Coupling Analysis of Autonomous Vehicles and Road Safety

To study the driving safety characteristics of autonomous vehicles in existing transport infrastructure, this paper treats vehicle stability as a research breakthrough to study the safety characteristics of autonomous vehicles on curves and ramps by analyzing the viaduct approach context. Conducting force analysis of a vehicle in curve and ramp settings can determine the relationship between the vehicle's lateral stability on the curve and its longitudinal stability on the slope. Further, force analysis can establish the autonomous vehicle's speed and stability. This model is used to calculate the safe driving speed threshold of autonomous vehicles; their driving safety is guaranteed by controlling their speed. The calculation results show that severe weather conditions, such as rain and snow, have a significantly stronger impact on vehicle stability than factors such as vehicle models and load capacity. In fine weather, load capacity has a greater impact on the stability of heavy trucks. The safe speed threshold of autonomous vehicles, calculated in real time, is often much better than the road alignment design speed. Compared with conventional manned driving, the autonomous vehicle safe speed threshold can improve traffic efficiency to a certain extent and reduce traffic jams to enhance the traffic environment.