Comparing Vehicle Trajectories Generated by Microscopic Traffic Simulation and Vehicle Dynamic Simulation

Abstract

This paper presents a comparative study between microscopic traffic simulation and vehicle dynamics simulation to evaluate their consistency and applicability for driver behavior analysis. The study focuses on four representative driving scenarios: roundabouts, four-way intersection, highway overtake, and U-turn. Traffic simulations were conducted using SUMO, while vehicle dynamics simulations utilized the double-track vehicle model in MATLAB SIMULINK, driven by the Pure Pursuit control algorithm. Trajectories were visually compared using x-y plots, and the maximum positional deviations were calculated. Speed profiles and heading angles were analyzed as functions of distance, complemented by a quantitative metric based on phase, amplitude, and topology errors. This metric, developed in earlier work, provides a method for comparing vehicle behaviors. The research results highlight the need to incorporate detailed vehicle dynamics into traffic simulations for improved realism, especially in scenarios with high lateral acceleration and abrupt steering inputs. Refining traffic simulations with improved vehicle behavior will also make road traffic flow predictions more realistic and reliable.