Collision avoidance by autonomous braking and steering

Driver assistance systems have become more and more important in recent years due to the increasing degree of automation in road traffic – especially with regard to increasing safety. These systems do not only provide passive protection for driver and passengers (e.g. through airbags), but – in the near future – will also be able to protect other road users from injury by actively avoiding collisions. Emergency brake assistants are already mandatory for newly registered trucks and buses, and these assistants are becoming increasingly important also in civil road traffic. The next stage of development will be assistance systems that can carry out not only emergency braking independently but – if necessary – also steering manoeuvres if those are required to avoid a collision. This thesis deals with such an autonomous braking and steering assistant that intervenes in critical situations to avoid accidents. The aim of this thesis is to develop a system that can follow a given route under normal conditions and takes action if necessary, namely if obstacles or other road users would involve the vehicle in an accident.For this purpose, a simple model of a real vehicle is created, including model boundaries and physical limitations.