This paper describes lateral and longitudinal control algorithms when vision-based autonomous vehicles form a platoon by detecting a preceding one with a machine vision system. The visual platooning in this paper is an extension of the longitudinal control in ACC, and is featured by both the lateral and longitudinal control of following vehicles. The lateral control algorithm for a following vehicle uses a target point positioned on a preceding vehicle and captured in the field of view. When the target point is appropriately positioned, a following vehicle is guided as if it chased the target. The lateral control consists of the steps of target point detection, path generation, and lateral control calculation. A coefficient of a cubic curve that is defined with a target point and the current position of the following vehicle provides the steering angle. The longitudinal control algorithm of a vehicle is determined with a distance between a preceding vehicle and a following one. The feasibility of the algorithms is shown by simulation studies and experiments with indoor mobile robots and automated passenger cars on a test track.
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