Feasibility of Advanced Vehicle Control Systems (AVCS) for Highway Maintenance Vehicles

Advanced vehicle control systems (AVCS) encompass a wide range of technologies that aid a driver in the driving task by automatically performing control actions (braking, accelerating, or steering) or prompting the driver to perform such actions. Over the last fifteen years, relatively simple systems such as anti-lock braking systems ( ABS) and traction control systems have reached production on road vehicles. More recently, advanced systems that provide full-time automatic steering throttle, and/or brake control have been successfully demonstrated by various research groups and automobile manufacturers. The essential benefits offered by these systems relative to manually controlled vehicles are improved operating efficiency and vehicle safety. While the technical feasibility of such systems has been demonstrated, issues of cost and liability risk pose major barriers for near-term deployment on production vehicles. Highway maintenance vehicles, however, offer an excellent testbed for new AVCS technologies, as maintenance departments are often receptive to experimental systems that promise to provide improved safety and productivity for their operations. This study considers the technical and economic feasibility of vehicle control systems for two specific highway maintenance operations, snow removal and work zone following, and concludes that there are significant benefits associated with AVCS for these applications. This conclusion is based on findings from highway maintenance research, interviews conducted with state maintenance officials, and an assessment of the state-of-the-art in vehicle control technology.