VTE June 2023

Australian Manufacturing Week

Australian Manufacturing Week: ANCA & Bosch different but both forging ahead

Henkel Technologies: Next gen EVs’ new adhesive technologies

Driving hands free: Look no hands, but drivers are wary

Parking test: AI for parking the bot that’s in demand

June 2023

Issue 36

Representing mobility engineers since 1927 www.saea.com.au

VTE Published By:

Society of Automotive Engineers - Australasia

ABN: 95 004 248 604

Address:

PO Box 103, Werribee Vic 3030

Phone: 0403 267 166

Email: info@sae-a.com.au

Web: www.saea.com.au

Membership & Subscriptions

Rose De Amicis

Email: rose@sae-a.com.au

Events

Suzanne Nicol

Email: events@sae-a.com.au

Board of Directors:

Chairman & CEO

Adrian Feeney

Board

Mohammad Fard – Technical Director

Bernie Rolfe – FISITA & SAE Liaison

Greg Shoemark – Gov’t & Industry

Liaison

James Soo – Autonomous/EV Vehicles

Richard Taube – Board Director

Michael Waghorne – Finances

Gary White – Board Director

Magazine

Production:

Editor

Mandy Parry-Jones

Trading Terms Media

Email: mandypj@optusnet.com.au

Mobile: 0409 806 986

Design

Brigid Fraser

Email: fraseram@optusnet.com.au

Mobile: 0413 009 122

Advertising

Jill Johnson

Jill Johnson Media

Email: jj@jilljohnsonmedia.com.au

Mobile: 0409 217 624

VTE Industry

Partner:

Excellerate Australia

With the year half over, things have been extremely busy within the SAE-A National Office. Firstly, let me formally welcome our newest staff member, Suzanne Nicol who has taken over the role of Events Manager and five days per week, she has been working hard to create some exciting and relevant events for our members. Suzanne previously owned her own business and so brings those special skills and working standards that only self-employed people possess and has many years’ experiences in events and already is proving a valuable asset to us. Please access the website for the latest events and training opportunities as the calendar is populated with planned events and avail yourself of these activities, all at discounted prices for members.

As mentioned in the previous edition, this is my final year as president and so I will be standing down after the Annual General Meeting in June and so I take this opportunity to thank our sponsors and members for their support over the last five years, without your help I could not have done this job.

The future is exciting, we are financially secure, and we have good people in place to deliver our programs, and we have a clear picture of who we are. This brings me to my next point,

Adrian Feeney Chairman and CEO

Society of Automotive Engineers – Australasia

naturally we are looking for a new president and I therefore encourage all members to consider this role, it is not only rewarding but extremely beneficial in growing a person’s skill set, something that will certainly help that person in their career development. It encompasses so many of the management skills that is relevant in any leadership role; finances, team leadership, planning, negotiation skills, staff management and you have a free hand to be as creative as you see fit so long as it benefits the Society. So why not put your hand up if you feel inclined and create something special for our members. Which leads me to my next point I wish to draw to your attention, the AGM and networking function will be held on the evening of 27 June in Richmond (details and registration link are available on the website). We have an exciting program planned based on last year’s successful evening and at $79 for members, it’s a bargain and well within people’s budgets. Once again, the meeting itself will be via Zoom so our interstate members can participate, so please register now and join us for this special evening. And finally, just a reminder that for some, your membership renewal is now due, and I urge you to sign up as soon as possible so we can continue our journey together.

CAT & Tesla partner with SAE-A

The SAE-A would like to welcome two major international companies who have chosen to partner with our organisation for 2023

Caterpillar (CAT) is a world leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and dieselelectric locomotives.

Caterpillar was established in Australia in 1955, and today it has brands such as Cat, FG Wilson, Perkins, Solar and EMD, it serves local customers in major industry segments including general construction, mining, oil and gas, marine, power generation, government and defence, forestry, waste, quarry/ aggregates, paving and technology.

The company operates throughout Australia, employs approximately 1,800 employees and is administered from its head office in Tullamarine, Victoria.

While Tesla is best known as an electric vehicle manufacturer it is much more than that, though it is the biggest seller of plug-in electric vehicles in the world. It is a young, dynamic company that designs, develops and manufactures vehicles as well as energy generation and storage systems.

The company produces and sells the Model Y, Model 3, Model X, Model S, Cybertruck, Tesla Semi and Tesla Roadster vehicles. It also installs and maintains energy systems and sells solar electricity; and offers end-to-end clean energy products, including generation, storage, and consumption.

The company has manufacturing facilities in the US, Germany and China and has operations across Asia Pacific and Europe.

SAE-A AGM and Networking Night

Last year’s event was so popular with a great mix of networking, displays and the AGM that a similar event is planned for this year on Tuesday 27 June starting at 6pm at Richmond Social.

Guest speakers for the night will be from LEAP Australia and Ford. Khesh Selvaganapthi is LEAP’s Engineering Solutions Manager and will discuss computer-aided engineering simulations for the automotive industry and Prakash Shrestha from Ford Motor Company will have examples of engineering simulation projects at Ford. Also, on the night will be displays from Formula SAE-A teams and a chance to network with peers and potential employers.

The event will be at Richmond Social, 157 Swan Street in Richmond with a cost to members of $79 and non-members $99, students $39.

Introduction to crash investigation and reconstruction

Introducing Suzanne Nicol SAE event manager

The SAE-A recently welcomed a new member to the team, Suzanne Nicol who is our new events manager, and she has already lined-up an amazing list of events for members. These are listed in this magazine and also on the SAE-A website.

Suzanne has more than 15 years of experience in event management, and running her own business, so she brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the team.

She is passionate about developing a fantastic events calendar for 2023 and is eager to hear your ideas. On this page you will be able to see some of the events that she has already put into motion.

Girls on Track – A Day in the Life of A Motorsport Engineer has already been run and was held on 25 May with Krystina Emmanoulides, Romy Mayer and Rhiannon Veness as presenters.

To join an event go to the website events page for more information or to make your booking or you can contact Suzanne at events@sae-a.com.au

This popular course is back and will be run over five days starting on 24 July and ending on 28 July and will be held in Tullamarine, Victoria.

DAY ONE

• Introduction to collision reconstruction.

• Inspection of a scene

• Vehicle condition and inspection; Thrust diagrams

• Lights and glass

• Debris, tyre marks and gouges

• Friction and friction measuring devices

• Resultant drag factor - effective factor

DAY TWO

• Measurements and diagrams, geodimeter total

• Survey station

• Photographs

• Speed from skid, yaw, flips and vaults

• Trucks, articulated vehicles, tachographs trip computers

DAY THREE

• Pedestrian collision reconstruction - vehicle

• Speed Estimate Formulae

• Motorcycle reconstruction

• Dynamics, time, distance, acceleration

DAY FOUR

• Energy, damage, vehicle stiffness

• Conservation of momentum, rear end, head on, intersection collisions, examination review

DAY FIVE

• Involves case studies, written examination and learning assessments.

For more information about costs pls contact Suzanne Nicol events@sae-a.com.au

FISITA Congress 2023

The Technology of Mobility Conference and Exhibition

In a change to previous years, the FISITA World Congress will run concurrently with the FISITA World Mobility Summit; EuroBrake; and the inaugural FISITA Intelligent Safety Conference Europe, with all taking place in the Barcelona International Convention Centre from 12-15 September 2023.

The event is being jointly organised by FISITA and the STA (Spanish society of automotive techicians).

The 39th FISITA World Congress will explore the technology, methodology and strategy of mobility, from design, through manufacture and use. By bringing together the many different disciplines of engineering innovation required for the technology of tomorrow’s mobility, the largest Congress FISITA has ever delivered will create the most significant connection opportunity for the international community of mobility engineers, today. The Congress will deliver technical sessions to thousands of delegates, through high profile keynote speakers and roundtable discussions throughout the week, as well as provide business engagement opportunity within an exhibition featuring the leading mobility systems brands.

APV Test Centre Tour

APV’s test centre in Campbellfield offers advanced dynamic, static, crash and environmental test facilities.

EuroBrake is the world’s largest annual brake technology conference. Contributors and attendees gather from the major brake industry stakeholders, including passenger car and commercial vehicle component suppliers and manufacturers, raw material suppliers, and leading brands in rail, aerospace, and academia. Shaping the future of braking, whether through impactful debate in design, manufacture or use, EuroBrake will deliver a series of unparalleled technical presentations, panel discussions and keynote addresses under the themes of:  brake systems; commercial vehicle; components & materials; environmentally friendly approaches; modelling & simulation; rail; technologies; and testing.

More information about the event is at: https://www.fisita.com/tmce

This tour will consist of an in-depth view of:

• The crash test facility – main indoor track

• The component laboratory

• Crash test dummy calibration

• Post side impact and post pole impact crash

• Test equipment.

Attendees will get a behind the scenes look at world class facilities not generally available to tour.

This event will be held on 19 July starting at 6pm with a cost to members of $30, non-members $50 and students $20.

Light Vehicle Modifications Seminar

SAE-A is introducing light vehicle modifications seminar to provide you with the opportunity to get an insight into the laws, rules, processes, and standards that are applied to make a modified vehicle compliant.

Presented by engineers with endorsements in Vehicle Authorised Signatory Scheme (VASS), this seminar appeals to all with an interest in modifying vehicles ranging from hot rods, imports, or custom vehicles.

This event will be held in conjunction with Talk Torque Automotive and will include topics such as:

• Club M and SR registration requirements

• Personal import vehicles changes

• Build your own trailer

• Electric vehicle conversions

• 4WD modifications

• Individually Constructed Vehicles (ICV).

PACCAR plant tour

This event will be run by Bill Malkoutzis who is an experienced automotive engineering consultant with a strong background in vehicle and product design, testing and development. He has more than 26 years in the industry working with companies such as Ford and PBR.

In 2003 he established his own company Talk Torque Automotive which provides consultancy services to commercial clients in the automotive industry. He is also a VicRoads authorised VASS signatory. The event will be held at the Racecourse Hotel in Malvern East in Victoria on 7 July starting at 7pm the cost for members is $50, nonmembers $70 and students $30.

PACCAR Australia markets two premium brands: the heavy-duty Kenworth range and the award winning DAF range.

Kenworth vehicles have been built at the Bayswater assembly facility since 1971.

Today the Kenworth brand is a heavyduty market leader and is sold throughout Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea.

The company also imports DAF vehicles, one of Europe’s leading brands of medium and heavy-duty trucks.

Tour numbers are limited to 30 places only so register now.

Date: Monday 6 June 2023

Tickets: $20 for members and $50 for non members

Time: 1:30pm - 3:00pm

Location: 64 Canterbury Road, Bayswater North 3153

General Briefs

MathWorks integration with Green Hills

MathWorks and Green Hills Software announced an integration that helps engineers design safety-related applications for the Infineon AURIX TC4x family of automotive microcontrollers using Simulink.

Engineers using the new family of microcontrollers automate compiling and building code generated by Embedded Coder using Green Hills Software’s support for AURIX, and then perform back-to-back testing using processor-in-loop (PIL) simulation.

“Electric vehicles and automated driving systems have disrupted conventional norms and introduced a generational change in the pace and scope of automotive electronics development,” said Tom Erkkinen, Product Manager, Embedded Code Generation at MathWorks. “Green Hills is a leading embedded software vendor that we collaborate with to provide highly automated tools and workflows that comply with rigorous functional safety standards, such as ISO 26262.”

Businesses manage hardware and software complexities with modern software development techniques, including virtual

simulation and automated deployment. With this integration, automotive engineers move quickly from algorithm design to production deployment, knowing that the enabling tools from MathWorks and Green Hills Software support major safety standards. The ability to validate use cases, test algorithms, and automatically generate embedded software has the potential to improve organisations’ time-to-market.

“Many of our customers use MathWorks products to create algorithms for embedded systems,” said Rob Redfield, Director, Business Development at Green Hills Software. “Now, these customers not only have an easy-to-use way to run and verify these algorithms on embedded processors, but they also can debug, analyse, and optimise their code with safety-qualified optimising C/ C++ compilers and run-time libraries within the Green Hills MULTI IDE.”

