Vacancies

1. PhD Candidate Human Factors at TU Delft (driver support system design and human in the loop evaluation using a truck driving simulator).

2. Post Doc Researcher Truck Steering at TU Delft (truck handling and steering feel evaluation, truck testing and wheel load sensing, truck driving simulator development).

3. PhD Candidate Vehicle Dynamics at TU/e (vehicle, steering system and tyre modelling, truck handling analysis, control strategies).

Project: Truck Merging Support – a Step towards Autonomous Driving

Due to complex vehicle dynamics, size, and limited driver view, trucks are overrepresented in accident statistics. A wide range of truck driver support systems is currently being introduced on the market, and a future prospect is autonomous driving where the truck operator is a supervisor rather than an active controller of the vehicle.Before autonomous driving becomes feasible, two challenges need to be addressed. First, vehicle dynamics of trucks need to be better understood, and second, human factors aspects need to be incorporated in automation design. In this project two PhD Candidates and one Post Doc researcher will develop a series of innovations that represent a step toward autonomous driving. The project’s focus is on a specific safety-critical highway task: merging. Using wheel load measurements, steering system measurements, and RADAR the researchers will obtain a precise understanding of the lateral merging motion of modern trucks. Using this information, a merging assistant will be developed, a system that will provide adaptive levels of support varying from providing information to enhance driver situation awareness, towards guidance and automation.

User Committee: DAF Trucks NV, SKF BV, TNO Mobility, NXP Semiconductors

This research is supported by the Dutch Technology Foundation STW, which is part of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NOW), and which is partly funded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation.

Profile

• MSc. in Mechanical Engineering, Control Engineering or related fields.
• The Post Doc Researcher shall hold a PhD degree or obtain a PhD in the near future
• Expertise in Multibody Dynamics, Control Theory, System Identification, Human Factors, Vehicle Dynamics.
• Excellent writing and presentation skills in English.
• Independent research and teamwork capabilities.

Contract

• Both PhD Candidates will be offered a 4 year contract and the Post Doc Researcher will be offered a 3 year contract assuming full time employment.

Organisation

• Positions 1&2 are offered by Delft University of Technology, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering (3ME), departments BioMechanical Engineering and Precision & Microsystems Engineering, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
• Position 3 is offered by Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). PO Box 513, 5600 MB Eindhoven Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dynamics and Control, PO Box 513, 5600 MB Eindhoven.
• Send your application and resume including relevant courses, grades and experience to
• Riender Happee (r.happee@tudelft.nl) & Joost de Winter (j.c.f.dewinter@tudelft.nl) for positions 1 & 2 Igo Besselink (I.J.M.Besselink@tue.nl) for position 3

Vacancies released January 17, 2013