<p>Safety Management Systems (SMS) in the aviation industry is increasingly an essential aspect of identifying hazards and managing the associated risks. While SMS has become commonplace and is often a regulatory requirement for air carriers, it remains voluntary for many other aviation service providers such as airports. Over the past decade, commercial UAS operations have significantly increased, leading to safety and economic challenges for airports. This research studied the current state of SMS and commercial UAS operations at airports. This research utilized a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods, which included an extensive literature review, interviews, and a survey of airport stakeholders. The literature review confirmed an increase in UAS hazards and risks within the airport operating area coupled with immature SMS practices that address these UAS operations. To build on the findings from the review of literature, a survey instrument was developed, distributed to airport stakeholders, and the responses were statistically analyzed. To gain greater insight into these findings, researchers interviewed three airport subject matter experts. The study compared the airports current state of SMS with UAS operations, the airport stakeholder’s level of familiarity with related policies, and their need for additional UAS SMS guidance material or training. Research results suggest a need for further development and adoption of robust SMS practices at airports along with education and training. This study may assist airport stakeholders, UAS operators, and regulators to further develop robust safety and risk management practices that support safe UAS operations within the airport operating area.</p>

A growing body of international research on urban transport shows that women from all over the world are experiencing safety issues within today’s transport systems. Furthermore, these reports shed light on and discuss how gender bias within the transport sector contributes to this problem. To design future mobility services that everyone will use and enjoy, it is thus important to understand women’s travel needs and to involve a diverse group of users in the development process. With a vision of shaping mobility for a sustainable future NationalElectric Vehicles Sweden (NEVS) is developing a mobility solution consisting of connected, autonomous, and electrified vehicles designed and optimized for shared mobility within city environments. To address this issue in NEVS service this thesis applied an exploitative research approach to examining factors that affect women’s willingness to share rides with others(potential strangers) in a context where there is no driver physically present. The methodology, inspired by the ’Design Thinking’ framework consisted of two main phases:(I) Problem definition and (II) Concept development. To understand women’s safety issues within today’s transport system and frame the design challenge an extensive literature study covering the topics of women’s safety in public transport, technology acceptance, trust, and human-centered design was conducted. To further define user needs and encourage the end-users to take an active role in co-designing solutions for themselves two focus group workshops were held. The initial research and the results from the workshops further formed the basis for the subsequent Concept Development phase. A need for control over the shared travel situation revealed by the participants’ great demand for information led this phase to examine passengers' needs in relation to an In-Vehicle Information System (IVIS). Two prototypes were developed and further tested together with users to evaluate the proposed solutions. The results showed that the anthropomorphic system features used to create a more human-like interaction had a positive impact on the participants’ overall user experience and their perceived safety during a ’shared ride’ scenario. Having a female voice communicating system information made the participants feel less nervous, more comfortable, and more secure compared to when the same information was communicated solely by a visual interface. Other factors that had a major impact on the user experience in general and the perceived security were perceived Ease of Use (PEOU) and freedom of choice. The results showed how not understanding how to interact with the vehicle’s physical features had a negative impact on perceived safety while freedom of choice such as being able to book a specific seat in the vehicle is indicated to have a positive impact on people’s willingness to share their journey with a stranger.

The present thesis aims to establish ideas and technical solutions that can have a positive impact on women's perceived safety while traveling in autonomous vehicles, made for sharing with strangers. The method follows the Design Thinking model which contributes to a user-centered design approach. Initial literature research was performed to understand the problem area, which included women's issues in public transportation, the development of autonomous vehicles, the foundation of a trusting behavior and authentication technologies for identifying users. Following ideation workshops with eight potential users of the service contributed with ideas based on the female perspective and their expectations of traveling in a shared mobility alternative. These results provide a foundation that contributes to a specific purpose of the thesis to create and evaluate strategies for authentication of co-passengers due to being advocated by the participants. Two versions of a high-fidelity mobile application prototype were created in Figma with different strategies for how to interact with the service and authentication methods to align with the autonomous vehicle prototype provided by NEVS during the following tests.  The final user tests, with 14 participants, indicate that an identification method should be included in the service, especially during the night. Six of seven female participants appreciate a combination of Bank ID while requesting a ride and facial recognition when boarding the vehicle. However, the results of the male participants vary to a larger extent. The results do not indicate where the identification technology should be implemented, in the private phone or the vehicle doors. To create a solution available to a larger target group, the mobile application need to adopt and provide option alternatives regarding identification methods due to individual differences and previous experiences which lays a foundation for the users' ability to contribute to a trusting behavior. Furthermore, an onboarding process for the first-time user is proposed to prepare the user and describe how the service could be used and what is expected by them.