How to transition to work from uni for engineers

Transitioning new engineers into professionals who can blend in and contribute to the technical organization is necessary. Trained in the “nuts and bolts” of a technical subject, new engineers have little to no training on the “soft” skills of how to work within an organization.

This new book explains to new engineers how to quickly operate and succeed within their new engineering organization.

Navigating the Engineering Organization: A New Engineer’s Guide focuses on the group behaviours of technical organizations. It provides a rigorous organizational framework to operate from and delivers guidance using a dual approach of academic insight and professional experience.

Through numerous case studies, the book presents actual experiential guidance and offers a method on how to extend the insights covered in the book and turn them into a valuable personal model, valid throughout the engineer’s career. It helps readers understand quickly the unique values and expectations within their new engineering organization and guides them in discovering the proper ways to respond to these expectations. They can then act on these insights to deliver successful results, now and throughout their careers.

The approach and goals found in this book provide a building block to help all new engineers cross the “Great Divide” from student to professional and succeed in their new engineering organization.

It is $90.00, it can be bought from Amazon, or from: https://www.routledge.com/ Navigating-the-Engineering-OrganizationA-New-Engineers-Guide/Santer/p/ book/9781032102511

Finalists in Women in Industry Awards

There were a record 158 nominations received this year for the Women in Industry awards. Women in Industry was pleased to announce the finalists of the 2023 Awards these below are just a sample. Winners will be announced on 8 June.

EXCELLENCE IN ENGINEERING

• Elika Karbassi – Liberty Industrial

• Elsa Antunes – James Cook University

• Helen Baxter-Crawford – SMEC

• Jennifer Courmont – Downer

• Jennifer Del Mastro – Airservices Australia

• Nicola Taylor – BOC

EXCELLENCE IN MANUFACTURING

• Brenda Denbesten – Dulux Group

• Kristi Riordan – Harvest B

• Kym O’Leary – COgear

• Naomi Elliott – Concept Laboratories

• Rebecca Vella – Laminex Australia

• Shari Lyon – Fluxwood Lighting

Opportunity for hydrogen plant in SA

Trafigura is one of the world’s largest physical commodity trading companies and is working with Nyrstar and the South Australian Government to explore opportunities to progress a commercial scale green hydrogen manufacturing facility in Port Pirie. The proposed project could deliver huge economic benefits to the State. The full-scale plant would produce 100 tonnes of green hydrogen per day from a 440MW electrolyser, enabling it to meet both export and domestic supply needs. The oxygen created in the production of hydrogen would be used by the Nyrstar Port Pirie smelter, and 100 percent renewable electricity would be used to run the project’s electrolyser, contributing to the decarbonisation of the existing facility’s power supply.

Four Aussie students flying high

Four Australian high school students and a teacher will attend a six-day International Space Camp in the US after winning Astronaut Al Worden Endeavour Scholarships through the worldwide Kallman Group.

The group, known as “Mission Crew 10 – Team Australia”, will join other international teams at Space Camp at the US Space & Rocket Centre in Alabama from 2-7 July.

They will experience a variety of astronaut training exercises, engineering challenges and team-building activities, culminating in an extended-duration simulated space mission.

The winning students are:

• Arabella Darlington – Brisbane, Queensland

• Toby Fealy – Mareeba, Queensland

• Elliot Powell – Sydney, New South Wales

• Zoe Bremner – Launceston, Tasmania.

One million robots at work in car manufacturing

The automotive industry has the largest number of robots working in factories around the world: operational stock hit a new record of about one million units. This represents about one third of the total number installed across all industries.

“The automotive industry effectively invented automated manufacturing,” said Marina Bill, President of the International Federation of Robotics. “Today, robots are playing a vital role in enabling this industry’s transition from combustion engines to electric power. Robotic automation helps car manufacturers manage the wholesale changes to longestablished manufacturing methods and technologies.”

Robot density is a key indicator which illustrates the current level of automation in the top car producing economies: In the Republic of Korea, 2,867 industrial robots per 10,000 employees were in operation in 2021. Germany ranks in second place with 1,500 units followed by the United States counting 1,457 units and Japan with 1,422 units per 10,000 workers.

The world´s biggest car manufacturer, China, has a robot density of 772 units, but is catching up fast: within a year, new robot installations in the Chinese automotive industry almost doubled to 61,598 units in 2021- accounting for 52 percent of the total 119,405 units installed in factories around the world.

Ambitious political targets for electric vehicles are forcing the car industry to invest: The European Union has announced plans to end the sale of airpolluting vehicles by 2035.

The US government aims to reach a voluntary goal of 50 percent market share for electric vehicle sales by 2030 and all new vehicles sold in China must be powered by “new energy” by 2035. Half of them must be electric, fuel cell, or plug-in hybrid – the remaining 50 percent, hybrid vehicles.

Most automotive manufacturers who have already invested in traditional “caged” industrial robots for basic assembling are now also investing in collaborative applications for final assembly and finishing tasks. Tier-two automotive parts suppliers, many of which are SMEs, are slower to automate fully. Yet, as robots become smaller, more adaptable, easier to program, and less capital-intensive this is expected to change.

5000th vehicle for Premcar heralds a great future for Australian manufacturing

The 5,000th new vehicle to be built at Premcar’s Epping, Victoria production facility has rolled off the assembly line. The new vehicle to set the milestone was a Nissan Navara PRO-4X Warrior.

Dual-cab 4x4 Navara pick-up models from the PRO-4X and SL model grades are shipped from Nissan’s overseas assembly plants to Premcar’s Epping production facility for secondary new-vehicle manufacturing and completion. Once completed, they are shipped to Nissan’s national dealer network via its newvehicle logistics provider.

During their production stop at Premcar’s new-vehicle production facility in Epping, these vehicles are fitted with their Australiandesigned and engineered components, which have all been developed by Premcar for Nissan.

The Nissan Navara Warrior by Premcar

program began in 2019 with the Navara N-Trek Warrior by Premcar, Nissan Australia’s first local new-vehicle enhancement program with the local firm.

In September last year, Nissan Australia and Premcar announced the Y62-series Patrol would join the successful Warrior by Premcar program, becoming a new model grade in Nissan’s Australian showroom line-up. The 298 kW 4x4 Patrol Warrior SUV is currently undergoing its Australian reengineering and manufacturing development program. Premcar is scheduled to commence manufacturing and assembly in Australia later this year.

National Electric Vehicle Strategy a welcome step for Australian industry

The Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering welcomed the National Electric Vehicle (EV) Strategy as a critical step in making Australia a significant player in the global electric vehicle (EV) industry.

The Academy welcomes the introduction of fuel efficiency standards to reduce EV costs and incentivise national adoption. Making EVs accessible and affordable to all Australians is fundamental for reaching the nation’s 2030 and 2050 climate change commitments. The establishment of national standards for EV charging infrastructure, underpinned by the enormous opportunity to leverage technological solutions, like energy storage, and optimisation of EV charging, will help ensure energy grid resilience and uptake. It also welcomed the Government’s focus on addressing end-of-life waste from EVs and the investment in research into safe and environmentally friendly component recycle and re-use. However, second-hand markets for EVs are in their infancy and more regulatory support is needed to build these markets. Expanding and regulating these second-hand markets will help reduce the cost of EVs, making them available to more Australians.

To move Australia forward in EV capability, we need to: improve charging infrastructure; optimise charging practices to ensure reliable electricity supply; and use more digital technologies to help minimise the environmental impact and improve EV production efficiency.

The Academy also stated that to build a sector that is capable of competing on the world stage at the scale we believe is possible and to meet the huge demand for EVs we must also unlock the potential of a future Australian car manufacturing workforce through up-skilling and retraining.

Renault fine tunes nine prototypes

To fine-tune the future electric Renault 5, Renault is currently testing its first nine prototypes.

Known as mules, their platform, powertrain and battery are technically the same as the future production vehicle.

With a design based on the Clio silhouette, the mules do not yet look like the future model. Alternating between static and dynamic finetuning and endurance testing, the mules are being put through their paces in winter in low grip (ice, snow) conditions in Arvidsjaur (Swedish Lapland) as well as average-to-high grip conditions at the Renault technical centres in Lardy (greater Paris area) and Aubevoye (Normandy).

The Renault site in Aubevoye is unique in that it has the means and cutting-edge tools to reproduce any types of stress vehicles will be put through at the hands of customers: 613 hectares, 35 tracks covering 60km, 42 test lines, two wind tunnels, 18 corrosion chambers, all hidden within 272 hectares of forest to shield the prototypes from prying eyes.

Ford opens its Heritage Vault

Almost 100 years since the founding of the Ford Motor Company of Australia in 1925, Ford’s online Heritage Vault has added more than 180 photos and brochures of some of the brand’s most interesting and iconic models sold here between 1960 and 2002 –with more to come.

Following the opening of the vault in June 2022 with 5,000 images, which saw unprecedented web traffic from around the world, Ford’s new Australia upload includes images and brochures covering Anglia to Zephyr and everything in between including Escort, Econovan, Falcon, Meteor, Spectron, Transit and more.

Ford created the Heritage Vault for fans, journalists, and car enthusiasts, making it easy to discover the company’s rich heritage from anywhere in the world. The searchable artifacts are downloadable for personal use, free of charge, as one of the auto industry’s most comprehensive online databases.

To date, almost 12,000 curated Ford and Lincoln photographs and product brochures from the first century of the company’s history have been

Voluntary emissions reductions for light vehicles

The FCAI released the 2022 results of Australia’s voluntary emissions reduction standard for light vehicles.

The MA (passenger cars and light SUVS) outcome for 2022 was an average of 131 grams (146 grams in 2021) of CO2 for every kilometre travelled.

The MC + NA (heavy SUVs and light commercial vehicles) outcome was an average of 212.8 grams (212.5 grams in 2021). These results are set against a 2022 target of 146 grams for MA and 189 grams for MC + NA.

Industry developed and adopted the standard in 2020 in the absence of action from the previous Federal Government.

FCAI Chief Executive Tony Weber said that the 2022 results demonstrated the challenges of transitioning to a zero-emission light vehicle sector in Australia, especially in the absence of a government mandated CO2 standard.

“Globally, there is currently a limited supply of batteries and supporting technology to meet the demand for all new vehicles and in particular, the bigger vehicles which a large proportion of Australians choose to buy,” Mr Weber said.

“Development work is being undertaken by car makers across the world to overcome these challenges. However, we are not likely to see a significant improvement in the availability of these vehicles at prices many Australians can afford until at least the end of this decade.

made available to the public online for the first time and the site is currently seeing around 5,000 downloads per day.

Visit the vault at: https://fordheritagevault.com

“We have the opportunity to establish a standard which gets us on the pathway to reducing emissions, supports car makers to attract the best low emission technology to the Australian market and provides Australian consumers with certainty and clarity around future vehicle availability.

“Attempts to simplify our journey to net zero as one that can only be achieved through electric vehicles ignore the buying preferences of Australian consumers, market supply realities, price, and the very real impact of other low emission technologies.”

Aussie Airspeeder ready for racing

Alauda Aeronautics is seeking OEM partners to join it in a motorsport revolution, as it unveils the Airspeeder Mk4 – the world’s first, and fastest, crewed flying car.

Designed and built in Adelaide, South Australia, the Airspeeder Mk4 is an electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft. Capable of reaching a top speed of 360 kph in just 30 seconds from a standing start, it’s designed to set the bar for performance and technology in the radical new sport of piloted Airspeeder racing. With its sophisticated electric propulsion system, advanced aerodynamics and a take-off weight (MTOW) of just 950 kg, the Airspeeder Mk4 is also extremely efficient, with a projected range of 300 km (188 miles) while producing near-zero emissions.

The new aircraft is a development of the remotely-piloted Mk3, which has successfully completed more than 350+ test flights and took part in two Airspeeder demonstration races in South Australia in 2022.

