On the Prediction of the Sideslip Angle Using Dynamic Neural Networks

With the growing interest in self-driving vehicles, safety in vehicle driving is becoming an increasingly important aspect. The sideslip angle is a key quantity for modern control systems that aim to improve passenger safety. It directly affects the lateral motion and stability of a vehicle. In particular, a large sideslip angle can cause the vehicle to experience oversteer or understeer, which can lead to loss of control and potentially result in an accident. For this reason, it is necessary to constantly monitor this quantity while driving in order to implement appropriate action if necessary. Sensors that directly measure this quantity are expensive and difficult to implement. In this paper, two neural networks to estimate the sideslip angle are proposed. The quantities that most influence the vehicle’s sideslip angle were assessed. Furthermore, the neural networks can exploit data from previous instants of time for estimation purposes. In particular, the first uses lateral acceleration and steering wheel angle as input, the second uses longitudinal acceleration, lateral acceleration and yaw rate. Experimental tests carried out on manoeuvres that stimulate the sideslip angle have shown that, although the estimators use few measures, they are able to accurately estimate the quantity of interest.