Vehicle dynamics and external disturbance estimation for future vehicle path prediction

This paper discusses the development of a Kalman filter to simultaneously estimate the lateral velocity of and the external disturbances acting on a vehicle for the purpose of future vehicle path prediction. Simulation results show that with the estimation, the future vehicle path prediction is significantly improved. The need for adaptation of the Kalman filter gain is also investigated. The results show that a fixed Kalman filter gain which is designed for typical highway driving is quite adequate. However, the adaptation of the Kalman filter gain is needed when the vehicle encounters a relatively tight curve