Avec l’augmentation progressive de la population dans les grandes villes, comme Paris, nous prévoyons d’ici 2050 une augmentation de 50% du trafic routier. En considérant les embouteillages et la pollution que cette augmentation va générer, on voit clairement la nécessité de nouveaux système de mobilité plus durables, comme le covoiturage, ou plus généralement toute la mobilité partagée. En parlant de mobilité partagée, ce n’est pas seulement le partage de trajets de personnes qui ont le même itinéraire au même temps, elle inclut aussi les marchandises.Cette thèse aborde le défi de la synchronisation des flux de passagers et de marchandises dans les systèmes de mobilité urbaine et elle vis à développer des méthodes d’optimisation pour que cette synchronisation dans la mobilité partagée soit faisable. Plus précisément, elle aborde les questions de recherche suivantes:*Q1: Quelles sont les variantes des systèmes de mobilité partagée et comment les optimiser?*Q2: Comment synchroniser les déplacements de personnes et quels gains cette synchronisation peut-elle générer?*Q3: Comment combiner les flux de passagers et de fret et quels sont les avantages attendus?*Q4: Quels sont les effets de l'incertitude sur la planification et l'exploitation de systèmes de mobilité partagée?Dans un premier temps, nous étudions les différentes variantes des systèmes de mobilité partagée et nous les classifions en fonction de leurs modèles, caractéristiques, approches de résolution et contexte d'application. En se basant sur cette revue de littérature, nous identifions deux problèmes de mobilité partagés, que nous considérons en détails dans cette thèse et nous développons des méthodes d'optimisation pour les résoudre.Pour synchroniser les flux de passagers, nous étudions un modèle de covoiturage en utilisant les véhicules autonomes, personnels et partagés, et des points de rencontre où la synchronisation entre passagers peut avoir lieu. Pour cela, une méthode heuristique en deux phases est proposée et une étude de cas sur la ville de New York est présentée.Ensuite, nous développons un modèle d’optimisation qui combine les flux de passagers et de marchandises dans une région urbaine. Le but de ce modèle est d’utiliser les capacités disponibles sur une ligne de transport fixe pour transporter les passagers et des robots transportant des petits colis à leurs destinations finales en considérant que la demande de passagers est stochastique. Les résultats obtenus montrent que les solutions proposées par ces deux modèles peuvent conduire à une meilleure utilisation des systèmes de transport dans les régions urbaines. / The rise of research into shared mobility systems reflects emerging challenges, such as rising urbanization rates, traffic congestion, oil prices and environmental concerns. The operations research community has turned towards more sharable and sustainable systems of transportation. Although shared mobility comes with many benefits, it has some challenges that are restricting its widespread adoption. More research is thus needed towards developing new shared mobility systems so that a better use of the available transportation assets can be obtained.This thesis aims at developing efficient models and optimization approaches for synchronizing people and freight flows in an urban environment. As such, the following research questions are addressed throughout the thesis:*Q1: What are the variants of shared mobility systems and how to optimize them?*Q2: How can people trips be synchronized and what gains can this synchronization yields?*Q3: How can people and freight flows be combined and what are the intended benefits?*Q4: What impacts uncertainty can have on planning and operating shared mobility systems?First, we review different variants of the shared mobility problem where either (i) travelers share their rides, or (ii) the transportation of passengers and freight is combined. We then classify these variants according to their models, solution approaches and application context and We provide a comprehensive overview of the recently published papers and case studies. Based on this review, we identify two shared mobility problems, which we study further in this thesis.Second, we study a ridesharing problem where individually-owned and on-demand autonomous vehicles (AVs) are used for transporting passengers and a set of meeting points is used for synchronizing their trips. We develop a two-phase method (a pre-processing algorithm and a matching optimization problem) for assessing the sharing potential of different AV ownership models, and we evaluate them on a case study for New York City.Then, we present a model that integrates freight deliveries to a scheduled line for people transportation where passengers demand, and thus the available capacity for transporting freight, is assumed to be stochastic. We model this problem as a two-stage stochastic problem and we provide a MIP formulation and a sample average approximation (SAA) method along with an Adaptive Large Neighborhood Search (ALNS) algorithm to solve it. We then analyze the proposed approach as well as the impacts of stochastic passengers demand on such integrated system on a computational study.Finally, we summarize the key findings, highlight the main challenges facing shared mobility systems, and suggest potential directions for future research.

