Automobile Automated Driving

Cruise Automation, Inc (Cruise) has developed Cruise RP-1, the first highway autopilot for your car, in an effort to reduce highway accidents, which kill 33,000 Americans each year. Cruise RP-1 uses cameras and AutonomouStuff-supplied Delphi Electronically Scanning Radar to keep your car in its lane and a safe distance from the car in front of you. The product is currently installed on vehicles at the Cruise facility in San Francisco and supports 2012 or newer Audi A4 or S4 vehicles.

What does it do?

Simply drive onto an approved highway, move into a lane and hit the Cruise button. The automobile automated driving system in the Cruise RP-1 will take control of your steering, braking and acceleration to keep you in your lane and a safe distance from the car in front of you. It will automatically slow down for traffic, even to a complete stop if needed, and will accelerate once the traffic clears. While the Cruise RP-1 is an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS), it does not take the place of a human driver. The driver of the vehicle is still responsible for actively monitoring the road, obeying all traffic laws and being ready to take over if needed.

How does it work?

The Cruise RP-1 has three components:

1. Sensor pod – A small pod is mounted to the roof of your vehicle near the windshield. It contains cameras, radar and other sensors that are used by a computer to understand what’s happening around your vehicle.
2. Computer – A computer is mounted in your trunk. It runs off of your cars electrical system and uses less than one cubic foot of trunk space.
3. Actuators – The Cruise RP-1 uses actuators tucked away in the driver’s side footwell to control your steering, braking and acceleration. They’re completely hidden from view and don’t get in the way when not in use.
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Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) recently publicly announced their development of today’s most sophisticated autonomous driving automobile.

AutonomouStuff supplied CMU a six sensor ibeo LUX fusion system and several Delphi Electronically Scanning Radars being used as the primary perception system.

You can see a video of the automated automobile driving system in use on public roads on our YouTube Channel.

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• Two at bumper level facing forward
• 6 ibeo LUX laser scanners
• One mounted on the roof facing forward
• One inside each rear side window looking out sideways
• One facing backward

 

BMW Forschung & Technik (BMW Research & Technology) has seamlessly integrated a 6-sensor Ibeo LUX laser scanner fusion system into a 5- series BMW.

This sensor system consists of quantity 6 ibeo LUX laser scanners that fuse and synchronize millions of points per second.  The fusion system is capable of tracking and classifying objects 360 degrees around an automobile.  All of this data is essential for executing automated automobile driving activities and for the “The Future of Driving.”

The sensor placement:

1. One mounted under the license plate facing forward
2. Two mounted at the bumper level at the front corners turned to the sides
3. Two mounted at a bumper level behind the rear tires facing sideways
4. One facing backward located on the rear bumper

The small size, high resolution and embedded functionality help make this system ideal for automated.

The fundamental idea behind BMW Group Research and Technology was the desire to establish an independent think tank – a branch office which would also be physically separated from all other development areas.

This think tank is neither a design agency nor research lab but contains specialists from various areas of BMW Group Research and development who find it the ideal setting for pursuing ideas requiring the synthesis of innovation, design, and engineering, so typical of BMW.