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11 Unmanned Systems Technology | February/March 2016 Three UK companies have been chosen for public trials of driverless pods in London this summer. The GATEway project is using entirely British engineering, software capabilities and supply chain, with Westfield Sportscars, Heathrow Enterprises and Oxbotica developing fully autonomous pods. The original technology supplier for the project demonstrator was French. The three companies have joined the project as consortium members to adapt the Ultra Pods currently in service at Heathrow Airport, which have been operating at Terminal 5 for nearly five years, carrying 1.5 million passengers and completing 3 million km of fully automated operation on dedicated tracks. The pods will be adapted to navigate the streets of Greenwich without the need for the tracks. Westfield, which makes electric and race cars, will act as the vehicle integrator and manufacturer of the pods. It will be responsible for the design and testing of the vehicles and ensuring that, where possible, they are manufactured with current type approvals so they can be used on public roads. Heathrow Enterprises will be responsible for the vehicle control software, while Oxbotica, a spin-off from the University of Oxford, will add mapping, localisation, perception and route planning software. It will also implement a cloud-based shuttle management system, enabling the pods to operate as part of a synchronised, self-governing system, complete with smartphone booking applications, monitoring and reporting. The trial is one of three automated vehicle tests within the GATEway project, with other trials for autonomous valet parking and automated deliveries due soon. Professor Nick Reed, academy director at TRL and technical director for the GATEway project, said, “Each of these companies brings a great deal of experience to the project, which will prove valuable in helping us understand how the public and industry will adapt to the use of automated vehicles. If the trials prove successful, we expect these vehicles to become a familiar sight in many cities around the world.” Time for Greenwich pod trials Driverless vehicles The pods in the trials will be similar to those that have been in use at Heathrow Airport for the past few years