Simulation German University Studying AssistedDriving 'Handoff' by Stuart Birch Germany's Kempten University Adrive Living Lab will feature latest aVDS driving simulator to research ADAS stress levels. Researchers at Germany's Kempten University of Applied Sciences plan to embark this year on autonomous vehicle (AV) and advanced driver-assist system (ADAS) programs that will include investigation of the safest ways to achieve handover of a vehicle when control is returned to a human driver. To do so, it is installing an AB Dynamics advanced Vehicle Driving Simulator (aVDS) that will help measure driver stress levels if the vehicle is not capable of performing a particular maneuver. The aVDS has been designed to provide high level R&D capabilities specifically for autonomous systems. The university has established its Adrive Living Lab with the third-generation simulator helping to facilitate the study of the driver's interaction with autonomous systems and their effect on drivers' perceived safety and comfort. The program has identified these two areas as the most important for consumer acceptance and enthusiasm. "Driver-in-the-loop (DiL) simulators are essential to assess the capability of ADAS and autonomous driving at an early development stage," said Prof. Bernhard Schick of the faculties of mechanical and electrical engineering. "Complex vehicle test scenarios are difficult to carry out on real roads. A key benefit of a simulator such as the aVDS is that we can explore the subjective as well as the objective effects on the driver AB Dynamics' handoff simulator has the ability to change suspension parameters on-the-fly or to conduct complex automated maneuvers in chaotic traffic conditions. 26 July 2019 AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE ENGINEERING