Trajectory Generation for an On-Road Autonomous Vehicle

Published

June 26, 2006

Author(s)

John A. Horst, Anthony J. Barbera

Abstract

We describe an algorithm that generates a smooth trajectory (position, velocity, and acceleration) for a non-holonomic vehicle autonomously navigating within the constraints of lanes in a road. The technique models both vehicle paths and lane segments as straight line segments and circular arcs for mathematical simplicity and elegance. We use the following approach. Develop the path in an idealized space, warp the path into real space and compute path length, generate a one-dimensional trajectory along the path length that achieves target speeds and positions, and finally, warp, translate, and rotate the one-dimensional trajectory points onto the path in real space. The algorithm moves a vehicle in lane safely and efficiently within speed and acceleration maximums. We also describe how the algorithm functions in the context of other autonomous driving functions within a carefully designed vehicle control hierarchy.

Citation

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR) - 7262

Report Number

7262

NIST Pub Series

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR)

Pub Type

NIST Pubs

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.7262

Keywords

autonomous vehicle, on-road, on-road autonomous vehicle, radial warping, trajectory generation, vehicle trajectory generation

Citation

Horst, J. and Barbera, A. (2006), Trajectory Generation for an On-Road Autonomous Vehicle, NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, [online], https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.7262 (Accessed May 31, 2026)

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