Abstract
Keywords: Vehicle Safety, Assistance Systems, Qualification, Test Equipment, Collision Mitigation
A remarkable number of Safety Assistance Systems (SAS) for Collision Mitigation and Avoidance have been introduced to the market in the last few years. For these systems only limited standardized test procedures, test specifications or test equipment are available nowadays. The main challenge is the lack of clear and comprehensive qualification procedures and precise test equipment which are mandatory for the performance assessment and improvement.
The present paper will include a general introduction to the set-up of such qualification procedures for selected applications. The main focus will be on the qualification of advanced Collision Mitigation Systems (CMS) and Predictive Pedestrian Protection Systems (PPP). Two important representatives of such systems will be introduced in this paper by illustrating their prime characteristics. The main functions of these systems will be abstracted and relevant system testing scenarios and conditions will be derived from accident analysis and generic evaluation.
In order to give the qualification process for SAS systems a reasonable structure and a quantitative base there will be a recourse to well established safety standards. The impact and applicability of general safety standards like the IEC 61508, the transfer possibilities of the straightforward qualification processes of the vehicle passive safety standards and the latest standardization approaches for the qualification process of driver assistance systems like the "Code of Practice" will be discussed in the paper
The main challenge in the qualification chain for SAS systems is the availability of proper test equipment under various environmental conditions. Thus straightforward developments of test equipment will be illustrated including:
Reference Systems: These Systems will measure the proper performance of the CMS or PPP system under real world conditions
Pre-Crash Test Vehicles: These test vehicles will test CMS systems until almost a collision takes place in test track environment
Autonomous Vehicles In the Loop (AVIL): Test vehicles will be guided by means of robotic driving systems and proper positioning systems.
Pedestrian dummies: Different types of moveable or animated test dummies will be presented. The background for the set-up of these systems will be illustrated especially regarding the analysis of typical motion characteristics of human beings.