Autonomous vehicles, the novelty of university research conferences

Can you imagine a vehicle that drives itself almost alone, that identifies traffic signs, that avoids all kinds of risks while transporting passengers to their homes? It is not a science fiction movie, it is closer than ever. Are vehicles that respond to artificial intelligenceself-employed and that can be adaptable to our national environment.

Mario Condori, research professor at Unifranz, obtained the first place in the Oral Modality category of the Faculties of Engineering in the Research Conferences with the innovative proposal.

In October 2020, Elon Musk. president of the electric vehicle company TESLA, announced to the world the improvement of the Autopilot semi-autonomous driving system. The system allows the brand’s vehicles to drive in a specific lane using proximity and direction sensors, analyze routes with advanced GPS systems and detect obstacles using 8 powerful cameras with artificial intelligence capable of deducing the movements of nearby vehicles and obstacles in road.

The technology presented in the heart of world innovation, Palo Alto California, is currently marketed by TESLA as a separate service at a cost of 8 thousand dollars. Engineer Marcelo Condori proposed a adequacy to this technology at reduced costs thanks to the use of open source programming and algorithm modules based on artificial intelligence.

“It is feasible to achieve technological developments in the field of artificial intelligence with low costs and high benefits today, adapting open source development platforms and simulation tools,” said Condori.

Development platforms are open virtual spaces where computer science and programming specialists can have “blank canvases” to build programs that are interrelated with other open access programs. Through the IDM model (Intelligent Driver Model), applied to the development platform, Amazon Web Services, the specialist built codes that will allow vehicles to follow teaching and learning models for autonomous decision making.

The use of open code platforms and simulation tools allow lower costs when applying the technology. Among the recommendations, the engineer highlights that, to achieve autonomy in a car, the use of optical flow is essential, adapting frames with equations and mathematical processes, that is, the education and synergy between the software proposed by Condori and video cameras that cooperate in order to achieve fully autonomous driving.

Research plays a preponderant role, since it has a decisive impact on updating and deepening knowledge, both of teachers and students, allowing them to better understand the behavior of society and its problems, to manage answers and solutions to them, in order to contribute to the progress and development of society in all areas.

Mario Condori, research professor at Unifranz