The Airspeeder Mk4 is powered by a 1,000 kW turbogenerator that feeds power to the

New model to link SA innovation

As AUKUS becomes reality SA will introduce a new innovation model to connect the state’s innovation districts including Lot Fourteen, Tonsley and Adelaide BioMed with knowledge and manufacturing hubs such as the Osborne Naval Shipyard and the Edinburgh Defence precinct and in the future the Australian Space Park.

This will a boon to economic growth and it will link education, skills and workforce programs to work sites.

The framework will be developed by Di Dixon of Lot Fourteen and will capitalise on SA’s defence, space and advanced manufacturing capabilities as well as technologies like artificial intelligence and quantum computing.

“This framework offers a dynamic vehicle to support state-wide job placement and enhance regional connectivity to support strategic investment, and drive new clusters of economic activity and job creation,” Ms Dixon said.

“We will leverage the power of proximity and connection to supercharge innovation and in so doing lay the foundation for new and more inclusive prosperity.

“Innovation assets are formidable job engines. Research has shown that for each innovation intensive job an innovation district supports, it creates an average of four or five in production and service-related jobs.”

batteries and motors. Specifically designed for use in eVTOLs, this revolutionary technology allows green hydrogen to be used as fuel, providing safe, reliable and sustainable power over long distances and flight times. The Mk4 has a projected range of over 300 kilometres. Alauda Aeronautics’ demonstrator ‘Thunderstrike’ engine incorporates a unique combustor made using 3D printing techniques developed in the space industry for rocket engines. The combustor’s design keeps the hydrogen flame temperature relatively low, greatly reducing nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions.

Hydrogen is an ideal fuel for future aviation, and specifically personal urban air travel. It has a high energy density and can be stored in a lightweight, compact form, making it suitable for small aircraft; it’s also non-toxic and produces no emissions except pure water, so it doesn’t cause air pollution. Further to this, because hydrogen gas is lighter than air, it will

simply rise and disperse into the atmosphere in the event of a leak, reducing the risk of fire or explosion.

As well as taking the existing eVTOL industry into the next-generation H2eVTOL era, this technology has the potential to significantly reduce emissions and create a sustainable future for individual air travel.

Most eVTOLs steer using tilt-rotors, which are simply positioned vertically for take-off and landing and horizontally while cruising. In contrast, the Mk4 manoeuvres using a unique gimballed thrust system, whereby an Artificial Intelligence (AI) flight controller individually adjusts four rotor pairs mounted on lightweight 3D printed gimbals.

This makes the Mk4 not only fast in a straight line, but also able to manoeuvre with the incredible precision essential in closeaction racing. In fact, it handles less like a multicopter and more like a jet fighter or Formula One racing car.

Fleet Space signs with Defence Space Command

Fleet Space Technologies has signed a $6.4 million contract with Australia’s Defence Space Command, marking their first defence contract.

The agreement will see Fleet’s next generation of Centauri satellites used to develop and demonstrate a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite communications system focused on tactical communications and data transmission where connectivity is limited.

The program, named ASCEND2LEO, will make use of Fleet’s commercial satellites. A collaboration between government, defence industry and academia. Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG), Fleet Space Technologies, University of South Australia, Rice Satcom Pty Ltd and SmartSat CRC are taking advanced research and technologies to demonstrate LEO capabilities to the war fighter.

This innovative approach enables Defence to take advantage of the most modern commercial space technology used by the mining industry with the most up-to-date research to rapidly advance space capabilities. Fleet Space’s key capabilities are low-power, high-performance edge computing in small spacecraft and terrestrial devices, as well as additive manufacturing.

Advanced Navigation’s subsea robotics in

WA

Advanced Navigation has opened the largest subsea robotics facility in Australia, located in Balcatta, Western Australia (WA).

The high-tech manufacturing and R&D facility will accelerate the production of the company’s revolutionary underwater technologies, including its autonomous underwater robot, Hydrus.

The new subsea centre will help Advanced Navigation meet the growing demand for high-grade underwater data, bringing new and existing solutions to market far more quickly and efficiently.

The goal is to grow its subsea team threefold, and the company is confident this investment will deepen and advance its understanding of the oceans.

The subsea centre is located on a massive 5.5 acre site. The facility is split between development and manufacturing for high volume production and continued research and expansion of subsea navigation and robotics technologies. This includes the growth of its underwater artificial intelligence division.

The new centre also includes full testing facilities with several marine simulation environments to ensure reliable performance and the highest quality production.

Advanced Navigation’s break-through underwater navigation and robotic technologies are utilised across the blue economy, supporting research, aquaculture, offshore renewable energy, transportation,

surveillance, biotechnology and high-tech services.

The company’s recent autonomous underwater robot Hydrus continues to revolutionise undersea research, survey and exploration by making data capture far simpler and vastly more accessible.

The subsea centre is just one of several investments made by Advanced Navigation as it continues to expand its global reach and capabilities. The company has established headquarters in Sydney with research centres throughout Australia, including Brisbane for aerial drone technology, Canberra for photonic and laser technology and Newcastle for quantum sensing.

In addition to novel autonomous subsea robotics, Advanced Navigation delivers AIenhanced navigation technologies for land, sea, air and space applications. The company is committed to developing innovative products and systems that will be catalysts of the autonomy revolution.

BAE welcomes largest cohort of aero apprentices

BAE Systems Australia has welcomed its largest group of aerospace apprentices and first cohort of aircraft engineers as the company expands its sustainment operations in response to the Royal Australia Air Force’s growing F-35 fleet and the Hawk Lead-In Fighter training aircraft.

The 2023 intake has increased threefold to include 18 apprentices and seven aircraft engineers, to be deployed across the company’s Williamtown and Pearce operating sites. This takes the total number of apprentices across the Aerospace Line of Business to 30.

Employees across Williamtown deliver a comprehensive maintenance and sustainment

AUKUS for Australia

AUKUS will be the start of a new era for Australian defence with eight new nuclear submarines called SSN AUKUS over 30 years which includes an upgrade to naval base HMAS Stirling in WA and $2 billion to upgrades for the Osborne, SA shipyards.

In SA the submarine construction yard to be built for this project will be three times larger than the one proposed for the Attack class submarines.

Up to 4000 workers will be employed to design and build the infrastructure for this yard and another 5000 jobs are expected to come about due to the nuclear powered submarine build program which doesn’t include jobs in the supply chain. Alongside that will be a spend of around $6 billion in Australia’s industrial capability and workforce over four years that will create around 20,000 jobs over 30 years.

“We will partner with the United States and the United Kingdom to build the next generation submarine. They’ll be built by Australians, commanded by the Australian Navy and sustained by Australians in Australian shipyards. In the meantime, we’ll be training and upskilling our people through increased visits and rotational presence from US and UK submarines,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said. “With construction beginning this decade, we’ll train more engineers, scientists, technicians, submariners, administrators and tradespeople. Already, Australian personnel are upskilling on nuclear propulsion technology and stewardship alongside British and American counterparts.”

SA premier, Peter Malinauskas said that the AUKUS submarines will be the most complex machines that have ever been built. But it is not just the thousands of workers to be employed at Osborne who will benefit.

program for the Royal Australian Air Force and its Hawk Lead-In Fighter and F-35 programs. Once qualified, the apprentices and aircraft engineers will be equipped with skills required to maintain and sustain aircraft for the Commonwealth’s Hawk Lead-In Fighter and F-35 programs, which play a critical role in the capability of the RAAF.

This is a transformational opportunity to increase our economic complexity. This deal is more than just a technological advancement there will be additional advantages in technology sharing in AI and quantum technology. These will place Australia at a better level for future projects not only in defence but other industries.

It will also require a level of cooperation between governments, defence and industry.

Truck & Bus Briefs

Australia falling behind with electric buses

A report has found Australia is falling behind when it comes to electrifying its bus fleet with just 200 out of 100,000 buses electric. The report published by The Australia Institute says that electric buses are available, viable, and popular with commuters. Most of the fleet of Australian buses is owned by state governments. The Australia Institute also surveyed Victorians and found that 71 percent supported a zero-emission bus fleet.

SEA partners with Zurich for transition to electric fleets

SEA Electric has partnered with Zurich Resilience Solutions (ZRS) to ease the transition for fleets to update to sustainable technology. The Zurich brand globally represents quality and integrity, with its risk engineering team of around 800 engineers set to work with SEA Electric customers to enhance their EV switch.

ZRS provides specialised insights and tools –above and beyond insurance – to help companies across a wide range of industries manage traditional and evolving risks to become more resilient. Services are provided across a number of domains, including: climate change resilience; supply chain risk; and cyber security.

SEA Electric will work to assist Zurich customers in their understanding of the commercial electric vehicle space with customer experience days, plus potential webinars, while Zurich’s risk engineering department will benefit from ongoing training from SEA Electric’s knowledgeable team.

UD celebrates 50 years trucking in Australia

WA to inject $250M in electric bus transport

The West Australian government will inject $125 million funding and together with a $125 million commitment announced by the federal government last year, this will provide for 130 new locally built electric buses, and upgrades to depots including charging infrastructure.

“Importantly, we will build these buses right here in Western Australia, creating local manufacturing jobs and supporting local business,” Premier Mark McGowan said. The first locally manufactured buses are expected to roll off the assembly line in 202425, and will be used in the Perth CBD, the remainder to work in the Perth metropolitan region.

The state budget will allocate an initial $22 million next financial year via the Perth Parking Levy to build 18 news electric buses and install charging infrastructure at Elizabeth Quay Bus station in Perth. Four Volvo battery-electric buses are being tested in the northern Perth suburb of

Joondalup and are expected carry 250,000 passengers in the first 12 months this marks the first time electric buses have been used on Perth’s public transport network. As part of the trial Joondalup bus dept is using a high-voltage overnight EV charging system drawing on the existing grid and a solar array connected to an on-site battery. Transperth currently operates a fleet of 1,500 buses.

World first fleet of self-driving buses in service

The world’s first fleet of self-driving commuter buses is in service in Scotland after a successful trial run in January, and financial support from the UK government.

This year marks 50 years since UD Trucks reached Australian shores the company shows no signs of slowing down having just launched new products at the recent Brisbane truck show.

The UD CK40 was the first model to hit Australia’s roads in 1973 , and the decades to follow saw countless innovations including the release of its ESCOT AMT (Automatic Manual Transmission) that became a benchmark for the heavy duty industry at that tim , the world’s first commercialised radar laser collision prevention system, and the world’s first selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system – a technology that revolutionised the industry’s emission reduction journey.

Stagecoach’s self-driving vehicles will service a 22.5 km circuit with five singledecker buses carrying approximately 10,000 passengers weekly.

The buses will move at a top speed of 80kph through pre-selected highways and bus lanes while navigating traffic lights and roundabouts. Two staff members will remain on board at all times one in the driver’s seat to oversee piloting systems and another to assist passengers.

“We are excited to introduce the UK’s first autonomous bus fleet in east Scotland which is also home to our headquarters and where it all began over 40 years ago,” Stagecoach UK managing director Carla Stockton-Jones said. “We are proud to be at the forefront of transport innovation with this project that marks a significant milestone for public transport, and we look forward to welcoming our customers on board in the coming months.

Fast charging for trucks

Scania has successfully installed and tested a pilot megawatt charging system from ABB E-mobility, representing the next milestone in the development of an efficient, high power charging solution for heavy duty vehicles. The technology will enable half the charging time for heavy duty vehicles.

Developing a solution to fast charge commercial electric vehicles, which will also deliver significant range, is a major step towards increasing sales of heavy duty vehicles that can be driven fossil-free. The initial testing, to prove the technical viability of high current charging, is a first important step towards the future MCS system from ABB E-mobility. This will result in the progressive deployment of high-power chargers, starting from 1500 Ampere (A) and eventually extending to the full MCS scope of up to 3000A. This is a charging standard that Scania and ABB E-mobility have both invested in, and have been instrumental in developing in collaboration with CharIN (the MCS standard is expected in 2024).

MB trials two e-truck types in Australia and NZ

Mercedes-Benz Trucks is conducting an all-electric eEconic validation trial in Australia and New Zealand early next year.

