Youn-soo Kang

Assessing the safety benefits of an advanced vehicular technology for protecting pedestrians

This paper proposes a methodology to quantify the safety benefits of an active hood lift system (AHLS) for protecting pedestrians. AHLS works by lifting up the hood of a vehicle to obtain the space to absorb the impact energy before the pedestrians head hits the hood in pedestrian-vehicle collision. The safety benefit is defined as the number of pedestrian lives saved by the AHLS. Both actual accident data analysis and simulation experiments were conducted to develop a probabilistic pedestrian fatality model based on the head injury criteria (HIC). Then, the fatality model was further applied to estimate the safety benefit. Analysis results revealed that the 95% confidence interval of the number of pedestrian lives saved by the AHLS was between 32.8 and 83.6 pedestrians. It is believed that the proposed methodology could be further applied in evaluating other vehicular technologies for traffic safety. In addition, the outcomes of this study would be effectively utilized in establishing relevant traffic safety policies.

Hazardous Driving Event Detection and Analysis System in Vehicular Networks: Methodology and Field Implementation

This study proposes a novel highway traffic surveillance system that is capable of detecting hazardous driving maneuvers through the use of an in-vehicle sensor and transmission of the event data detected to a traffic management center through vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure wireless communication; this system is referred to as the “hazardous driving event detection and analysis system in vehicular networks.” Compared with existing surveillance systems, the main novel feature of the proposed system lies in its ability to detect hazardous driving maneuvers that have the potential to lead to crashes. Three major components of the system are introduced in this study: an algorithm for detecting hazardous driving events, a method for deriving a new index incorporating expert judgment for evaluation of the risk level of the traffic stream on the basis of analyses of hazardous events that are detected, and field implementation of the proposed system in a test bed with real-time and historical data. Extensive field tests were conducted in the test bed to fine-tune the prototypical system. The methodology and field implementation presented in this study have potential value to help highway traffic agencies monitor and evaluate traffic streams with a focus on traffic safety. The proposed system is expected to be effective as support for the development of various traffic information control strategies to enhance traffic safety on highways.

Feedback Approach for Determining Parameters of Vehicle Safety Regulation on Pedestrian Protection: South Korean Case Study

In recent years, significant efforts have been made around the world to establish an internationally agreed-upon vehicle safety regulation that will reduce pedestrian casualties in pedestrian-vehicle collisions. One of the key issues in putting together the regulation is how to select effectively the parameter values that will be associated with it. This study develops an integrated feedback-based decision-making procedure for determining parameter values of the vehicle safety regulation. The regulation aims to protect pedestrian heads in pedestrian-vehicle collisions. Detailed data analyses from both actual accidents and simulations were conducted to derive parameters that result in technically and economically feasible regulation. A set of parameters representing the characteristics of pedestrian accidents and vehicles in South Korea is presented as the outcome of this study. The major contribution of this study is in supporting the establishment of South Korean vehicle safety regulations that would lea...