Radar sensors for intersection collision avoidance

On-vehicle sensors for collision avoidance and intelligent cruise control are receiving considerable attention as part of Intelligent Transportation Systems. Most of these sensors are radars and ''look'' in the direction of the vehicle's headway, that is, in the direction ahead of the vehicle. Calspan SRL Corporation is investigating the use of on-vehicle radar for Intersection Collision Avoidance (ICA). Four crash scenarios are considered and the goal is to design, develop and install a collision warning system in a test vehicle, and conduct both test track and in-traffic experiments. Current efforts include simulations to examine ICA geometry-dependent design parameters and the design of an on-vehicle radar and tracker for threat detection. This paper discusses some of the simulation and radar design efforts. In addition, an available headway radar was modified to scan the wide angles (+/-90 degrees) associated with ICA scenarios. Preliminary proof-of-principal tests are underway as a risk reduction effort. Some initial target detection results are presented.