Designed from the ground-up to work in densely populated areas, the eEconic will produce zero local emissions and the powertrain will operate near-silently.

Three eEconic trucks will be part of a validation trial in Australia, while one will operate in New Zealand.

Production of the ground-breaking eEconic recently began at the Mercedes-Benz Trucks factory in Worth, Germany.

Mercedes-Benz Trucks Australia Pacific Director, Andrew Assimo, says the eEconic makes a lot of sense as an electric vehicle. “Waste collection represents the perfect application for a near-silent electric truck that produces zero local emissions as these vehicles operate on the doorsteps of our community,” Mr Assimo said.

MCS technology is critical for Scania’s long haul electric trucks, where both driving time and resting time are regulated by law. The vehicle can be driven for a maximum of 4.5 hours before the driver needs to take a 45-minute break and during this time the truck needs to charge with enough power to operate for another 4.5 hours. Due to the size

of the batteries, both fast and high-power charging is essential.

From this year Scania can offer trucks with the MCS pre-standard connector to customers with specific and pronounced needs, with production set to begin in 2024. ABB E-mobility will introduce the next iteration of its MCS technology in late 2024 / early 2025.

“We are excited to work with our Australian and New Zealand customers to validate the remarkable zero emission eEconic, which is also fully loaded with the latest Mercedes-Benz Trucks active safety technology.

The eEconic validation trial announcement came soon after Mercedes-Benz Trucks confirmed it was also conducting a local validation trial of the eActros electric truck, with four units to operate in Australia and one

running in New Zealand, with additional units to follow.

The eEconic uses much the same electric drivetrain as the eActros and has been designed to cover the vast majority of typical waste collection routes operated by an Econic in a single shift without intermediary charging. The group therefore aims to sell only CO2neutral vehicles in its biggest sales regions of North America, Europe and Japan from 2039 forward.

Claas Bracklo, chairman of CharIN, Eva Kvist OÃàstgren, Head of ABB E-mobility in Sweden and Fredrik Allard, head of E-mobility at Scania

Truck & Bus Briefs

New president for SEA Asia Pacific

Volvo Buses electromobility global offer

Volvo Buses is expanding its electromobility offer worldwide with the launch of the new Volvo BZL Electric chassis

SEA Electric has announced that Daniel Scarpino de Castro is President for the Asia Pacific Region. Mr Scarpino de Castro comes to SEA Electric with a wealth of executive-level experience to his credit, following roles within the automotive industry, including bus and coach manufacturing, transport electrification, and zero emissions solutions. Having previously worked within Oceania, Southeast Asia, South America and the US, Mr Scarpino de Castro joins SEA Electric from the position of President of Irizar USA, a multifaceted company focused on passenger transport and electromobility.

LocAL low carbon aluminium locally made Capral has released LocAL, a lower-carbon primary aluminium option available across its locally manufactured extruded aluminium products. LocAL provides Australian manufacturers access to cleaner, greener, more sustainable aluminium. The LocAl offer includes two lowercarbon aluminium options: LocAl Green with carbon emissions of 8kgCO2e/kg Al and LocAl Super Green at 4kg CO2e/kg Al (based on Scope 1 and Scope 2 emission ex-smelter) among the lowest-carbon aluminium available globally. LocAl aluminium is available to extrude custom-designed aluminium sections and across Capral’s standard extrusions, including geometrics and transport sections.

Volvo expects a better truck market this year

AB Volvo lifted its outlook for key heavy-duty truck markets in Europe and North America this year as it reported a 32 percent year-on-year rise in order intake for the first quarter.

The maker of vehicles such as Mack Trucks and Renault as well as its own name had already preannounced record operating earnings for the first quarter that were well above market expectations. Volvo forecast 2023 heavy truck sales in Europe and North America of 320,000 for each region. Its previous forecast had been for 300,000 in both regions.

“Disturbances in the European supply chains have not been as extensive as in the autumn and have contributed to increased productivity,” Chief Executive Martin Lundstedt said.

The raised truck outlook sent a strong message that Volvo sees the second-half of 2023 as a good market for its trucks.

“We are committed to leading the transformation of our industry towards a more sustainable future. With the launch of the new Volvo BZL Electric, our ambition is to offer the world’s most responsible electric bus systems. We do it by focusing on sustainability, safety and reliability,” said Anna Westerberg, President of Volvo Buses. The global demand for electromobility

solutions in the public transport sector is rising and Volvo Buses expects a rapid increase in the coming years.

“With the new Volvo BZL Electric we offer a global platform for clean, silent, and energy efficient public transport to meet the rising demand on important markets that are ready for the shift to electromobility.”

Nexyad scores drivers of Volta trucks

Volta Trucks announced a partnership with Nexyad to bring the next generation of driving coaching and scoring to aid drivers of the Volta Zero to achieve the safest driving style possible in an urban environment.

Nexyad uses hybrid physicsinformed AI to aggregate various data sources from vehicles in real-time and interprets them. This offers Volta Trucks’ drivers simple and relevant information that can help them develop an increasingly prudent driving style, minimising risk for themselves and other road users.

The real-time data aggregation platform uses vehicle information and driving conditions to provide a maximum speed recommendation, taking into account the legal speed limit, road roughness, topography of the road, weather conditions, and traffic. By recommending a “maximum prudent speed” based on real-time information, the system goes beyond the European requirement ISA (Intelligent Speed Assist).

Nexyad’s safety coach, SafetyNex also acts

as a virtual co-pilot in the cabin while driving and provides anticipation guidance when necessary, helping to avoid emergency situations that may lead to an accident. Fleet managers can track and monitor drivers’ performance with greater precision, and insurance companies can accurately assess risk levels and offer tailor-made premiums for every driver’s individual risk profile.

DAF opens new assembly plant for

battery electric trucks

DAF’s completely new assembly plant for battery electric trucks was officially opened by Micky Adriaansens, the Dutch minister of Economic Affairs and Climate.

The new facility has been commissioned at DAF’s main production site in Eindhoven, the Netherlands and will be instrumental in the further development of the company’s leading position in providing sustainable transport solutions.

DAF has built its DAF Electric Truck Assembly plant for the production of its latest generation of battery electric trucks. The New DAF XD and XF Electric are available in a range of configurations.

These are powered by PACCAR e-Motors and equipped with battery packs of 2 up to 5 strings (210 to 525 kWh). The modular

Kia to produce purpose built ride hail cars

Kia Corporation and Kakao Mobility announced a collaboration to develop purpose-built vehicles (PBVs) optimised for ride-hailing and new mobility services linked to PBVs.

The parties signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the project at Kia’s headquarters in Seoul. Under the agreement, Kia will develop customised PBVs using operation data of vehicles to meet the specific requirements of Kakao Mobility’s ride-hailing services.

Kia plans to reflect various solutions developed through this cooperation with Kakao Mobility in its future dedicated PBV models, planned for launch in 2025.

The two companies also intend to collaborate on planning specialised services linking software and vehicle data for Kia’s dedicated PBVs.

The service includes enabling interaction between in-vehicle-infotainment and the software platform of Kakao Mobility.

approach allows the trucks to be tailored precisely to customer requirements and needs. Full electric ranges of up to 500 kilometres are possible making 1,000 ‘zero emission’ kilometres achievable with careful planning of routes and recharging. With fast charging of up to 350 kW, battery packs can be charged to 80 percent of their capacity in only 45 minutes. Production of quality validation trucks is about to start with series production of customer vehicles planned. DAF expects production to increase to thousands of vehicles per annum in the near future, in line with the increasing demand for fully electric trucks.

Try before you buy hydrogen electric trucks

Zero-emission, hydrogen-powered commercial vehicle innovator, Hydrogen Vehicle Systems (HVS) has asked fleet operators to register expressions of interest in trialling its state-of-the-art, clean-sheet-designed hydrogen-electric Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) prior to purchase.

Supported trials are set to commence in Q4 2025 once the exhaustive pre-production prototyping phase is completed and the HGVs are ready to enter volume production in the UK.

Fleet operators will be offered extensive trial periods to test the hydrogen-electric HGV tractor unit, putting it through its paces and evaluating how the zero-emission vehicle will perform within their fleets.

Skoda forges ahead with e-campaign

Škoda Auto has manufactured 500,000 battery systems as the brand forges ahead with its e-campaign.

The company is investing heavily in the transformation of its facilities and development, digitalisation and further education of its workforce, with the company already upskilling more than 23,000 employees to prepare for the demands of e-mobility. The systems are used by Škoda cars, as well as group brands Audi, SEAT and Volkswagen. In May 2022, Škoda Auto launched the production of battery systems for all-electric vehicles based on the Volkswagen Group’s

Modular Electrification Toolkit (MEB). The systems have a capacity of 55 to 82 kWh and are installed in the company’s own MEB models as well as MEB cars by Volkswagen and Audi.

The car manufacturer will be commissioning another MEB assembly line in 2023, increasing its total production volume to 2,300 units per day, consisting of 1,500 MEB units per day, and 800 units for PHEV battery systems.

Driving hands free

A recent survey has shown that drivers have become wary of self-driving technology

In the US the results of the AAA annual automated vehicle survey show that while there is still a high level of interest in partially automated vehicle technology, attitudes toward fully self-driving vehicles have become increasingly apprehensive. This year there was a major increase in drivers who are afraid of the technology, rising to 68 percent as compared with 55 percent in 2022. This is a 13 percent jump from last year’s survey and the biggest increase since 2020.

The survey was conducted January 2023, using a probability-based panel designed to be representative of the US household population overall. The panel provides sample coverage of approximately 97 percent of the US household population. A total of 1,140 interviews were completed among US adults, 18 years of age or older, of which 949 qualified for the study. The margin of error for the study overall is 4.3 percent at the 95 percent confidence level.

“We were not expecting such a dramatic decline in trust from previous years,” said Greg Brannon, director of automotive research for AAA. “Although with the number of high-profile crashes that have occurred from over-reliance on current vehicle technologies, this isn’t entirely surprising.”

AAA believes automakers must be more diligent in creating an environment that promotes the use of more advanced vehicle technologies in a secure, reliable, and educational manner. This includes the naming of vehicle systems that are available to consumers today.

Even with advancements made in recent years, these findings suggest improvements are still needed to build public trust and knowledge surrounding emerging vehicle technology. There is also a need to dispel confusion around automated vehicles.

AAA’s survey found that nearly one in 10 drivers believe they can buy a vehicle that drives itself while they sleep. Currently, there is no such vehicle available for purchase by the public that would allow someone to fully disengage from the task of driving. This perception could stem from misleading or confusing names of vehicle systems on

the market. AAA found that 22 percent of Americans expect driver support systems, with names like Autopilot, ProPILOT, or Pilot Assist, to have the ability to drive the car by itself without any supervision, indicating a gap in consumer understanding. Consumers aren’t entirely opposed to advanced vehicle technology. In fact, six in 10 US drivers would “definitely” or “probably” want these systems in their next car purchase.

Examples of ADAS that is front of mind for those drivers includes blind spot warning, adaptive cruise control and automatic emergency braking.

Active driving assistance (ADA) is also considered ADAS however, it differs in functionality from other systems. ADA combines braking, accelerating, and steering through a combined use of adaptive cruise control and lane keeping assistance. ADA is also the only ADAS classified as Level 2 automation as defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers. A vehicle capable of operating without human involvement where a human driver is not required to control the vehicle at any time, nor required to be present in the vehicle while moving is not available for purchase by consumers and it is classified as Level 5 automation as defined by the SAE. While for some the prospect of autonomous cars is exciting this shows that for many

or the majority it is not currently attractive. It is touted as reducing commuter stress but at the moment it appears to be adding to commuter stress. There have been a growing number of accidents involving selfdriving technology.

As with any new technologies there are downsides and associated problems to overcome and one that is rarely spoken about is – will our cognitive functions decrease if we come to rely on self-driving vehicles?

