Unmanned Systems Technology 009 | Ocean Aero Submaran S10 | Simulation and testing | Farnborough report | 3W-110xi b2 TS HFE FI | USVs | Data storage | Eurosatory/UGS 2016 report

6 Mission-critical info for UST professionals Platform one IBM is using its Watson natural language supercomputer to control a 3D-printed autonomous shuttle (writes Nick Flaherty). The shuttle, called Olli, has been developed by Local Motors in Arizona, and carries 12 people. It has started operating in Washington DC and is set to undergo trials in Florida later this year. The shuttle can have up to 30 sensors, and currently has five Lidars – two from Velodyne, two from IBEO Scala and one from Hokuyo – as well as two optical cameras from ZED and two bumper switches from Mayser to detect any pedestrians. These are integrated via IBM’s Internet of Things for Automotive application programming interface (API) software so that new sensors such as radar and ultrasonic can be easily added in the future. The powertrain is driven by a 6.8 kWh battery pack that gives a range of 32 miles before recharging, which takes 4.5 hours from a three-phase ac mains supply. Top speed is 25 mph. The shuttle links back to IBM’s Watson supercomputer via LTE cellular radio using four APIs to analyse the sensor data. The APIs – Speech to Text, Natural Language Classifier, Entity Extraction and Text to Speech – are also used to allow passengers to set destinations and ask for local recommendations of places to visit. A DSRC (dedicated short-range communications) channel specified for vehicle-to-infrastructure comms is planned for a later date. CEO of Local Motors John Rogers Jr said, “Olli with Watson acts as our entry into the world of self-driving vehicles, something we’ve been quietly working on for the past year. We are now ready to accelerate the adoption of this technology and apply it to nearly every vehicle in our current portfolio and those in the very near future.” Control systems August/September 2016 | Unmanned Systems Technology Natural language of control Olli uses APIs to allow passengers to set destinations and ask about places to visit