TACTICAL-LEVEL SIMULATION FOR INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS

SHIVA (Simulated Highways for Intelligent Vehicle Algorithms) is a kin ematic simulation of;vehicles moving and interacting on a user-defined stretch of roadway. The vehicles can be equipped with simulated human drivers as well as sensors and algorithms for automated control. Thes e algorithms influence the vehicles' motion through simulated commands to the accelerator, brake, and steering wheel. SHIVA's user interface provides facilities for visualizing and influencing the interactions between vehicles. SHIVA not only models the elements of the domain mos t useful to tactical driving research but also provides tools to rapid ly prototype and test algorithms in challenging traffic situations. Ad ditionally, the scenario control tools allow repeatable testing of dif ferent reasoning systems on a consistent set of traffic situations. Th ese features are vital in the development and evaluation of intelligen t vehicle technology for ITS applications. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science L td. All rights reserved.