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<div>Exploring and surveilling the marine environment away from shore is critical for scientific, economic, and military purposes as we progress through the 21st century. Until recently, these missions far from shore were only possible using manned surface vehicles. Over the past decade, advances in energy density, actuators, electronics, and controls have enabled great improvements in vehicle endurance, yet, no solution is capable of supporting persistent operation especially when considering power hungry scientific surveys. This dissertation summarizes contributions related to the development of an adaptable underwater docking station and associated navigation solutions to allow applications in the wide range of maritime missions. The adaptable docking system is a novel approach to the standard funnel shaped docking station design that enables the dock to be collapsible, portable, and support a wide range of vehicles. It has been optimized and tested extensively in simulation. Field experiments in both pool and open water validate the simulation results. The associated control strategies for approach and terminal homing are also introduced and studied in simulation and field trials. These strategies are computationally efficient and enable operation in a variety of scenarios and conditions. Combined, the adaptable docking system and associated navigation strategies can form a baseline for future extended endurance missions away from manned support.</div>

The technology of autonomous vehicles has the potential to provide a significant number of safety, efficiency and environmental benefits to those who are able to harness it. As such, it is only natural that the company which is the subject of this project should want to explore this field, since the company prides itself on being at the cutting edge of both environmental sustainability and technological advancement. This inquiry was therefore launched in order to amass a sufficient knowledge base to enable management to make informed decisions about the possible future implementation of autonomous trucks, specifically to handle the logistics flow between their production facility in Skellefteå, Sweden and the nearby harbour. The first step to achieving this objective consisted of an exploration of the state of autonomous vehicle technology as well as the regulatory framework in Sweden for operating such systems on public roadways. Information was gathered from a vast array of sources, including academic literature, official reports from various authorities, journalistic publications as well as interviews with individuals with competence or experience within this field. While the regulatory situation in Sweden at the moment offers no legal way to operate autonomous vehicles on public roads, it is possible to be granted permission to perform trials of this technology under certain conditions. An investigation was undertaken to determine whether this might be a viable option for the company’s case. As such, hazard analysis was performed on the proposed route in Skellefteå. The method for this was based off of methodology gained from sources who had previously executed safety cases for trials of autonomous technology. A list of potential hazards relevant to the operation of autonomous vehicles was composed, together with variables with which to measure their severity. The relevance and appropriate scope of these hazards and variables was then verified by discussing it with sources with competence in this field. The route was then travelled in order to observe the prevalence of the aforementioned variables. The information was completed and verified through various reports gathered from the Swedish Transport Administration and the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute. The result of the inquiry was that the autonomous technology on the market today is not sufficiently advanced to handle the specified application with an adequate level of safety. The route is also of limited use in establishing trials for testing of autonomous vehicles. While there are uses for autonomous transportation technology, great breakthroughs are needed before the technology reaches the level needed to handle such complex challenges as would be encountered on the proposed application. / Självkörande fordon är en teknologi som visar potential för betydande fördelar inom säkerhet, effektivitet och miljömässigt för dem som kan tygla den. Det framstår därför som naturligt att uppdragsgivaren till detta projekt skulle vara intresserad av denna teknik, då företaget är känt för att vara vid både miljö- och teknikfrågornas framkant. Därför lanserades detta utredningsarbete för att sammanställa tillräcklig kunskap för att kunna ta informerade beslut om en potentiell implementering av ett autonomt transportsystem från deras fabrik i Skellefteå till Skelleftehamn. Denna utredning började med att kartlägga hur autonoma fordonstekniken ser ut idag, samt de regulatoriska möjligheterna att driva autonoma system på allmän väg I Sverige. Informationen samlades från en mängd olika källor, inklusive akademisk litteratur, rapporter från officiella källor, journalistiska källor samt från intervjuer med personer som besitter kompentens och erfarenhet av ämnet. Emedan den regulatoriska situationen i Sverige för stunden inte medger något lagligt sätt att operera självkörande fordon på allmän väg så finns det möjlighet att få tillstånd att utföra försöksverksamhet med sådana fordon så länge vissa villkor uppfylls. En utredning genomfördes för att fastslå om sådan verksamhet skulle kunna vara relevant i företagets fall. I och med detta så utfördes en riskanalys på den föreslagna rutten i Skellefteå. Metoden för dess utförande baserades på metodologi som hämtades från källor som tidigare hade utfört säkerhetsbevisningar för försöksverksamhet på autonoma fordon. En lista av möjliga risker framtogs, tillsammans med mätpunkter vilka skulle kunna användas för att fastslå deras betydelse för autonom fordonteknologi. Dessa riskers relevans och lämpligheten av dess omfattning diskuterades därefter med källor med kompetens inom området. Sedan besöktes rutten för att observationer om mätpunkternas förekomst kunde utföras. Informationen kompletterades och verifierades därefter med information från ett antal rapporter från Trafikverket och Sveriges Meteorologiska och Hydrologiska Institut. Det man kommit fram till är att det idag inte finns något autonomt fordonssystem som är tillräckligt avancerat att klara rutten mellan fabriken och hamnen med god nog säkerhet. Rutten är dessutom av begränsat värde vad det gäller att testa sådana system. Även om det finns autonoma system i operation i dagsläget så ligger dock tekniken långt under den nivå som skulle behövas för att ta sig an de utmaningar som skulle uppstå I det föreslagna användningsområdet.