Tesla’s Safety Score Beta monitors the driving habits of Tesla owners and only activates the self-driving feature for drivers who meet their criteria on five factors: number of forward collision warnings, hard breaking, aggressive turning, unsafe following, and forced autopilot engagement. But much of the data lacks transparency, there is no ongoing training, and there is growing discontent among drivers who fail to make the safety cut after paying extra for the self-driving feature. Perhaps the results of the AAA survey are very much in step with what we are able to handle for the time being. Self-driving cars will need more than just the technology engineers can design into them, but human factors and limitations need to be addressed.

Photo below courtesy Ross Cureton, PACCAR

Parking AI is the bot most wanted

Parking spaces not self-parking is the tech most sought after worldwide

Determining parking space availability near destinations is now the top requested in-car connected service for drivers around the world, according to the latest Connected Features Interest Survey Report carried out by TechInsights. The report assessed 28 connected features, with 4,990 drivers in the USA, UK, Germany, France, Italy and China asked to rank their interest in each service to gauge demand.

Driving-related functionality, such as assessing the availability of parking spaces near a destination, traffic alerts and being able to pay for parking, fuel and tolls from the car are amongst the most desirable features globally.

In-car parking information was ranked the most valuable feature cited by Chinese drivers, with European motorists classing it as their second priority, only one percent behind the top-rated choice, and American respondents placed it at 67 percent, just three percent behind their top priority, traffic information.

Drivers in Western Europe and China are increasingly concerned about whether they will be able to find parking at their

destination. Additionally, those with larger vehicles have a higher preference to reserve spaces at their destination. The survey results show drivers’ increasing expectation for parking to be seamlessly integrated into the in-car navigation process. Meanwhile, the survey data highlights how in-car payments have gone from being predominantly used by early adopters, to a highly desirable function, with a probability of choice for 56 percent of global respondents and ranking just 12 percent behind the top global priority.

The rising demand for in-vehicle payments covers services such as parking, fuel, tolls and food across all age groups and technology engagement levels. The results show drivers gaining increased confidence using these services due to the reduction in perceived complexity and valuing the heightened convenience and removal of physical contact required.

This survey shows that it’s not just early adopters who want this type of technology in their cars; having in-car connected services that help with finding a parking space was not only the top priority for

late adopters in Europe but also for the youngest drivers aged 18-24 years old. Parking space information ranked similarly high in the USA, with 18–24-year-olds and 35-44 year-olds citing it as their top priority, notably six places above alerts such as traffic for younger drivers. This shows the younger generation looking to avoid receiving streams of alerts during journeys and preferring to be automatically rerouted to their destination with parking successfully at their destination cited as their most significant concern.

Figures from China show that the ability to make in-car payments has changed from being a “nice-to-have” to a “highly desirable” established feature for many young drivers with double-digit year-onyear growth expected in this market from 2022 to 2030 recognising that motorists have an increased level of trust in making payments from their vehicles and a desire for maximum convenience and a seamless user experience.

The survey also highlights how fashionable new features such as in-car games, email or social media integrations and calendar management, which are now available in an increasing range of cars, are typically seen as far less desirable than those that are journey-related.

However, the challenge now for OEMs is to prioritise the most in-demand services and provide a holistic driving experience with the seamless integration of navigation and parking services to take the stress out of their drivers’ journeys.

This latest survey shows that many automakers are still lagging behind their customers’ expectations when it comes to delivering the right services, with select OEMs electing to withhold certain connected car features as a cost-saving. However, the data and feedback globally show that many drivers are likely to avoid certain vehicles or brands if their data, mapping and in-car payment services do not meet today’s expectations.

Australian Manufacturing Week energising a much-needed industry

Australian Manufacturing Week was a huge show physically due to the size of the machinery and also as it housed 346 exhibitor stands and welcomed more than 15,500 visitors.

The four-day event ran from 9-12 May at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, the next event will be held in Sydney as it alternates between the two cities.

The Hon Ben Carroll MP, Victorian Minister for Industry and Innovation opened AMW2023.

Apart from the huge range of machinery on display that covers just about everything done in manufacturing from Peddinghaus with their massive rotating, welding carriage for long product steel girders, one of the largest in the country to the nano-projects undertaken by the crew at Microscopy. Many of the machines on display at the event are sold off the floor.

Some of Europe’s largest companies are now making moves to establish Australian headquarters. They have renewed confidence in the market which bodes well for engineers, these companies include Schunk, Trumpf, Bonfiglioli and Trotec, ASA, SWI Engineering, and others.

Names well known to VTE readers were also on display at the event such as SAVIC electric motorcycles, Applied EV and Altair Software.

Unsurprisingly the show held a large area for robots with robots that weld, robots that bend metal, robots that sort components, and more.

AMW’s seven zones included the latest in automation technology, 3D metal and carbon fibre printers, laser cutting and press brake machines, as well as plastics developments.

AMW aims to appeal to a broad audience especially through its Future Solutions Speaker Sessions where on the Tuesday of the show the theme was additive manufacturing, Wednesday it was women in manufacturing and then Friday the future of manufacturing in Australia.

On the first day of the show the very first

presentation for the Future Solutions Speaker Program was Neil Matthews, the Head of Engineering at Titomic who detailed Titomic’s cold spray AM process and fed into research being done to the coating process for the aerospace, defence, transport and other manufacturing areas. Dedicating an entire day to women in manufacturing is proof of the need for more women to consider this area as well as companies to offer more enticing opportunities. In a sample size of 300 manufacturers across Australia, only one

of third of employees were female and on average only 20 percent of executive teams were female. However, the majority of manufacturers have diversity targets in place and over half are confident of meeting them.

CEO of SEMMA (South East Melbourne Manufacturing Association) introduced two women working and succeeding in the field of manufacturing, one an Apprentice of the Year. Their stories both spoke of breaking through not-conscious sexism and finding confidence in themselves.

At the end of Wednesday’s show, the organisers staged the Women in Manufacturing Networking Event, sponsored by the Queensland Government with Bernadette Zerba, Queensland’s Deputy Director General.

Queensland manufacturer, Elexon Electronics, was at the show demonstrating new capabilities to attract international customers. The company is based in Brendale and in 2019 received a Made in Queensland grant of $890,000 to increase production capacity, reduce manufacturing costs, and creating new job opportunities.

Since then, Elexon has doubled its manufacturing capacity, implemented aerospace quality standards and started supplying to defence customers.

David Taylor a consultant at BAMS, the Bosch Manufacturing Solutions presented at the Future Solutions Speaker Sessions at the show as did Lucas Halle Global Manager of Marketing for ANCA – both companies that we were invited to visit as part of this event.

Mr Taylor’s presentation cut through some stories of the planning overruns and showed how when seen as a whole, through the right workflow software, how the manufacturing process could be superpowered. Today those pressures, especially from a Bosch standpoint, are global in nature.

Mr Hale discussed the fourth industrial revolution, also known as Industry 4.0, which is rapidly transforming the manufacturing landscape globally and presents an opportunity to revive Australia’s sovereign manufacturing capabilities.

“While the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of resilience and self-reliance in global supply chains, there is a renewed focus on rebuilding Australia’s sovereign capabilities,” said Mr Hale. “Industry 4.0 presents new opportunities to revive Australia’s manufacturing sector.”  Mr Hale also provided figures about where automation could take us, “contributing between $1.1T and $4T to the Australian economy over the next 15 years”.

At the heart of Industry 4.0 is smart automation, which utilises advanced robotics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to automate and optimise production processes, improving cost competitiveness, productivity, and quality. Automating manufacturing is not about replacing people but transforming the existing workforce to perform more critical and complex tasks, while simultaneously helping contribute to wage growth and addressing the growing skills shortage. Industry 4.0 can help Australia build its sovereign capability, enhance its resilience to future crises, and create new opportunities for economic growth and job creation. However, if Australia capitalised on the opportunity presented by Industry 4.0, it will require a concerted effort by government, industry, and academia to invest in infrastructure, skills, and innovation.

One thing is certain that engineers of all types can find interesting products and ideas at the show, and even more importantly make solid business contacts.

ANCA and Bosch

Two different international companies making Australia great again

As part of Australian Manufacturing Week VTE was invited to tour two very different facilities; one an iconic Australian company that has made huge inroads into manufacturing as well as huge inroads into establishing Australia as a high-tech innovator – ANCA.

The other Bosch, a household name that has been in Australia for years and years, but the company is now very different to the one that was established across the road from what was initially the VW manufacturing plant in Clayton, and later the Nissan plant.

ANCA

ANCA is coming up to its 50th anniversary next year, a milestone for a company that started with two Australians Pat Boland and Pat McCluskey. At 25 years of age, they started ANCA. Mr Boland was an electrical engineer with a First degree from Melbourne University and Mr McCluskey was an awardwinning technician trained in state-of-the-art machine tools.

ANCA now has more than 1000 employees, many of them engineers based at their Bayswater, Victoria facilities which has a vast engineering space on the second floor of the main building, other ANCA buildings are located in the same street and also have engineering centres.

“So, we’re in 31 countries, we’ve got about 2,500 customers across 45 different countries,” explained Johanna Boland PR and Communications Manager – Australia.

“We’ve got about 1,300 employees. We do have a commitment to Innovation and Technology … we’ve got 19 patents and there are 12 additional patents that are pending.

We invest about 10 percent of our revenue into research and development every year.

“We are vertically integrated, so we design and manufacture most of the technology ourselves in-house.”

Since the typical machine that ANCA produces lasts around 20 years the company has service and support areas in all the regions in which it sells its machines.

“We don’t export to Russia anymore, but we’ve got an office in the US, we’ve got one in Thailand, Europe in Germany, and in China. We just opened up this last year in Japan as Korea is one of our biggest markets,” explained Ms Boland.

Where once ANCA was simply making and selling CNC machines, it is not the only thing it does now. It still designs, makes and sells those CNC machines but has expanded into three main business areas: ANCA CNC Machines that design and make CNC tool and cutter grinders, ANCA Motion that designs and makes flexible control systems specialising in high precision solutions for CNC machines, and ANCA Sheet Metal Solutions that delivers a complete endto-end service from product design to manufacturing to coatings and assembly. It doesn’t stop there, the company actively searches for more integration options, as an example ANCA was one of Australia’s largest importers of robotics and then opted to design its own robotic arm called the 300. More than anything else what has driven ANCA’s growth over the past 44 years has been a series of innovations that revolutionised the production of cutting tools and impacted the whole of manufacturing. ANCA’s first significant innovation was the

measurement of tool geometry inside the grinding machine by use of a touch probe. This technology seems basic today but in 1986 ANCA was the first company to apply this technology, changing tool grinding forever.

Other firsts by ANCA include in-machine measurement using a CCD camera, 3D tool simulation, tubular linear motors, redundant axes generated in the coordinate transformations, wheel balancing and many more.

ANCA Machines

This is where it all started for ANCA, the design and construction of world quality machines that are now in every type of industry from tool manufacturing, automotive, medical, woodworking, power generation, electronics and aerospace. The machines make anything from endmills to punches, taps and PCD tools.

ANCA teams develop and make the machines from base to canopy including controls and drive systems, design and simulation softwar, and even machine monitoring software. Owning all the technology means engineers and designers can consider the entire machine as a single system when developing new solutions. Recently the company has introduced its AIMS system (ANCA Integrated Manufacturing System) to optimise cutting tool production which incorporates connected machines, connected processes and lights out operation.

A series of machines and robots take over repetitive manual tasks and work day and night seamlessly using a series of ANCA machines and processes including AutoFetch an autonomous mobile robot. With its modular solutions AIMS offers flexibility taking blanks to finished tools with mobile automation supported by integrated data flow.

The system enables the transfer of tools between operations with

AutoFetch, handles blanks in and out of CNC machines with AutoLine, and automates tool measurement and process compensation using AutoComp. Watch a complete ANCA AIMS installation at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4LotTOmSrQ

ANCA Motion – tailored automated processes

ANCA originally started making electronics for CNC software back in the ‘70s and was one of the pioneers at that time making and designing by hand.

