Using EDR to evaluate the loss of control risk

Overview & Synopsis

EDRs (Event Data Recorders) enable to record potential crashes but also incidents, i.e. critical situations where the vehicle reaches high dynamics demands in longitudinal, lateral or combined direction. This study is based on various situations acquired by EDRs in a bend considered as a zone of interest, because numerous losses of control were reported in the past. The noise of lateral acceleration was quantified in the bend by two methods for 116 recordings, from normal driving passages to critical situations called incidents. The results show that in the most difficult part of the bend, the noise of incidents is superior to normal driving passages, showing that the vehicles come closer to their grip limits. This criterion is useful to evaluate the loss of control risk and the severity of an incident. This approach is complementary to other researches taking into account the dynamical driving parameters of the vehicle.