers of non-automated vehicles on a highway. The proposed project will increase the safety of external drivers by preventing any secondary incidents associated with the lane/shoulder blockage due to a CMV malfunction and protect drivers of non-automated and/or semi-automated vehicles by assisting in the deployment of emergency warning triangles on highways. This project aims to remove barriers to higher-order automated technology adoption due to lack of standardization.The project will result in the design, research, and development of an affordable, after-market, reliable, and safe autonomous Warning Triangle System (aWTS) to ensure the safety of the automated and semi-automated commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) during an emergency stop without requiring human assistance. aWTS consists of three low-cost autonomous triangle reflector devices which are planned to optimally fit in a charging dock/enclosure where they will be safely stored during stand-by mode. When activated by the emergency signal transmitted from the CMV, the autonomous triangles are designed to move successively to their pre-determined destinations on the highway. The research and development activity during this Phase I project includes, but is not limited to: reviewing safety codes and regulations, investigating different highway scenarios and associated challenges, and performing computer simulations; developing proof-of-concept hardware that can demonstrate the proposed system’s technical feasibility and its integration to automated CMVs; determining the optimal placement and assembly of the autonomous reflective triangles by collaborating with auto manufacturers; investigating the potential cyber-security risks to develop secure communications between CMV and aWTS; and identifying the operational challenges and the design targets while considering the cost of deployment, lifecycle costs, functional use, and interoperability.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.