In 2004 ANCA incorporated an office in Shanghai to provide sales and support for its tool and cutter grinding machines. This eventually led to the formation of ANCA Motion in 2008, to specialise in CNC control systems for the global automation markets, including specialised machining. With ANCA Motion the business started using its capability to apply that to other machine types.

ANCA Motion is the sole supplier to ANCA CNC machines, and its strength lies in its advanced CNC controls which deliver high precision and performance in applications such as five axis machining and high-speed laser cutting, which have been developed over decades.

ANCA Motion designs and manufactures flexible control systems, specialising in high precision solutions for CNC machines. The company tailors hardware and

software to suit an OEMs’ exacting requirements, providing solutions that give customers a competitive edge.

ANCA Motion manufactures innovative motion control systems. These computercontrolled systems form part of ANCA’s tool and cutter grinders manufactured at a 14,000m2 site located in the same industrial park.

All the design and development of ANCA Motion is done inhouse at Bayswater with a manufacturing facility in Taiwan, and an office in Tianjin, China – a significant step forward in its commitment to the Chinese market.

The new state-of-the-art office has applications development and support, training, sales and logistics and provides locally based support to its Chinese customers.

ANCA Sheet Metal Solutions

ANCA Sheet Metal Solutions was established in 2000 and it began by designing and building canopies for AMCA’s CNC machines. It later transformed into a division that now offers a comprehensive set of services that integrate cutting-edge sheet metal fabrication equipment with a highly skilled workforce of qualified manufacturing engineers, technicians and welders capable of transforming a concept into a well-priced, high end quality sheet metal product.

The company says its agile thinking coupled with a culture of lean manufacturing ensures efficient, costeffective solutions delivered on time utilising a team with skills ranging from CAD design and CNC programming to laser and waterjet cutting, CNC forming, welding, painting and assembly.

ANCA Sheet Metal Solutions works in a range of industries that include food processing, electronics, construction, aerospace, agriculture and automotive. This ANCA division offers a complete end-to-end service for product design, manufacturing, coatings and assembly.

Bosch Australia is BAMS and diodes

Bosch has operated out of the same site in Clayton, Victoria since it opened its operations in Australia in the 1950s however, most of old brick buildings are gone and the final stages of decontamination of the old site is almost complete.

In their place are new buildings including a modern multi-storey head office and an automation centre – Bosch Australian Manufacturing Solutions (BAMS) that’s just two years old, such is the need that there are plans to replicate it and build another onsite.

BAMS

Bosch Australia Manufacturing Solutions (BAMS) is a division of Bosch Australia, and it is recognised globally for its innovative work in engineering services providing solutions for a wide range of manufacturing industries.

A leader in the design and development of special purpose machinery, BAMS is the preferred supplier to the MedTech, food and beverage, and advanced manufacturing industries.

What BAMS does is offer its competence to other companies to design, build, test and commission complex factory automation solutions for external customers in various industry sectors as vastly different as food and timber.  BAMS offers services in robotics and automation, production line systems, Industry 4.0 solutions, equipment

servicing, test and measurement systems and manufacturing consulting.

As an example of its forward thinking solutions, at BAMS a digital twin can be made which is a physics-enabled virtual replica of a real machine that can be commissioned with the same controllers and the same programs as the real machine, communicating bi-directionally, in real-time, and vastly speeding up the development time and the quality of the final product. If a programmer plugs their PC into a machine in another room, obscured from view, they should not be able to tell whether they are plugged into the real system or the digital twin.

This is game-changing when it comes to commissioning multiple lines at massive customer sites because most of the code can be validated offsite, decreasing time spent on customer sites and reducing disruptions to a customer’s factory.

So, by offering custom machine building, engineering and manufacturing support, and consulting services for Australian manufacturing operations, BAMS is helping to elevate Australian manufacturing.

Diode manufacturing for the global market

The transformation of Bosch was not just of this site but also of the company, where once its focus was as a first-tier supplier to Australia’s car manufacturing it is now something quite different transformed under an unlikely Australian, Gavin Smith who was an IT contractor who started with the company in 1990.

Now chairman and president at Bosch Australia, Mr Smith went on to salvage Bosch with a humble diode, an essential part of every car alternator but even that is changing as EVs do not need alternators but that’s another story.

Germany had to be persuaded to continue to make diodes in Australia after all there are plenty of other places in the world where these could be made, so Mr Smith made his arguments to Germany and won. Bosch Australia now produces around 120 million diodes per year for global export.

Within Bosch’s Australian diode manufacturing centre is a modern operation that works over three shifts, five days a week though it can run to seven days a week if needs be.

Bosch supplies global car makers in the United States, Asia, Europe, India, Japan and Korea with these diodes.

The raw material for the diodes is sourced from this facility, the diodes are made here, tested here and dispatched from this site to other operations all over the world. What’s unusual is that normally the development teams in Bosch are in a different country or another site to manufacturing but in Australia engineering is in the same facility and it’s an advantage.

Three workshops are used to produce a diode, the first is the semiconductor fabrication workshop that fabricates the silicon wafer for the diode. But the company also purchases fabricated silicon wafers from other manufacturers.

The second workshop produces the heat sink and the head wire, which is a cold forging workshop. And the third workshop is where the product is assembled, tested and packed.

What has enabled Bosch to continue

to be the production hub for diodes is a concerted ongoing effort to improve systems, 20 years ago the company started with lean manufacturing then about eight years ago the company moved to industry 4.0 IoT connectivity and data analytics. Setting up this IoT meant that it was easier to collect information such as an hourly part count, breakdown diagnostics and much more. Websites were set up to manage operator training so that only operators that were trained on a particular piece of equipment or manufacturing process could be assigned that work. An entire wall of screens and boards makes this area look more like a large-scale university lab, gone are the whiteboards of yesteryear replaced by screens displaying a very complex array of data moved mostly using your finger – like working with a sophisticated iPad. It shows targets, it shows production, it shows stock – it basically shows everything including the efficiency of the staff known in Bosch as ‘associates’.

Bosch diodes has applied lean manufacturing methodologies for constant process improvement, fast reactions and minimal down time – all the things necessary to keep production in Australian. Manufacturing data is easy to access and shown on these interactive screens, team leaders can use it to manage resources and process engineers can access realtime data.

This is the type of industrialisation that is needed in Australia to keep manufacturing here, whether that’s diodes or other things. Certainly, Bosch Australia has the advantage of being part of one of the world’s largest companies employing more than 400,000 worldwide but even much smaller companies need to get onboard as much as they can with new production methodologies. The world won’t wait for Australia to catch up.

Henkel Technologies shaping next gen EVs

Henkel is playing a key role in battery assembly and safety for electric vehicles

E-mobility is rapidly picking up speed. Driven by people’s increasing awareness of climate change and their desire for sustainable mobility, stricter emissions standards, legal regulations and subsidies, sales of electric cars are increasing significantly.

A new era has begun for the automotive industry with major challenges, but also considerable opportunities.

George Kazantzis, Corporate Vice President Automotive Components, is certain: “Those who can anticipate and solve the complex problems in battery development and assembly will have the greatest advantage and ultimately win the race.”

As a leading partner for the automotive industry, Henkel Adhesive Technologies, with its adhesives, sealants, thermal materials and functional coatings, has a great opportunity to set the course for the next generation of electric cars.

Batteries are the heart of every electric vehicle and also the most expensive single component. Batteries come with high demands when it comes to their development and assembly. They must be produced in large quantities, at the lowest possible cost, and with the lowest possible weight. They should recharge fast, have a long range, and be safe from overheating and fire. And at the end of their lifecycle, you should be able to take the batteries apart again for repair or recycling.

One key to safe and efficient battery performance is thermal management. Adhesives experts at Henkel have developed thermal interface materials that are used between the battery cell and the cooling plate, for example. The materials dissipate excess heat from the battery cell into the cooling plate, which is permanently cooled in liquid form. This prevents the battery from overheating during the charging and operation, protecting vehicle occupants from fire hazards.

In case the battery does catch fire, Henkel’s new fire protection coatings developed specifically for electric vehicle batteries, Loctite EA9400 and Loctite FPC5060, help prevent flames from entering the vehicle interior for up to 10 minutes. Time for the occupants to get to safety.

With innovations like these, Henkel is leading

the way in developing material solutions to prevent thermal spread.

“We are proud to be helping our customers meet the emerging challenges of EV battery manufacturing with performance-driven and high-impact solutions,” Mr Kazantzis said. The performance and operational lifespan of batteries depend on more than just thermal management.

Modern adhesive technologies must also meet two other requirements: Sealing the battery system and protecting it from environmental influences such as moisture or dirt, as well as enabling the batteries to be opened for maintenance work without great effort. Henkel already offers a corresponding sealing solution for this purpose, which has been specially developed for battery pack applications.

Corrosion protection is also a major task for battery pack frames, which are typically stamped or extruded from aluminium. One solution is to coat the frames.

Modern adhesive solutions from Henkel provide thermal management for e-car batteries and ensure that they do not overheat during charging or operation.

Of central importance for the competitiveness of automotive and battery manufacturers is the efficient large-scale production of batteries at the lowest possible cost. This requires unique adhesives for the highly automated assembly of the individual battery components.

“With our innovative solutions, we help our customers and thus establish ourselves as an industry leader,” Mr Kazantzis emphasized. Collaborating closely with customers, Henkel pursues two strategic approaches. On the one hand, our experts are working in the battery development centres of the most important customers. There, they learn about the respective challenges directly at the customer’s site and try to find solutions.

On the other hand, Henkel Adhesive Technologies has set up a new team called “Fuel the Future”. The team is made up of experts from various industries, such as battery production and recycling.

In addition, experts for modelling and simulation and employees from research institutes, for example science, have been

recruited. Their task is to identify future trends in electromobility and derive the necessary solutions for automotive and battery manufacturers. “This allows us to stay one step ahead of the competition,” Mr Kazantzis said.

The team is based at the Inspiration Centre Düsseldorf, the new global innovation and customer centre for Henkel Adhesive Technologies. There, the business unit has also set up a battery application and test centre where its own solutions are applied to customers’ battery designs in models and simulations. They are then installed in reference batteries, which are finally put through their paces to ensure that everything works as expected.

Sustainability in the industry plays an important role – in terms of batteries, but also in terms of reducing vehicle weight. The automotive industry is also increasingly relying on lightweight materials such as aluminium and plastics for load-bearing body parts. Adhesives and sealants from Henkel are used here because bonding is the new welding. This can reduce the weight of the vehicle by up to 15 percent.

When developing batteries, the experts in Düsseldorf think right from the start about what will happen to the battery at the end of its lifecycle. To this end, they work with external partners, for example PEM Motion GmbH, a spin-off of the University of Aachen. “Together we are tackling the important issue of the recyclability of batteries,” Mr Kazantzis said. Ultimately, the aim is to be able to take apart the components that are joined together by Henkel adhesives and recycle them.

In fact, the strategic partnership with PEM Motion goes far beyond the topic of circular economy. The aim is to pioneer nextgeneration battery technologies and drive the development of safer and more sustainable batteries.

Mr Kazantzis believes Henkel Adhesive Technologies is well equipped to do this: “With our know-how, we are at the forefront of the automotive revolution and play a key role in battery assembly and safety. There are still many new challenges that we need to solve, but we are excellently positioned here.” For more information: www.henkel-adhesives.com

Fully Charged in Sydney

The show is popular overseas and so the organisers took a chance that it may be viable for Australia, and it was with more than 14,000 visitors arriving at the doors of the Sydney Convention Centre at Darling Harbour. The organisers have five more events to run in 2023 two in the UK (Farnborough and Harrogate), one in Canada (Vancouver), the US (San Diego) and Europe (Amsterdam). Next year the event will be held at the Sydney Showgrounds to better house the number of interested people attending and offer EV test drives.

Also, next year the event will be rebranded to Everything Electric Australia which probably is more descriptive as it’s not just vehicles but a range of other electric ‘things’ including electricity suppliers. Part of the event was 40 live sessions on stage held over two days and covering a wide range of topics such as:

• How far ahead is Tesla and can it be caught?

