Grant: Research Tools and Instruments
University of Waterloo
$150,000.00
WATonoBus - All Weather Waterloo Autonomous Shuttle Bus: A Testbed for Automated Divining and V2X Connectivity
EF 2020-21
Résumé
In 2019, the Waterloo Mechatronic Vehicle Systems (MVS) Lab initiated the WATonoBus (https://uwaterloo.ca/watonobus/), Canada's first all-weather autonomous shuttle bus to safely drive autonomously in any weather condition on the UW's 2.7km Ring Road. WATonoBus is equipped with different sensors for perception and automated driving and, currently, four more shuttle buses are being instrumented to establish a fleet of five autonomous buses, a world-class testbed for autonomous urban driving research in Canada.
Waterloo's Ring Road circles the UW campus, connecting our main buildings, parking lots, and bus and train stations. It has several intersections and crowded parts with pedestrians, cyclists, and vehicles representing a unique test environment for research on autonomous driving in urban city environments.
In this application, we request funding to equip one kilometer of Ring Road with stand-alone infrastructure sensor nodes to advance higher vehicle autonomy (Level 4 and 5) in complex urban driving. The addition of these sensor nodes to our WATonoBus fleet will establish the largest connected autonomous shuttle bus research test platform in any university in the world.
Each of the infrastructure sensor nodes proposed in this RTI application will include a Lidar, camera, edge computing unit, 5G communication module, and a solar-based power unit. The sensor units will be mounted to the existing light posts on the Ring Road to provide the information needed for the automated driving of the shuttle buses. This has become possible through the recent Rogers Communications and the University of Waterloo partnership to create a 5G wireless network-enabled smart campus.
The addition of these sensor nodes to the Ring Road and their integration into the WATonoBus fleet will enable urgently needed breakthroughs in reliable cooperative navigation through V2X connectivity (vehicle to vehicle, vehicle to infrastructure, vehicle to cloud, etc.), advance level 4 and 5 autonomous driving, and cloud-based operation of autonomous fleet through 5G network. All are crucial to realizing automated driving in city cores and high vehicle autonomy, and the competitiveness of Canada's automotive industry.
Programme
Research Tools and Instruments
Bénéficiaire
Emplacement
Ontario, Canada
Type de bénéficiaire
Academia
Type
Grant
Source
NSERC's Awards Data
Tel que publié
Application id
RTI-2021-00058
Name nom
Khajepour, Amir
Department département
MME
Organization id
33
Institution établissement
University of Waterloo
Province en
Ontario
Province fr
Ontario
Country en
CANADA
Country fr
CANADA
Fiscal year exercice financier
2020
Competition year année de concours
2021
Award amount
150000
Program id
RTI
Program name en
Research Tools and Instruments
Program name fr
Outils et instruments de recherche
Group en
Discovery grants programs
Group fr
Programmes de subventions à la découverte
Committee code
1612
Committee name en
Mechanical Engineering (RTI)
Committee name fr
Génie mecanique (OIR)
Area of application code
1206
Area of application group en
Advancement of knowledge
Area of application group fr
Avancement des connaissances
Area of application en
Engineering
Area of application fr
Génie
Research subject code
2108
Research subject group en
Mechanical engineering
Research subject group fr
Génie mécanique
Research subject en
Aerospace, aeronautical and automotive engineering
Research subject fr
Génie aérospatial, aéronautique et automobile
Installment
inst:1-1
Partie
1
Nb partie
1
Application title
WATonoBus - All Weather Waterloo Autonomous Shuttle Bus: A Testbed for Automated Divining and V2X Connectivity
Keyword
NSERC
Application summary
In 2019, the Waterloo Mechatronic Vehicle Systems (MVS) Lab initiated the WATonoBus (https://uwaterloo.ca/watonobus/), Canada's first all-weather autonomous shuttle bus to safely drive autonomously in any weather condition on the UW's 2.7km Ring Road. WATonoBus is equipped with different sensors for perception and automated driving and, currently, four more shuttle buses are being instrumented to establish a fleet of five autonomous buses, a world-class testbed for autonomous urban driving research in Canada.
Waterloo's Ring Road circles the UW campus, connecting our main buildings, parking lots, and bus and train stations. It has several intersections and crowded parts with pedestrians, cyclists, and vehicles representing a unique test environment for research on autonomous driving in urban city environments.
In this application, we request funding to equip one kilometer of Ring Road with stand-alone infrastructure sensor nodes to advance higher vehicle autonomy (Level 4 and 5) in complex urban driving. The addition of these sensor nodes to our WATonoBus fleet will establish the largest connected autonomous shuttle bus research test platform in any university in the world.
Each of the infrastructure sensor nodes proposed in this RTI application will include a Lidar, camera, edge computing unit, 5G communication module, and a solar-based power unit. The sensor units will be mounted to the existing light posts on the Ring Road to provide the information needed for the automated driving of the shuttle buses. This has become possible through the recent Rogers Communications and the University of Waterloo partnership to create a 5G wireless network-enabled smart campus.
The addition of these sensor nodes to the Ring Road and their integration into the WATonoBus fleet will enable urgently needed breakthroughs in reliable cooperative navigation through V2X connectivity (vehicle to vehicle, vehicle to infrastructure, vehicle to cloud, etc.), advance level 4 and 5 autonomous driving, and cloud-based operation of autonomous fleet through 5G network. All are crucial to realizing automated driving in city cores and high vehicle autonomy, and the competitiveness of Canada's automotive industry.
