Longitudinal Control for Autonomous Racing with Combustion Engine Vehicles

Usually, a controller for path- or trajectory tracking is employed in autonomous driving. Typically, these controllers generate high-level commands like longitudinal acceleration or force. However, vehicles with combustion engines expect different actuation inputs. This paper proposes a longitudinal control concept that translates high-level trajectory-tracking commands to the required low-level vehicle commands such as throttle, brake pressure and a desired gear. We chose a modular structure to easily integrate different trajectory-tracking control algorithms and vehicles. The proposed control concept enables a close tracking of the high-level control command. An anti-lock braking system, traction control, and brake warmup control also ensure a safe operation during real-world tests. We provide experimental validation of our concept using real world data with longitudinal accelerations reaching up to $25 \, \frac{\mathrm{m}}{\mathrm{s}^2}$. The experiments were conducted using the EAV24 racecar during the first event of the Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League on the Yas Marina Formula 1 Circuit.

@article{pitschi2025_2504.17418,
  title={ Longitudinal Control for Autonomous Racing with Combustion Engine Vehicles },
  author={ Phillip Pitschi and Simon Sagmeister and Sven Goblirsch and Markus Lienkamp and Boris Lohmann },
  journal={arXiv preprint arXiv:2504.17418},
  year={ 2025 }
}