SentinelLab: A Plug-in Online Defender Testbed for Connected and Autonomous Vehicle (CAV)

This project develops SentinelLab, a closed-loop defender testbed designed to transform how Connected and Automated Vehicle (CAV) cybersecurity is validated. Currently, most research stops at detecting anomalies; this project bridges the gap to active defense by integrating the METS-R traffic simulator with the CARLA photo-realistic sensor simulator. The testbed utilizes a “Recognize, Decide, Act” framework. The project employs a multimodal Large Language Model (LLM) to recognize specific attack families (e.g., message replay, breaking provocation) from noisy streaming signals. It then uses an online Defender Workbench to decide on mitigation strategies via plug-in policies and automatically executes these actions in the simulation. This system enables researchers and public agencies to prepare defenses against realistic threats and quantify their impacts on safety and mobility.

• Record URL:
  • https://www.clemson.edu/cecas/tracr/research/projects/#sentinellabapluginonlinedefendertestbedforconnectedandautonomousvehiclecav

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $447,369.00
• Contract Numbers:

  69A3552344812

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590

  Clemson University

  216 Lowry Hall
  Clemson, SC, SC  United States  29634

  Purdue University

  1040 South River Road
  West Lafayette, IN  United States  47907

  University of Texas at Dallas

  800 W Campbell Rd
  Richardson, Texas  United States  75080
• Managing Organizations:

  National Center for Transportation Cybersecurity and Resiliency (TraCR)

  Clemson University
  Clemson, SC  United States 

  Clemson University

  216 Lowry Hall
  Clemson, SC, SC  United States  29634
• Project Managers:

  Chowdhury, Mashrur

• Performing Organizations:

  Clemson University

  216 Lowry Hall
  Clemson, SC, SC  United States  29634

  Purdue University

  1040 South River Road
  West Lafayette, IN  United States  47907

  University of Texas at Dallas

  800 W Campbell Rd
  Richardson, Texas  United States  75080
• Principal Investigators:

  Fan, Chao

  Li, Lingxi

  Ukkusuri, Satish

  Khan, Latifur

  Thuraisingham, Bhavani

  Karim, Imtiaz

• Start Date: 20260401
• Expected Completion Date: 20270331
• Actual Completion Date: 0
• USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Autonomous vehicles; Computer security; Connected vehicles; Cyberattacks; Machine learning; Simulation; Test beds
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Highways; Security and Emergencies; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01988324
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: National Center for Transportation Cybersecurity and Resiliency (TraCR)
• Contract Numbers: 69A3552344812
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Apr 29 2026 11:32AM