2nd Annual Workshop on Road Vehicle Automation - July 16-18, 2013

[Andy Palanisamy]

Message sent on behalf of Steve Shladover, the Chair of TRB Committee on Vehicle Highway Automation (AHB30)

Dear Members, Friends and others interested in the TRB Committee on Vehicle-Highway Automation (AHB30),

With the rapidly growing interest in road vehicle automation, I expect that we will have plenty to do as a committee during the coming year. Papers are already being accepted for next year’s TRB Annual Meeting, and recall that the deadline for submittal of papers is coming up on August 1. We should be seeing a higher volume of paper submittals than in previous years and will need to call on many of you for paper reviews, one of the responsibilities of TRB committee members. As we get closer to paper review time, I am planning to circulate a questionnaire to identify the areas of interest and expertise of the Committee’s members and friends so that we can match papers with suitable reviewers.

The most urgent item for our Committee right now is preparing for our mid-year workshop, being organized in cooperation with six other TRB committees under the auspices of the Joint Subcommittee on Road Vehicle Automation. I know that some of you have already been working on this. This workshop will be held at Stanford University in Stanford, CA from July 16-18. The registration website has just opened, so I would like to encourage you all to register as soon as you can.

This year's summer workshop will focus on the opportunities and challenges of vehicle and infrastructure automation. The meeting agenda is balanced between a full slate of internationally prominent plenary speakers and eleven structured topical breakout sessions. We will have demonstrations of automated vehicles, in-vehicle sub-systems, vehicle simulations, and other enabling technologies. Wednesday's reception will take place at Stanford's automotive research facility, where we will talk with key researchers about Stanford's latest work with vehicle automation.

Please consult the program web site for registration, lodging reservations, and a full description of the program, including the breakout discussion topics: <http://www.vehicleautomation.org>.

Early registration is strongly encouraged: Space is limited, and the onsite lodging reservations will not be available after June 13. When we reach our capacity limit, registrations will be cut off, so don’t wait until the last minute.

In addition to the workshop, there are ancillary meetings before and following the workshop. Check the online program for more detail. These special sessions are free of charge.

• Monday afternoon, July 15: The SAE On-Road Automated Vehicle Standards (ORAVS) Committee will hold an open meeting to discuss the types of standards that will be needed for automated vehicles in the future.

• Thursday afternoon, July 18: U.S. DOT will convene a public stakeholder engagement meeting to address the federal research role in automation in road transportation.

• Friday morning, July 19: California-Specific Topics in Road Vehicle Automation. This session will consider the specific implications of road vehicle automation for California.
  

A block of rooms have been reserved on campus at the Stanford University Munger Residence for $149/night (including tax), and at the Stanford Guest House for $119/night. Munger is adjacent to the law school and Brest Hall, where the workshop will be held; the Guest House is located a couple of miles away and is served by a shuttle bus. RESERVE EARLY: Early bird registration ends on May 31; the room block expires on June 13.

Stay tuned on Linkedin.com (Group Name: TRB Road Vehicle Automation) and the workshop website (http://www.vehicleautomation.org) as we finalize the workshop program. We look forward to seeing you in July.

Best regards,

Steven Shladover
Chair, TRB Committee on Vehicle-Highway Automation (AHB30)