Analysis and experimental validation of decentralized controllers for delayed spacing policies in vehicle-platooning

In this paper, a novel approach to spacing policies for vehicle platoons and a framework for control design is presented. Whereas traditional approaches aim to mitigate the effect of actuation and communication delays on the spacing error, this paper presents spacing policies that account for delays. A framework for decentralized control design is presented and necessary and sufficient conditions for tracking of delayed spacing policies are stated. It is shown that due to the control design, string stability is induced by the spacing policy. The results are supported by experimental validations of the theoretical results.