About
Dr. Xiaopeng (Shaw) Li is currently a Professor in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering and an affiliate with the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison). He established the Connected and Automated Transportation Systems Lab that developed a multi-scale CAV testbed including multiple full-scale and reduced-scale CAVs and associated system units. His major research interests include connected, automated and electrical vehicle system operations and interdependent infrastructure system modeling.
PAVE: How does your work align with the mission of PAVE to educate the public on AV technology and its promise?
Our primary goal involves enlightening both undergraduate and graduate students about breakthroughs in automated vehicle technologies and system analysis. Our lab has also led multiple research projects in developing new technologies, testing and evaluating cutting-edge developments, and analyzing the social impacts of these technologies. Both our education and research activities are well in line with the mission of PAVE.
PAVE: What are the current barriers you see in public acceptance of automated vehicles?
One major barrier is showing the public the benefits of automated vehicles (AV) to each individual at the user or consumer level, and explaining how the benefits will offset the costs and risks associated with the new technologies. Therefore, we need effective means of evaluating and quantifying real-world AV performance. Another challenge is to show the public an incremental pathway to improve the technologies and their market share. This requires continued improvement in AV technologies, reducing the cost, and creating better business models.
