Simulation modelling of longitudinal safety spacing in inter-vehicles dynamics interactions

Mathematical description and computer simulation of inter-vehicles dynamics interactions have been a lively subject of traffic safety and vehicle dynamics. The kinematic characteristics of driver's safety based lane-changing and merging behaviour in vehicle operations are described in this paper, using the minimum safety spacing (MSS) as an index of longitudinal maneuvers. The emphasis of our work is placed on the research undertaken to establish lane changing and merging models by considering the variations of driver shaping behaviour, vehicle dynamics and traffic conditions. It is anticipated that the longitudinal safety spacing model will facilitate developing appropriate autonomous lane-changing and overtaking assistance systems for addressing vehicle crashes.