Autonomous Vehicles Driving Characteristics Under the Influence of Combined Road Alignments

Human driving skills and perception are replaced by programs in Autonomous vehicles (AVs). However, existing road infrastructures were not designed with AVs in mind, leading researchers to examine their feasibility on these roads. This study uses virtual simulations to answer two key questions: how AVs perceive combined alignments and how they navigate on them. The study uses PreScan and MATLAB/Simulink to simulate real-world scenarios for a Level 4 (L4) AV. The first question explores the relationship between AV operating speed (Vo) and lane departure to understand AV perception. The second question investigates AV driving trajectories on combined road alignments. Results show that the point where tangent meets the spiral curve significantly affects AV perception. Additionally, left turns exhibit more deviation than right turns, with AVs showing significant left deviation behavior before entering a curve. These findings offer insights into AVs’ performance on complex combined alignments, aiding the development of AV technology for safe and efficient operation on existing roads.