Over the past several years, there has been a growing interest in intelligent transportation systems (ITS). Many functions related to ITS have been discussed in the literature as well as in public and private documents. Some of these functions are mundane while others are futuristic. The driver assistance function considered in this thesis belongs to the latter due to the fact that it has thus far been relatively ill defined. In this study, we actually confine ourselves to a vision-based driver assistance system (VDAS). Even though it is considerably restricted, to complete such a system within a single thesis is still unattainable because various functions capable of contributing to driver assistance are all welcome to include in the system. This study investigates three subsystems that we think of as the most important for a VDAS.

In the following, we start by describing ITS, driver assistance system (DAS), and VDAS. Then a dynamic visual model (DVM) is introduced. This model provides the underlying computational framework based on which the three subsystems for the VDAS are developed.

The role of transportation systems in a country is in a sense analogous to that of the circulatory system in the human body. A person\u2019s body requires the dependable delivery of nutrients by the circulatory system. Likewise, the prosperity of a country depends heavily on the efficient movement of people and goods through its transportation systems. Many countries spend a great amount of money every year for

maintaining and improving their transportation systems. Commonly, steel and concrete infrastructures (e.g., railways, bridges, parking areas, and transportation networks) were introduced in order to meet the ever increasing requirements on transportation services. However, the former (construction of infrastructures) rarely catches up with the latter (demands on services). Moreover, continuously building infrastructure would eventually saturate, especially for those areas with limited land or high population density (e.g., downtown and metropolitan areas). The above issues together with many others have forced people to pursue \u201cintelligent\u201d systems in the hope that they would significantly improve current transportation conditions using limited resources.

Rather than an assembly of exteriorized systems, ITS is actually an innovative concept, or more appropriately, an anticipation. The goal of ITS is to effectively use limited resources while maximizing safety, efficiency, and comfort with the aid of current or soon to be available technology, such as the use of electronic devices, sensors, computers, networks, communication, automated control, as well as advanced strategic plans, policies and management. Although ITS was originally applied to existing transportation systems, it is applicable to the construction of new systems as well. In addition to safety, efficiency, and comfort, the ultimate goal of ITS would enhance the dignity of lives, maintain cultural essence, protect environmental quality, and promote strong economies.

Several subsystems have been suggested for the ITS program [Pue01], such as advanced traffic management systems (ATMS), advanced traveler information systems (ATIS), commercial vehicle operations (CVO), advanced public transportation systems (APTS), advanced rural transportation systems (ARTS), and advanced vehicle control and safety systems (AVCSS). In this study, we consider one subsystem, i.e., a driver assistance system (DAS), of AVCSS.

Most drivers think that they can fully control their vehicles and easily handle critical situations by relying on their training and experience. Driving itself always involves risk, and many traffic mishaps still occur every day. Though technology the risk may not be completely eliminated but it can at the least be reduced. Risk reduction has become one of the major purposes of developing the DAS and is our prime concern in this study. Risk reduction while driving is particularly important for professional

drivers, such as taxicab, bus, freight truck, and tanker drivers. In addition, the DAS will increase not only driving safety but also self-confidence for handicapped and elderly people who still drive.

Diverse methods for improving driving safety have been proposed. They can be roughly classified as passive or active. Passive methods (e.g., seat-belts, airbags, and anti-lock braking systems), which have significantly reduced traffic fatalities, were originally introduced to diminish the degree of injury from an accident. Active methods, on the other hand, are designed to prevent accidents in the first place. The DAS [Bac01-1, Nai98, Sch00, Ven99] are one kind of active system that are designed to bring to the attention of a driver as soon as possible the potential of a dangerous situation.

Unexpected situations aside, driving itself is actually a sophisticated process in which three major tasks are involved: navigation, guidance, and stabilization [Bac01]. Performing these tasks is subject to two essential factors: the temperament of the driver and the technology of the vehicle. In this study, the first factor is the major concern. There are two kinds of influences, exterior and interior, which affect the behavior of a driver. External influence comes from the driver\u2019s knowledge of the environment, while internal influence comes from the driver\u2019s expectations. These two influences are intrinsically related; that is, the better the environmental information a driver receives, the more appropriate his expectations will be.

Many sensors, such as infrared, multi-spectral, photometric, range, ladar, and ultrasonic sensors, have been utilized to acquire information from traffic scenes. In this study we are interested in visual sensors, such as cameras and video camcorders. Vision systems combining visual sensors and computing devices have been utilized to detect, track, monitor, and recognize objects. For DAS applications, vision systems have been exploited for detecting, tracking, and recognizing objects such as roads [Bro95-1, Bro95-2, Gui99, Klu95, Li98], lane markings [Ber98, Bro95-1, Ern99, Gol99, Li98, Won99], traffic signs [Esc97, Ghi92, Lu94, Pri94], road conditions (e.g., dry, wet, fog, freezing, and snow) [Bac99, Yam99], and obstacles (e.g., pedestrians, vehicles, motorcycles and other intruders) [Ber98, Ber99, Ern99].