CAV Training for Workforce Development Home

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▰ ABOUT THIS PROJECT

As connected and automated vehicle (CAV) technologies transition from research concepts and pilot applications to large-scale, real world deployments, niche skills will be required from technicians to install, setup, and maintain devices and systems. The existing workforce does not have training resources to perform these tasks with consistency in implementation, but instead rely on individual knowledge and interpretation of standards and designs to maintain and install devices.

Current literature on CAV development and deployment is not tailored for education, leading to a knowledge gap between the current and future CAV and intelligent transportation systems (ITS) workforce.

Tasked by the Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office (ITS JPO) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the Workforce Development project under the Saxton Transportation Operations Laboratory (STOL) aims to bridge this knowledge gap between the existing and upcoming workforce through the development and dissemination of educational materials and CAV education (CAVe)-in-a-box, a hands-on ITS toolkit.

After a successful phase one of this project, the follow-on project aims to build upon the work done previously through updates of CAVe-in-a-box and the system design document, the development of additional “how-to” videos, and the development of a software test tool.

▰ CAVE-IN-A-BOX

CAVe-in-a-box was developed in response to the lack of training and education resources for university researchers and community college/trade school students. CAVe-in-a-box is meant to represent a scaled-down CAV system of interacting entities: a vehicle and it’s environment. The toolkit can be installed anywhere traffic signals have been implemented and acts as a hands-on learning tool for classroom use at universities, community colleges, and trade schools. The infrastructure kit represents the environment, while the mobile kit represents the vehicle.

Infrastructure Kit

The CAVe-in-a-box infrastructure kit (figure 1) is meant to support the non-vehicular side of the ITS supporting communication and messaging between applications. The infrastructure kit is stationary and located preferably at a site that mimics an active intersection. It comes with all the equipment needed to construct a CAV system environment, excluding the signal head lights.

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Figure 1. CAVe-in-a-box infrastructure kit.
Source: FHWA

The infrastructure kit contains:

• Roadside unit (RSU).

• Traffic signal controller (TSC).

• Vehicle-to-everything (V2X) Hub computer.

• Wired network switch

• Power supply.

• Touch screen.

An accompanying System Design Document has been developed in order to ensure users of the toolkits not only understand how to set up the system, but also how and why they work.

If you’re interested in building your own CAVe-in-a-box system, refer to the CAVe-in-a-box Assembly Video for more information.

▰ TRAINING VIDEOS

Seven “how-to” videos were developed under this project and provide a structured ITS learning experience.

The topics covered in this video series are:

1. RSUs.

2. OBUs.

3. V2X Hub.

4. SPaT and MAP.

5. CAVe-in-a-box (hands-on training).

6. TMCs.

7. Maintenance.

For more information on the training videos, visit the CAVe-in-a-box Training Videos page.

▰ CONTACT US