• Engines Out, Batteries In

• Electrifying motorbikes

• Are the established carmakers going far enough and fast enough?

• How soon is now – vehicle to grid?

• Can electric vehicles cope with Australia’s wide-open spaces?

• Micro-mobility – Skateboards, Scooters, Mopeds & E-bikes.

Electric Alley was where today’s electric cars were housed while Electric Launchpad was those waiting in the wings.

MG chose Fully Charged Live to launch its new MG4 electric car.

“MG Motor Australia is putting our customer’s priorities at the centre of our soon to be released MG4 and current ZS EV so we can continue providing the best driving experience possible and make EVs’ more accessible to all Australians,” said Peter Ciao CEO of MG Motor Australia.

“As the Fully Charged event debuts in Sydney for the first time ever, we are excited to be a part of this event and have the opportunity to showcase our newest model, the MG4. We know this model will speak to many people’s needs and wants in Australia and New Zealand as it has with other markets around the world.

“The MG4 is the first MG to be based on our EV-only MSP (Modular Scalable Platform). This introduction of our EV-only platform signals our ongoing commitment to ‘Take Charge’ and intention to move toward an EV future.

“We listened to our customer’s feedback and have fast tracked the arrival of our long range ZS EV with a larger 72kw battery pack and 440km of range to Australia. This provides more peace of mind in terms of minimising range anxiety and matches our pursuit of driving electric vehicles further.”

While the wraps were literally taken off the MG4 at the show no mention was made of price or availability.

Other cars and bikes on display included:

• BYD Atto 3 – An electric SUV under $50,000

• Cupra Born – small hatchback under $60,000

• Honda e: – funky small hatchback ~$65,000

• Nissan Leaf – Starting at $19,000 (used import) for the GEN1 or $35,000 (used import) for the GEN2 from the Good Car Co

• MG4 – small hatchback – approx $40,000-45,000 : getting rave reviews in Europe

• MG ZS – SUV for $45,000

• Polestar 2 – 5 door sedan starting at $65,000

• Peugeot e208 – small hatchback starting at $55,000

• VW ID.3 – small hatchback under $50,000

• Genesis GV60 :~ $110,000

• Hyundai Ioniq 5: from $72,000

• Kia EV6: from $68,000

• Kia eNIRO: from $65,000

• LDV Ute: from $93,000

• VW ID.Buzz (the electric kombi!): expected to be over $115,000

• Smart EQ

• Volvo XC40 Recharge Twin

• Savic motorbikes

If you were looking for a hard-wired EV charger for your EV, then you were able to see chargers from:

• ABB

• Fimer

• Wallbox (including the Qasar bi-directional V2G charger)

• Jetcharge

• EVolution Marvin (a home charger under $700)

• Myenergi.

Fully Charged Live is a show that has developed due to changing tastes and the redevelopment of the car industry from petrol and diesel to electric.

Monash Motorsport, Faculty of Engineering, Monash University Clayton Campus, 37, 17 Alliance Ln, Clayton VIC 3800, Australia *Christopher Adis: christopher.adis@monashmotorsport.com

Driverless Formula Student Race Car

1. Introduction

Formula Student, a worldwide engineering design competition, was established as a means of providing students applied experience alongside their engineering studies in the context of designing, manufacturing, testing, and racing formula-style race cars. In recent years, the competition has pivoted further towards the cutting edge of automotive technologies by opening up electric and driverless vehicle classes.

Monash Motorsport is a student run Formula Student team from Monash University. The autonomous vehicle, M19-D, [Fig.1] retrofits a suite of autonomous systems onto the team’s 2017 first-generation driven electric vehicle to produce a driverless race car. The autonomous pipeline is achieved by integration of software and hardware, as seen in [Fig. 2].

This pipeline is tailored to meet the needs of dynamic events in competition. These events include Acceleration, Skidpad, Autocross and Trackdrive. Autocross is a single lap of an unknown track. This is the most demanding event on the pipeline due to the real-time discovery of the track whilst

planning the path and controlling motion. It is also as demanding on the computing as it is the software. Trackdrive is ten laps of the known Autocross track. Skidpad is a figure eight track driving two laps in the right-hand loop followed by two laps in the left-hand loop. Acceleration involves accelerating in

a straight line before coming to a controlled stop.

Monash Motorsport uses Robot Operating System (ROS) [1] as the main framework for developing software packages operating within a Linux Operating System. Sections within the software structure include Perception, State Estimation, Path Planning and Motion Control. Perception takes data inputs from the Baraja Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR [2] and the stereoscopic cameras to determine

ABSTRACT

This paper explores the software and hardware architecture developed for an autonomous race car namely the Monash Motorsport autonomous race car. This report will cover the structure and flow of information throughout the autonomous systems pipeline by examining the series of packages that provide solutions to essential robotics problems. These include perception, localisation, mapping, motion planning and control. The system was developed for robustness and reliability, especially within an unknown track, whilst also trying to maximise speed. The MMS hardware systems used for integrating software and actuation are also explored, as well as safety critical systems, and the sensor suite used as perception inputs.

KEYWORDS: Autonomous; Software pipeline; Autonomous integration; Autonomous Vehicles

Christopher Adis*, Munir Azme, Yun Zou, Charmaine Chin, Sophie Cullinan, Tyson Truong, Hugo Markovski, Jasmine Tsoi, Alex Davies, Nihar Ringe, Mackenzie Yandell, Ronan Fernandez, Hunter Griffin, Eric Wong, Lucas Candido

Figure 1. Monash Motorsport’s autonomous racecar, M19-D.

Figure 2. Autonomous Pipeline Overview Flowchart.

the locations, size, and - where possiblecolours of cones on the track. Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping (SLAM) is used to create a map of the racetrack while also estimating, in real-time, where the car is within that track as accurately as possible. Path Planning takes in cone locations from SLAM, and outputs reference points along the path to Motion Control. Path Planning allows for the reliable traversal of an unknown track. It also provides the optimal path to take for the quickest lap times following complete mapping of the track. The role of Motion Control is to compute acceleration and steering requests to follow the trajectory generated by Path Planning in real-time within the presence of noise, disturbances, and other uncertainties.

The role of Actuation in the pipeline is to provide an interface between the software domain of the pipeline with the physical hardware involved in controlling the car. Importantly, actuation transforms the Motion Control requests into low level controls for steering, acceleration and braking as well as facilitating safety systems.

The specific function of each subsection will be explored in more detail in Section 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8.

2. Hardware and Computing

Monash Motorsport’s Autonomous Pipeline relies on multiple hardware components to enable effective computation, integration with the existing vehicle’s platform, and actuation, detailed in [Fig. 3]. The main components of the pipeline comprise of a NVIDIA Jetson AGX Xavier, a Programmable System on a Chip (PSoC), a Remote Emergency System (RES), pneumatic braking and safety systems, a steering servo motor and the autonomous racecar itself.

An important consideration with the autonomous hardware is integration with software in the Autonomous Pipeline, as well as the low (LV) and high voltage (HV) systems on the racecar. The Computing section achieves this through electrical wiring looms and a custom state machine implementation on the PSoC. Computing is responsible for providing the other sections of the pipeline with sufficient processing power to function. It must be robust and as wellpackaged as possible to reduce the impact on the performance M19-D as a racecar. Key hardware components are detailed in the following sections.

2.1 Hardware

2.1.1.

The central piece of hardware for the Autonomous Pipeline is in no doubt the computer. It facilitates the execution of all the high-level software for the Autonomous Pipeline. This is the handling and processing of data from sensors, computation of the autonomous algorithms, and outputting of signals to other systems in the car. In 2019, the processing units consisted of a NVIDIA TX2 and an Intel i7 8700. The TX2 with 6.2 CUDA Architecture had a reasonably powerful GPU while consuming very low power (15 Watts), however had a very poor CPU performance. The i7, mounted on a Mini-ITX motherboard with 8GB RAM, had significantly better CPU performance, acting as the main processing unit of the autonomous system. Having two separate processing units on a racecar which is both mobile and batterypowered, has obvious disadvantages in terms of mass and power consumption. Due to this, a new computer was sought after to suit the computing requirements of the Autonomous Pipeline better.

Now, both TX2 and i7 have been replaced with the NVIDIA Jetson AGX Xavier [3] (referred to as Xavier), a unified-memory low-power (30 Watt) computer. It is ten times more powerful than the TX2 with 32GB shared between the GPU and CPU, two ‘Deep Learning Accelerators’, and 8 Core ARM CPU. It can handle and facilitate the processing of data from sensors, computation of the autonomous algorithms. Its features allow for object detection on LiDAR 3D point clouds, as well as various optimisations across the Autonomous Pipeline.

2.1.2.

Programmable System on a Chip

A Programmable System on a Chip 5LP [4] is a low-cost, and easily programmable microcontroller with many configurable digital and analogue peripherals used to bridge the vehicle’s Electrical Control Unit and Xavier. Low level software allows for the management of digital inputs and outputs for various signals. It is mounted to a custom designed Statemachine Support Circuitry PCB, which processes the electrical input and output signals between the PSoC and ensures signals are at required voltages for various devices and signals. In addition, the Statemachine Support PCB mounts the ICs and relays needed for communications and for enabling power to autonomous vehicle actuation components such as the steering motor, pressure regulator, and solenoids.

2.1.3. Electrical Control Unit

M19-D is equipped with a MoTeC M150 Electrical Control Unit (ECU) [5] as a pre existing component on the 2017 electric car. The ECU sends relevant requests to various electrical systems on the car based on inputs from the PSoC. It sends signals to the inverter - as well as requests to the braking system and the steering motor.

2.1.4. Remote Emergency System

The Remote Emergency System (RES) is critical to autonomous safety as it allows for an emergency stop request to be made from a distance. It consists of a radio transmitter and receiver. It also is used to communicate with the car to begin autonomous driving. The RES used is specified by competition rules and is a Gross-Funk GF2000i-codec/T53R98 combination [7].

2.1.5. Hardware Packaging

All the required components for the autonomous system are packaged in an aluminium box, to ensure protection from the environment, typically referred to as the computing box. Located on the middle right of the vehicle, as shown in Fig. 4, the box is easily accessible and close to the vehicle’s centre of gravity. The interior of the box contains a number of vertical shelves of aluminium plates, on which the computing units are mounted, allowing for serviceability.

NVIDIA Jetson AGX Xavier

Figure

3. Autonomous Systems Architecture Diagram.

2.3 Electrical Loom

A custom electrical wiring loom provides power to and communication between all computing units and actuation hardware on the car. Hence it is essential that the electrical loom is robust and easily serviceable. Utilising the vehicle’s Low Voltage (LV) battery as the power source, 22-18 AWG wires are used to provide sufficient electrical power, current and signals into the computing box through a Deutsch AutoSport and Souriau UTO industrial connector, for high density grouping and isolating the box from the rest of the car’s loom. The loom itself is custom made by the team, in order to tailor to particular connections and achieve ideal wire lengths. The main connectors used in the computing box are Deutsch DTM connectors as well Molex Micro-Fit 3.0 for PCB mounts.

2.4 Communications

Communications from the PSoC and Xavier are executed through UART while the ECU and PSoC are connected over a CAN bus. Kinematic requests from the Xavier are relayed to the MoTec M150 unit through the PSoC. Conversely, sensor readings from the MoTec M150 such as rack travel, wheel speeds, IMU, and ASB, are inputs provided to the PSoC and the Xavier.

The computing box also contains an 8 port switch and router which allows the LiDAR sensor and GPS to communicate to the Xavier over ethernet, and provides live telemetry.

2.5 Safety Systems

There are additional safety measures to be followed for an autonomous racecar in Formula Student. Safety Critical Signal (SCS) measures and Emergency Braking System (See section 8.2) are some of the additional systems that are accounted for in Computing through both hardware and software. SCS are all electrical and autonomous related signals that influence the vehicle. They are

continuously monitored by the ECU and Statemachine for signal failure (e.g., open circuit, short circuit, data corruption, loss and delay of messages) and in the case that a failure occurs, brings the vehicle to a safe state.

