Integration of human driving behaviour in the validation of CCAM systems (CCAM Partnership)

The EU Funding and Tenders Portal announces a grant opportunity for the topic "Integration of human driving behaviour in the validation of CCAM systems" under the Horizon Europe program, specifically identified as HORIZON-CL5-2026-01-D6-04. This call, part of the Horizon Research and Innovation Action, is structured as a Lump Sum Grant model and aims to fund projects that enhance the safety and acceptance of Connected, Cooperative, and Automated Mobility (CCAM) systems.

Eligible applicants include universities, research institutes, small and medium-sized enterprises, large organizations, and consortia that are capable of conducting relevant research and innovation. A consortium featuring international collaboration, particularly with partners from Japan and the United States, is essential for all proposals. The geographic scope encompasses EU member states and associated countries.

The main focus of this opportunity is to develop validated human behavior models to be incorporated into the validation processes of CCAM systems, specifically aimed at raising the technology readiness level to TRL 5. The expected outcomes include models that reflect a wide variety of human driving behaviors in safety-critical scenarios. Projects should integrate these models into mixed-traffic simulations to ensure that CCAM systems exhibit human-like driving behaviors that are safe and can be anticipated by other road users.

The funding for this project is set at a maximum of €5,000,000, with the application process being a single-stage open call scheduled to open on September 16, 2025, and close on January 20, 2026. Proposals are required to follow the European Common Evaluation Methodology for CCAM and will need to report results to the CCAM partnership.

Encouraged actions include using existing driver behavior models as a baseline, extending their applications, and validating them through real-world driving data or simulations. This also includes exploring further fields of application, making use of regional and cultural insights, and engaging in international research collaboration.

Overall, the grant aims to improve the interaction between automated vehicles and human drivers, creating realistic simulations that account for diverse human driving behaviors to promote safer automated driving systems.

The EU Funding and Tenders Portal presents a forthcoming funding opportunity titled "Integration of human driving behaviour in the validation of CCAM systems (CCAM Partnership)" with the topic ID HORIZON-CL5-2026-01-D6-04. This opportunity falls under the Horizon Europe (HORIZON) program, specifically within Cluster 5 and Call 01-2026 (WP 2025) (HORIZON-CL5-2026-01). It is a HORIZON Research and Innovation Action (HORIZON-RIA) and utilizes the HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS] Model Grant Agreement. The funding model is single-stage, with a planned opening date of 16 September 2025 and a deadline of 20 January 2026 at 17:00:00 Brussels time. The budget for this topic is 5,000,000 EUR, and it is anticipated that around 1 grant will be awarded.

The expected outcomes of projects funded under this topic include validated human behavioral models that represent the variety of human driving behavior in safety-relevant scenarios. These models should be shared through a common repository and used to: define pass/assessment criteria for CCAM systems in type approval schemes, consumer testing campaigns, and industrial development processes; and design safe, human-like behavior of CCAM systems that is easily anticipated by all road users and acceptable to both CCAM vehicle occupants and other road users. Furthermore, the models should be applied in the virtual safety validation of CCAM systems to realistically represent the behavior of human-driven vehicles in closed-loop simulations of mixed traffic, reflecting the variety of human driving behavior, including behavior in complex real-world and emergency conditions.

The scope of this opportunity focuses on the intense interaction between CCAM systems and all road users in mixed traffic environments. These interactions, including both explicit and implicit communication, are crucial for the acceptance and penetration of CCAM systems. CCAM systems must exhibit safe and human-like driving behavior that is easily anticipated by all road users, respects traffic rules, and supports road safety. This requires validated models of explicit and implicit human driving behavior for designing and validating system behavior. These models are needed in closed-loop simulations of CCAM systems in mixed traffic to realistically represent the reactions of human drivers to the behavior of CCAM systems.

Building upon existing projects like i4Driving and BERTHA, research is needed to extend the fields of application of driver behavior models, focusing on representing driver behavior in safety-critical scenarios, considering the variation and statistical distribution of human behavioral patterns, and factors influencing such behavior, including non-driving related tasks. Detailed calibration and parameterization are necessary to achieve high degrees of robustness and applicability, considering factors such as road infrastructure, vehicle types, traffic conditions, rules, regional influences, and driver demographics. Proposed actions must also validate the models for their extended fields of application, going beyond the validation accomplished by previous projects. Proposed actions are expected to raise the technology readiness of such models to TRL 5. Data for parameterization and validation should be captured by monitoring real human drivers in driving simulators and/or real traffic, considering what is happening inside and outside the vehicle.

Proposed actions should integrate validated models in virtual validation and verification approaches developed in projects like HEADSTART, SUNRISE, and SYNERGIES. Successful integration should be demonstrated in various safety-relevant scenarios. Models should be shared via the federated data exchange platform for CCAM. Proposals are encouraged to explore additional fields of application of validated driver behavior models, while the integration of relevant expertise from social sciences and humanities (SSH) is expected. International cooperation is encouraged with research stakeholders in Japan, the United States, and other strategic partners, exploiting synergies in capturing data for the parameterization and validation of behavioral models, while considering regional and cultural differences.

