Quantum Computing Supported Adversarial Attack-Resilient Autonomous Vehicle Perception Module for Traffic Sign Classification

Deep learning (DL)-based image classification models are essential for autonomous vehicle (AV) perception modules since incorrect categorization might have severe repercussions. Adversarial attacks are widely studied cyberattacks that can lead DL models to predict inaccurate output, such as incorrectly classified traffic signs by the perception module of an autonomous vehicle. In this study, we create and compare hybrid classical-quantum deep learning (HCQ-DL) models with classical deep learning (C-DL) models to demonstrate robustness against adversarial attacks for perception modules. Before feeding them into the quantum system, we used transfer learning models, alexnet and vgg-16, as feature extractors. We tested over 1000 quantum circuits in our HCQ-DL models for projected gradient descent (PGD), fast gradient sign attack (FGSA), and gradient attack (GA), which are three well-known untargeted adversarial approaches. We evaluated the performance of all models during adversarial attacks and no-attack scenarios. Our HCQ-DL models maintain accuracy above 95\% during a no-attack scenario and above 91\% for GA and FGSA attacks, which is higher than C-DL models. During the PGD attack, our alexnet-based HCQ-DL model maintained an accuracy of 85\% compared to C-DL models that achieved accuracies below 21\%. Our results highlight that the HCQ-DL models provide improved accuracy for traffic sign classification under adversarial settings compared to their classical counterparts.

Analyzing Factors Influencing Driver Willingness to Accept Advanced Driver Assistance Systems

Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) enhance highway safety by improving environmental perception and reducing human errors. However, misconceptions, trust issues, and knowledge gaps hinder widespread adoption. This study examines driver perceptions, knowledge sources, and usage patterns of ADAS in passenger vehicles. A nationwide survey collected data from a diverse sample of U.S. drivers. Machine learning models predicted ADAS adoption, with SHAP (SHapley Additive Explanations) identifying key influencing factors. Findings indicate that higher trust levels correlate with increased ADAS usage, while concerns about reliability remain a barrier. Specific features, such as Forward Collision Warning and Driver Monitoring Systems, significantly influence adoption likelihood. Demographic factors (age, gender) and driving habits (experience, frequency) also shape ADAS acceptance. Findings emphasize the influence of socioeconomic, demographic, and behavioral factors on ADAS adoption, offering guidance for automakers, policymakers, and safety advocates to improve awareness, trust, and usability.

Crash Severity Risk Modeling Strategies under Data Imbalance

This study investigates crash severity risk modeling strategies for work zones involving large vehicles (i.e., trucks, buses, and vans) when there are crash data imbalance between low-severity (LS) and high-severity (HS) crashes. We utilized crash data, involving large vehicles in South Carolina work zones for the period between 2014 and 2018, which included 4 times more LS crashes compared to HS crashes. The objective of this study is to explore crash severity prediction performance of various models under different feature selection and data balancing techniques. The findings of this study highlight a disparity between LS and HS predictions, with less-accurate prediction of HS crashes compared to LS crashes due to class imbalance and feature overlaps between LS and HS crashes. Combining features from multiple feature selection techniques: statistical correlation, feature importance, recursive elimination, statistical tests, and mutual information, slightly improves HS crash prediction performance. Data balancing techniques such as NearMiss-1 and RandomUnderSampler, maximize HS recall when paired with certain prediction models, such as Bayesian Mixed Logit (BML), NeuralNet, and RandomForest, making them suitable for HS crash prediction. Conversely, RandomOverSampler, HS Class Weighting, and Kernel-based Synthetic Minority Oversampling (K-SMOTE), used with certain prediction models such as BML, CatBoost, and LightGBM, achieve a balanced performance, defined as achieving an equitable trade-off between LS and HS prediction performance metrics. These insights provide safety analysts with guidance to select models, feature selection techniques, and data balancing techniques that align with their specific safety objectives, offering a robust foundation for enhancing work-zone crash severity prediction.

An AutoML-based approach for Network Intrusion Detection

In this paper, we present an automated machine learning (AutoML) approach for network intrusion detection, leveraging a stacked ensemble model developed using the MLJAR AutoML framework. Our methodology combines multiple machine learning algorithms, including LightGBM, CatBoost, and XGBoost, to enhance detection accuracy and robustness. By automating model selection, feature engineering, and hyperparameter tuning, our approach reduces the manual overhead typically associated with traditional machine learning methods. Extensive experimentation on the NSL-KDD dataset demonstrates that the stacked ensemble model outperforms individual models, achieving high accuracy and minimizing false positives. Our findings underscore the benefits of using AutoML for network intrusion detection, as the AutoML-driven stacked ensemble achieved the highest performance with 90\% accuracy and an 89\% F1 score, outperforming individual models like Random Forest (78\% accuracy, 78\% F1 score), XGBoost and CatBoost (both 80\% accuracy, 80\% F1 score), and LightGBM (78\% accuracy, 78\% F1 score), providing a more adaptable and efficient solution for network security applications.

Hybrid Quantum-Classical Neural Network for Incident Detection

The efficiency and reliability of real-time incident detection models directly impact the affected corridors' traffic safety and operational conditions. The recent emergence of cloud-based quantum computing infrastructure and innovations in noisy intermediate-scale quantum devices have revealed a new era of quantum-enhanced algorithms that can be leveraged to improve real-time incident detection accuracy. In this research, a hybrid machine learning model, which includes classical and quantum machine learning (ML) models, is developed to identify incidents using the connected vehicle (CV) data. The incident detection performance of the hybrid model is evaluated against baseline classical ML models. The framework is evaluated using data from a microsimulation tool for different incident scenarios. The results indicate that a hybrid neural network containing a 4-qubit quantum layer outperforms all other baseline models when there is a lack of training data. We have created three datasets; DS-1 with sufficient training data, and DS-2 and DS-3 with insufficient training data. The hybrid model achieves a recall of 98.9%, 98.3%, and 96.6% for DS-1, DS-2, and DS-3, respectively. For DS-2 and DS-3, the average improvement in F2-score (measures model's performance to correctly identify incidents) achieved by the hybrid model is 1.9% and 7.8%, respectively, compared to the classical models. It shows that with insufficient data, which may be common for CVs, the hybrid ML model will perform better than the classical models. With the continuing improvements of quantum computing infrastructure, the quantum ML models could be a promising alternative for CV-related applications when the available data is insufficient.

Hybrid Classical-Quantum Deep Learning Models for Autonomous Vehicle Traffic Image Classification Under Adversarial Attack

Image classification must work for autonomous vehicles (AV) operating on public roads, and actions performed based on image misclassification can have serious consequences. Traffic sign images can be misclassified by an adversarial attack on machine learning models used by AVs for traffic sign recognition. To make classification models resilient against adversarial attacks, we used a hybrid deep-learning model with both the quantum and classical layers. Our goal is to study the hybrid deep-learning architecture for classical-quantum transfer learning models to support the current era of intermediate-scale quantum technology. We have evaluated the impacts of various white box adversarial attacks on these hybrid models. The classical part of hybrid models includes a convolution network from the pre-trained Resnet18 model, which extracts informative features from a high dimensional LISA traffic sign image dataset. The output from the classical processor is processed further through the quantum layer, which is composed of various quantum gates and provides support to various quantum mechanical features like entanglement and superposition. We have tested multiple combinations of quantum circuits to provide better classification accuracy with decreasing training data and found better resiliency for our hybrid classical-quantum deep learning model during attacks compared to the classical-only machine learning models.