HORIBA MIRA Reaches Key Milestone in UK CITE Project
HORIBA MIRA Ltd. – a leading independent provider of engineering consultancy, R&D and testing in the field of Connected Autonomous Vehicles (CAV) – has completed the development of a working traffic model as part of its work with the UK Connected Intelligent Transport Environment (UK CITE) consortium.
The model is able to simulate traffic flows and driver behaviours along a mix of urban and motorway roads, reflecting what would be expected to be seen in the real world. This model is a key step towards the development of V2X communications simulations, which are due for completion by the end of the year. The model is a product of HORIBA MIRA’s new Simulation and Modelling team, developed with the Vissim microsimulation package from PTV; world leaders in traffic simulation.
The UK Connected Intelligent Transport Environment (UK CITE) consortium – made up of MIRA and 10 other consortium members – is a major project totalling £7.1m, which includes investment from Innovate UK. The project will enable automotive, infrastructure and service provider companies to trial connected vehicle technology, infrastructure and services in real-life conditions. The connected environment will be on 40 miles of roads within Coventry and Warwickshire, and will seek to understand how the technology can improve journeys, reduce traffic congestion and provide in-vehicle entertainment and safety services through better connectivity.
MIRA is leading the simulation and modelling activities for the project, which will predict how these technologies influence journeys and inform future deployment strategies to optimise socio-economic benefits. Critical to the deployment of these technologies is to ensure that they are safe and secure. In support of this, MIRA will be performing pre-deployment trials at its world-leading connected environment facilities on its Proving Ground, and producing cyber security guidelines.
Chris Reeves, Commercial Manager, Future Transport Technologies and Intelligent Mobility at HORIBA MIRA, said:
“The completion of the traffic model is an important step forward within the project, and we’re delighted with the progress made to date.
“The project is helping to pave the way for the development and deployment of connected autonomous vehicles in the UK, and we’re proud to be working together with the UK CITE consortium on this innovative scheme.”
UK CITE is made up of a number of consortium partners within the automotive, infrastructure and service companies, and includes HORIBA MIRA, Visteon, Jaguar Land Rover, Siemens, WMG, University of Warwick, Coventry University, Coventry City Council, Vodafone, Huawei Technologies, Transport for West Midlands and Highways England. The UK CITE project will create the UK’s first fully connected infrastructure using a globally unique combination of wireless technologies, which can enable real-world testing in a safe and managed way.