This topic implements the co-programmed European Partnership on ‘Connected, Cooperative and Automated Mobility’ (CCAM). Projects will be expected to report on results to the CCAM partnership in support of its KPIs and apply the European Common Evaluation Methodology (EU-CEM) for CCAM. Projects are encouraged to explore potential complementarities with the activities of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre’s Sustainable, Smart, and Safe Mobility Unit and establish formal collaboration where appropriate.

The general conditions for this opportunity include admissibility conditions related to proposal page limits and layout as described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and Part B of the Application Form. Eligible countries are described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes, with specific provisions for non-EU/non-Associated Countries. Other eligible conditions include restrictions for the protection of European communication networks as described in Annex B. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion are described in Annex C. Evaluation and award criteria, scoring, thresholds, submission, and evaluation processes are detailed in Annex D and Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual. The indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement is described in Annex F. Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021, and legal and financial setups are described in Annex G.

Specific conditions include application and evaluation forms, model grant agreements (MGA), and call-specific instructions. Application form templates are available in the Submission System, including the standard application form (HE RIA, IA). Evaluation form templates will be used with necessary adaptations, including the standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA). Guidance is provided in the HE Programme Guide and the Lump Sum MGA. Call-specific instructions include a detailed budget table (HE LS) and guidance on lump sums. Additional documents include the HE Main Work Programme 2025, the HE Programme Guide, the HE Framework Programme 2021/695, the HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764, the EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, the Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions, rules for legal entity validation, the EU Grants AGA, the Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, and privacy statements.

In summary, this funding opportunity aims to advance the development and validation of human behavioral models for CCAM systems, promoting safety, acceptance, and effective integration of automated vehicles into mixed traffic environments. It encourages collaboration, international cooperation, and the application of validated models in virtual safety validation processes. The funding is provided as a lump sum, and projects are expected to contribute to the goals of the CCAM partnership and apply the EU-CEM methodology.

The opportunity seeks to improve the interaction between automated vehicles and human drivers by creating realistic simulations that account for the wide range of human driving behaviors. This will lead to safer and more accepted automated driving systems.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated in the provided text. However, given that this is a Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Action (RIA), eligible applicants are likely to include universities, research institutes, SMEs, large enterprises, and other organizations capable of conducting research and innovation activities. The call also encourages the integration of relevant expertise from social sciences and humanities (SSH), suggesting that organizations with expertise in these areas are also eligible.

Funding Type: The funding type is a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, as indicated by "Type of MGA: HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS]".

Consortium Requirement: The text does not explicitly state whether a consortium is required, but Horizon Europe RIAs typically involve consortia of multiple partners to bring together diverse expertise and resources.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility is described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes, and the Horizon Europe Programme Guide. A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Target Sector: The program targets the transport sector, specifically connected, cooperative, and automated mobility (CCAM). It focuses on integrating human driving behavior into the validation of CCAM systems. It also touches on areas of artificial intelligence, simulation, and virtual validation.

Mentioned Countries: Japan, United States.

Project Stage: The project stage is expected to raise the technology readiness of human behavioral models to TRL 5. This suggests that the project is in the development and validation stage, moving towards demonstration.

Funding Amount: The budget for the topic HORIZON-CL5-2026-01-D6-04 is EUR 5,000,000, and the indicative number of grants is 1. Therefore, the funding amount is around EUR 5,000,000.

Application Type: The application type is a single-stage call, as indicated by "Deadline model: single-stage".

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant.

Application Stages: The application process is a single-stage process.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.

Co-funding Requirement: The text does not explicitly state whether co-funding is required. However, Horizon Europe actions typically fund up to 100% of eligible costs, especially for RIAs.

Summary:
This Horizon Europe call (HORIZON-CL5-2026-01-D6-04) aims to improve the integration of human driving behavior models into the validation process of Connected, Cooperative, and Automated Mobility (CCAM) systems. The goal is to create validated models that represent the variety of human driving behaviors in safety-relevant scenarios. These models should be shared through a common repository and used to define pass/assessment criteria for CCAM systems and to design safe, human-like behavior for CCAM systems that is easily anticipated and acceptable to all road users.

The scope includes developing and validating models of explicit and implicit human driving behavior, integrating these models into closed loop simulations of mixed traffic, and raising the technology readiness level of these models to TRL 5. The call encourages international cooperation, particularly with research stakeholders in Japan and the United States.

The funding is provided as a lump sum grant, with a budget of approximately EUR 5,000,000 for one project. The application process is a single-stage call, with a planned opening date of September 16, 2025, and a deadline of January 20, 2026. Eligible applicants are expected to form consortia and should include organizations with expertise in transport, artificial intelligence, simulation, social sciences, and humanities. The projects are expected to apply the European Common Evaluation Methodology (EU-CEM) for CCAM and report results to the European Partnership on CCAM.