A Comprehensive Microscopic Autonomous Driver Model for Use in High-Fidelity Driving Simulation Environments

Driving simulation is an invaluable tool for conducting driving-related research. In any virtual driving environment, autonomous traffic is necessary to complete the driver's immersive experience. The higher the fidelity of a driving simulator, the more stringent are the requirements for the realistic appearance of autonomous traffic. Unfortunately, an increase in the fidelity, or the complexity, of the traffic simulation model does not always enhance the appearance of realism. In our experience with driving simulation applications, the number of behaviors exhibited by the autonomous driver models is the biggest factor in how observers rate the realism of the autonomous traffic; even when compared with a smaller number of high fidelity or validated behaviors. Based on this feedback, we have developed a comprehensive driver model that focuses on breadth of behaviors and is founded on a solid software architecture that supports growth by providing a framework that allows progressive addition and improvement of behaviors. INTRODUCTION For many years now, driving simulation has been used as a technique for studying numerous aspects of driving-related subjects. These include driving safety, infrastructure improvements, drugs, and new in-vehicle technologies. Driving simulation, especially in high-fidelity devices, provides several advantages when studying human-centered, environment-centered, or equipment-centered phenomena. A key advantage is that a researcher can put the driver in situations that are either too dangerous to recreate in real life [1], or that require equipment or infrastructure that does not yet exist [2]. In a simulation, situations are repeatable, and the simulator's virtual environment can be fully specified and controlled. Furthermore, with the exception of dependencies on the natural environment—i.e., in-season antihistamine studies [3], environmental factors such as time of day or atmospheric conditions can be completely controlled. Achieving immersion within a simulator's environment requires a combination of software that models the static and dynamic aspects of the environment and hardware that provides the necessary cues as produced by the software. A key component of any driving simulation virtual environment is the simulation of various active entities such as traffic lights and other traffic participants, generally referred to as traffic. Traffic is a key component because the driver's experience is based largely upon interaction with other drivers. Therefore, providing a realistic simulation of individual traffic elements, often referred to as microscopic traffic simulation, is a necessary Papelis & Ahmad 2 component of high-fidelity driving simulation. A microscopic traffic simulation model, rather than a statistical model, is necessary to …