LSTM-Predicted Sliding Mode Control for String-Stable Vehicle Platooning in Mixed Traffic Flow
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: To address the issues of slow response to preceding vehicles and poor string stability in distributed platoon control of connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs) under mixed traffic flow, this paper proposes a sliding mode control method based on LSTM trajectory prediction, denoted as LSTM-SMC, within a multi-agent framework. The LSTM model is trained using the HighD naturalistic driving dataset to achieve high-precision prediction of the leader vehicle’s trajectory over a horizon of 3 s, with root mean square errors (RMSE) of 8.52 m in the X-direction and 0.896 m in the Y-direction. The predicted trajectory information is converted into a preview error and embedded directly into the design of the sliding surface, enabling each following vehicle to anticipate disturbances before they propagate. A diminishing preview gain strategy (γ1=0.4, γ2=0.2, γ3=0.1) is employed to suppress error propagation along the platoon, while a saturation function is introduced to eliminate chattering and ensure smooth control inputs. Three simulation scenarios—prescribed leading, HDV (human-driven vehicle) leading, and curved road scenario—are constructed to validate the proposed method against traditional constant time headway (CTH) control, pure sliding mode control (SMC), and LSTM-MPC. Results demonstrate that under extreme conditions, the proposed method reduces the speed RMSE of the 3rd following vehicle by 18.3% compared to CTH and by 39.7% compared to SMC. Under HDV leading conditions, all string stability amplification factors are less than 1, and the position RMSE of the 3rd vehicle is only 5.03 m in the curved road scenario. Compared with LSTM-MPC, the proposed LSTM-SMC achieves comparable tracking accuracy while reducing computational cost by 1.43–3.51×. The proposed method achieves a native integration of prediction and robust control, significantly improving tracking accuracy, string stability, and computational efficiency across diverse operating conditions in mixed traffic flow.
Source: Vehicles
Authors: Mei Cao, Qingman Fan
Institution: Nantong Institute of Technology
Language: English
Subfield: Control and Systems Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,930
OpenAlex ID: W7166675830