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 25s2m. 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{arxiv.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}
}