This book focuses on the design of a multi-criteria automated vehicle longitudinal control system as an enhancement of the adaptive cruise control system. It analyses the effects of various parameters on the average traffic speed and the traction force of the vehicles in mixed traffic from a macroscopic point of view, and also demonstrates why research and development in speed control and predictive cruise control is important. The book also summarises the main steps of the system's robust control design, from the modelling to its synthesis, and discusses both the theoretical background and the practical computation method of the control invariant sets. The book presents the analysis and verification of the system both in a simulation environment and under real-world conditions. By including the systematic design of the predictive cruise control using road and traffic information, it shows how optimization criteria can lead to multiobjective solutions, and the advanced optimization and control design methods required. The book focuses on a particular method by which the unfavourable effect of the traffic flow consideration can be reduced. It also includes simulation examples in which the speed design is performed, while the analysis is carried out in simulation and visualization environments. This book is a valuable reference for researchers and control engineers working on traffic control, vehicle control and control theory. It is also of interest to students and academics as it provides an overview of the strong interaction between the traffic flow and an individual vehicle cruising from both a microscopic and a macroscopic point of view.

This monograph focuses on control methods that influence vehicle dynamics to assist the driver in enhancing passenger comfort, road holding, efficiency and safety of transport, etc., while maintaining the driver's ability to override that assistance. On individual-vehicle-component level the control problem is formulated and solved by a unified modelling and design method provided by the linear parameter varying (LPV) framework. The global behaviour desired is achieved by a judicious interplay between the individual components, guaranteed by an integrated control mechanism. The integrated control problem is also formalized and solved in the LPV framework. Most important among the ideas expounded in the book are: application of the LPV paradigm in the modelling and control design methodology; application of the robust LPV design as a unified framework for setting control tasks related to active driver assistance; formulation and solution proposals for the integrated vehicle control problem; proposal for a reconfigurable and fault-tolerant control architecture; formulation and solution proposals for the plug-and-play concept; detailed case studies. Robust Control Design for Active Vehicle Assistance Systems will be of interest to academic researchers and graduate students interested in automotive control and to control and mechanical engineers working in the automotive industry. Advances in Industrial Control aims to report and encourage the transfer of technology in control engineering. The rapid development of control technology has an impact on all areas of the control discipline. The series offers an opportunity for researchers to present an extended exposition of new work in all aspects of industrial control.

This monograph focuses on control methods that influence vehicle dynamics to assist the driver in enhancing passenger comfort, road holding, efficiency and safety of transport, etc., while maintaining the driver's ability to override that assistance. On individual-vehicle-component level the control problem is formulated and solved by a unified modelling and design method provided by the linear parameter varying (LPV) framework. The global behaviour desired is achieved by a judicious interplay between the individual components, guaranteed by an integrated control mechanism. The integrated control problem is also formalized and solved in the LPV framework. Most important among the ideas expounded in the book are: application of the LPV paradigm in the modelling and control design methodology; application of the robust LPV design as a unified framework for setting control tasks related to active driver assistance; formulation and solution proposals for the integrated vehicle control problem; proposal for a reconfigurable and fault-tolerant control architecture; formulation and solution proposals for the plug-and-play concept; detailed case studies. Robust Control Design for Active Vehicle Assistance Systems will be of interest to academic researchers and graduate students interested in automotive control and to control and mechanical engineers working in the automotive industry. Advances in Industrial Control aims to report and encourage the transfer of technology in control engineering. The rapid development of control technology has an impact on all areas of the control discipline. The series offers an opportunity for researchers to present an extended exposition of new work in all aspects of industrial control.

This volume places the development of the Joint Module "Comparative Studies in Adult Education and Lifelong Learning" (COMPALL) in the context of international development in higher education and adult education. Based on this framework, the authors discuss the development of the joint module in terms of its institutional and didactical structure as well as participants' motivation and diversity. The book is divided into three parts: (1) Internationalisation in Higher Education, (2) Internationalisation of Higher Education: The Case of Adult Education, and (3) Internationalisation of Higher Education: The Example of COMPALL.