Abstract: Based on the description of a dilemma-zone avoidance-guiding system, a method for determining the activation time of the system is proposed. First, the impact of the activation time on vehicle guidance is analyzed. Second, the activation time needed for the vehicle, which would have been caught in the dilemma zone, to cross the intersection with an acceleration strategy is computed. For high-speed vehicles, a gain model is proposed for determining the upper bound of the activation time; then the activation time for vehicle, would have been caught in the dilemma zone, to pull up before the stop line with a deceleration strategy is computed. Finally, the greater value between the two activation times is taken as the activation time of the system. Theoretical analysis and numerical examples show that an appropriate activation time can be determined by the proposed method, which can increase the possibility for vehicle to cross the intersection using accelerating strategy without being caught in the dilemma zone.

Key words: engineering of communication and transportation system, signalized intersection, dilemma zone, guiding system, activation time