Project Details

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Drone platform for safety in testing - Global with Chalmers

Company: AstaZero AB

Major(s):
Primary: CMPSC
Secondary: CMPEN

Non-Disclosure Agreement: NO

Intellectual Property: NO

Background: AstaZero is a proving ground located deep in the forests outside Gothenburg, Sweden built for testing of advanced automated driving, driver-assistance and active safety systems in road vehicles, such as automated emergency brake systems commonly found in modern vehicles. AstaZero is a non-profit organization owned indirectly by the Swedish government and performs independent testing, verification and certification for its customers. Previous Capstone projects at AstaZero have focused on using drones to support day to day operations. A previous project improved site security by detecting breaks in the fence enclosing the track with the help of AI-image analysis, while another project developed a system to film ongoing tests for documentation purposes. AstaZero has developed an Autonomous Vehicle Test Operating System (ATOS), which is used to carry out scenario-based testing on the test track. This system controls test participants such as the vehicle under test, crash targets, and surrounding infrastructure. ATOS features functionality that ensures the safe and secure testing of AVs. However, AstaZero is always looking for new ways to improve test safety and efficiency. During testing with ATOS, the test leader at the proving ground is responsible for the safety of equipment and personell. To aid the test leader, drones can be used to automatically detects dangerous situations, further improving the test safety. Goal: Inserting image...The goal of this project is therefore to develop a software-based system for automated supervision of tests at the proving ground, which will be showcased at the AstaZero proving ground at project’s end. The showcase will demonstrate a drone-control system that integrates with ATOS to plan drone routes, simultaneously using AI and machine learning-based techniques to e.g. detect endagered persons or dangerous and/or anomalous behaviour of test objects in the scenario. The task: In this global project, students from Pennsylvania State University will collaborate with students from Chalmers University of Technology in achieving the goal. Your task will be to design, implement, and test a system for detecting dangerous situations during testing, building upon previous students’ work. - Understand code and systems produced by previous students - Make a plan for how to develop new software and integrate it with existing systems, based on a gap-analysis between previous systems and the system described in the goal section. - Integrate a drone control system with ATOS, enabling the efficient control of drones - Develop an object detection method for use with drones