Describing I2V Communication in Scenarios for Simulation-Based Safety Assessment of Truck Platooning

V2X communication plays an important role in the transition towards connected, cooperative, automated driving. Wireless communication enables instant information exchange between vehicles (V2V) to support, e.g., platooning, and between the infrastructure and vehicles (I2V) to inform vehicles on, e.g., the local speed limit information or the approach of an accident location. In the Horizon 2020 HEADSTART project, we have shown how to test V2V communication in a scenario-based safety assessment framework. Safety assessment aims to determine the impact on safety in the case of potentially critical scenarios, e.g., due to, or in parallel to deterioration of communication. In this study, we extend this methodology with the incorporation of I2V communication. The developed method allows us to treat V2V and I2V communication independently. We demonstrate the method in the use case of an Intelligent Speed Adaptation I2V-functionality for platooning trucks. The practical implementation of test descriptions that consider the potential deterioration of communication signals in the standardized OpenSCENARIO format is shown. The study illustrates how tests are performed in a hardware-in-the-loop setup specifically developed for testing platooning functions. The availability of a test method that is capable of dealing with V2X communication is an important step towards the implementation of type approval methods for Cooperative, Connected and Automated Mobility (CCAM) systems.