The shut-down circuit (SDC) is a serial electrical circuit connected to several safety monitoring devices that enables the vehicle’s high voltage system if all the safety requirements are passed. The EBS interlock is also part of the SDC, which opens the SDC if the autonomous pipeline fails and immediately activates the EBS. The interlock functions as hardware logic and requires the RES to be turned on, as well as the computing processes and SCS monitoring to be in a satisfied state, for it to close the SDC.

3. Software Stack

Monash Motorsport’s Autonomous Pipeline includes a suite of software packages in which sensor data is handled and processed, and autonomous algorithms and safety systems are run.

The software which uses ROS, such as Perception, SLAM, Path Planning and Motion Control, is run on the Xavier using the Ubuntu 18.04 LTS distribution of Linux [6], and

primarily built on the ROS software framework. Most real time autonomous software is written in C++ due to its native support by ROS and low computation times. PSOC code is written in C, Python is used for post testing analysis tools and simulation, and MoTeC’s own C-like programming language is used for the ECU [8]. To enable fast development and deployment of the autonomous systems, a custom simulation environment has been created. This is particularly beneficial for testing new developments and changes prior to on-track testing.

Monash Motorsport uses Continuous Integration and Continuous Development (CI/CD) practices, and version control [9] to support efficient and high-quality development and deployment of software across the Autonomous Pipeline. Continuous Integration is implemented in Jenkins and runs simulations of every change submitted in a pull request, using the custom simulation environment and suites of unit tests, minimising software errors before on-track use.

Data is collected from both simulated and ontrack testing in the form of ROS bags, which contain information from software as well as sensors on the car, for each test run. This data can then be analysed, and data from sensors such as the LiDAR point cloud can be used as inputs in simulation, to test software changes on real-world data.

4. Perception

4.1 Baraja Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR

A Baraja Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR supplied by the Australian deep technology company Baraja Pty Ltd, is used to provide a highresolution point cloud of the environment in front of the car. Baraja’s LiDAR solution outputs a dense point cloud spectrum with a range of 240m and a horizontal FOV of 120°. This allows the MMS autonomous pipeline to see further and allows greater speed of the vehicle due to the larger range and certainty of landmark positions compared to results obtained from alternative LiDAR solutions used by the team previously.

Figure 4. Image showing location of the computing box on M19-D

Figure 5.Neural Network inference (cones detected shown by green boxes)

4.1.1. Cone Clustering Algorithm

The point cloud spectral information preprocessing phase removes unnecessary spectral information. Post processing involves a Euclidean Clustering algorithm along with implementation of a K-D tree data structure for efficient identification of neighbour associations. The Point Cloud Library (PCL) [10] implementation was utilised with CUDA GPU to free CPU usage and employ multithreaded processing to compute the point cloud data. Previous iterations of clustering utilised single-threaded CPU to cluster cones and was at times taking longer than 1 second to compute the dense point clouds, affecting the car’s performance. The CUDA GPU implementation demonstrated a significant performance improvement via a reduction of latency of dense point cloud computations (<10ms) overusing the CPU.

4.1.2. LiDAR Neural Network

The PointPillars neural network [11] is used to detect cones in three-dimensional space. It has a low latency in contrast to other point cloud detection networks due to its lack of 3D convolutions. It is actively trained on data collected by Monash Motorsport on a Baraja Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR. The PointPillars neural network also displays a higher mean Average Precision over pure clustering algorithms, which permits more accurate cone detections with fewer false cones due to other objects in the environment [11].

4.2. Stereoscopic Cameras

A pair of Basler ace acA2440-75um mono cameras are used to enable visible light imaging and depth perception. This in turn allows the identification of cone colours, which assists Path Planning in determining the left and right side of the track as well as the starting orange cones. Additionally, cameras also enable the detection of cone location, complementing the location of cones inferred from LiDAR data.

4.2.1. YOLOV3

The You Only Look Once version-3 (YOLOV3)

[12] architecture is an object-detection neural network working with visible light images to detect specified landmarks with the Stereoscopic cameras. In the case of Monash Motorsport, YOLOV3 is used alongside peleenet [13] which is used as the backbone of the network due to its speed and functionality to detect cones on track.

5. Simultaneous Localization and Mapping

5.1 Sensors

A combination of state sensors (Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), GPS, and Magnetometer) and observation sensors (Baraja Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR and cameras) are utilised. The state sensors provide information about the vehicle state while the observation sensors provide information about surroundings and also the vehicle’s state, relative to its surrounding environment. The vehicle hosts a Swift Piksi Multi GNSS module [14] which has an integrated IMU and Magnetometer that is connected to the TW3870 Dual Band GNSS Antenna and Xavier computing unit via a switch. This unit was chosen for its fast fix time (< 60s) and refresh rate (10Hz), robust positional data (0.75m horizontal accuracy with standalone GPS or 0.001m with dual GPS Real Time Kinematic setup) and ease of integration due to a prototyping friendly PCB and pre-existing support with ROS drivers.

5.2 Sensor Calibration

To ensure robust measurements, calibration of the sensors is required. The state sensors are all calibrated live during each race on the car to ensure that their measurements are reliable. A buffer of GPS, magnetometer and IMU measurements are stored at the starting line while the vehicle is stationary and used to find the average initial measurements on vehicle start. This is done to find the GPS position to be used as the origin, and orientations of the IMU and magnetometer. The GPS frame is then rotated onto the car’s frame by calculating the difference in angle between the two. To ensure minimal error during live calibration, an arc-length comparison algorithm, that compares the GPS’s changing position and the SLAM algorithm’s estimate of the changing position, is used to spot noisy GPS measurements. The IMU and magnetometer are on the same PCB and are not perfectly aligned with the centre of gravity of the vehicle, and so must be calibrated. This is done under the assumption that the vehicle is stationary and only subjected to downwards acceleration due to gravity. The IMU and magnetometer measurements are then rotated with a calculated quaternion to align the axis of the board to be coincident with the axis of the car’s frame.

Prior to using the readings from the

magnetometer, hard and soft iron magnetic field interference [15] must first be removed from measurements. This is done by storing live measurements from the magnetometer. The resulting measurements trace out an ellipse; calculating the transformations that turn this ellipse back into a circle and applying this to subsequent live readings removes this interference, resulting in a reliable heading.

5.3 Extended Kalman Filter

There is extensive research and varying approaches to the SLAM problem such as the Kalman Filter, GraphSLAM [16] and FastSLAM [17]. For the purpose of the Monash Motorsport pipeline, the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) variant was selected due to its relatively simple implementation, solves the non-linear estimation problem and suitable to the low landmark environment of Formula student competition.

The notable disadvantages of the EKF algorithm is that it linearises the vehicle and observation model which introduces approximation error. The computational complexity is O(n2) in the update-step [18] where n is the number of landmarks. These disadvantages are somewhat mitigated due to the low number of landmarks of approximately 200-300 for larger tracks. The approximation error is reduced with fast periodic prediction and correction steps (50Hz).

The EKF algorithm can be considered as a decision-level sensor fusion algorithm, as each sensor is able to provide corrections via observation of the vehicle state. This allows for sensors to be turned on and off and adjusted individually without affecting the EKF implementation.

The cone detections from Perception are treated as the landmarks that are continually added to the map in positions relative to the vehicle’s position estimate. Data association occurs between cones that are within either the Euclidean or Mahalanobis distance of each other. These two cones are assumed to be the same, and are combined with their

Figure 6. SLAM Estimate of trackmap and vehicle position. Yellow dot is the GPS position measurement. White arrow is the IMU acceleration measurement. Ovals around cones represent positional uncertainty.

Figure 7. Delaunay Triangulation algorithm constructing the track during track discovery. Red points are reference waypoints with positions chosen from BezierSpline (grey line).

position adjusted. Over the course of a lap, there is an error associated with the landmark and vehicle state which will propagate map errors to later landmark additions. Loop closure is performed to reconcile the two differing estimates of the same landmark. The Autocross and Trackdrive tracks are closed loops where the car will return to the same initial location at the end of each lap and observe the starting cones. A loop closure algorithm matches these known unique cones observed at the start and end of a lap. The track is shifted to connect the end of the track to the start due to the greater confidence in the position of the cones observed at the beginning of the race. As the vehicle is operating in a static environment, the map is no longer altered after loop closure which reduces the computational load required for later laps.

While EKF provides a suitable solution to the SLAM problem, other algorithms are being investigated for future development, including the Sparse Extended Information Filter [21], Unscented Kalman Filter [22], GraphSLAM [16] and FastSLAM [17].

6. Path Planning

6.1 Track Discovery

In Autocross, Skidpad and Acceleration events, there is no prior knowledge of the track. As such, Path Planning must construct a track to navigate through based on SLAM’s landmark map, which is continuously updated as the car moves.

The algorithm used to construct the track is Delaunay triangulation. Delaunay triangulation forms triangles from points in a given space

so that no point lies within the circumcircle of any triangle, helping produce geometrically balanced triangles [21]. Cost functions are used to choose triangles to fit a Bezier-Spline [22] through the midpoint of triangle vertices, representing cone pairs on either side of the track, see Figure 7. Cost functions include the distance between consecutive cones on one side of the track, the smoothness of the sides and centerline of the track, the circumradius, and cone colours if available. The track selection is robust even without use of cone colours. As seen in Figure 8, new triangles and the spline path are continuously updated as more information is provided from SLAM.

6.2 Optimal Racing Line

Following the completion of the first lap of track drive, the trackmap is saved as a series of transverse lines drawn between the two sides of the track. From this, the Optimal Racing Line (ORL) is calculated by using a custom trajectory optimisation algorithm which aims to minimise lap time within the restraints of vehicle dynamics, such as longitudinal and latitudinal jerk of the vehicle, vehicle speed and the width of the track. This is achieved using the Levenberg-Marquardt Algorithm, coupled with leapfrog integration [23]. From this ORL, a velocity profile can be generated and maximum accelerations of the vehicle can be fitted [24] [25].

7.

7.1

Pure Pursuit

Pure Pursuit is a basic Motion Control algorithm. It relies on the kinematic bicycle model to determine the required steering angle to reach a lookahead point on the given path. The pipeline uses a variant of Pure Pursuit that varies the lookahead point based on the curvature of the track. On straights, the lookahead point will be further away and the steering will be more stable, whereas for corners it will be closer and the steering more responsive. As a result, with a larger lookahead point, the steering is damped. This makes Pure Pursuit a strong solution for the straight line Acceleration event. However, in events that require more cornering, such as Autocross and Trackdrive, the lookahead distance needs to be smaller. The main downside of this algorithm is the instability as Pure Pursuit can overcorrect in steering to the next lookahead point. Generally, the controller undershoots on corners, overshoots on straights and steers too much. The shortcomings with steering are a bigger problem in formula student events given the challenging track characteristics, such as the narrow track (3m width), hairpins and slaloms. Hence development of a more sophisticated controller for the Autocross and Trackdrive events was required to overcome this problem.

7.2 Model Predictive Control

Model Predictive Control (MPC) is a form of optimal control that uses a receding prediction horizon to compute the current optimal controls for a given objective function. Specifically, a linear time varying MPC is used for the pipeline. The prediction is updated every time step and the vehicle only utilises the prediction for the current time period. This means that the present controls are optimised while considering the effects that these controls have on the future. The MPC optimises the car’s steering, throttle and braking requests to execute the trajectory given by Path Planning. The benefit of MPC is that it implicitly incorporates state and control constraints into the optimisation problem. Important constraints for this racecar application are maximum velocity, lateral deviation from the track centreline, and tyre stiffness. The constraints aim to keep the car on track and prevent instabilities such as oversteer. These constraints, in addition to the future control parameters, when calculating current controls are the reasons MPC is useful in the formula student application. One limitation of the current implementation of the MPC is the use of a kinematic bicycle model as the plant model which makes assumptions such as linear tyre models. However, for higher speeds these assumptions become inaccurate, and a dynamic bicycle model may become more suitable. The kinematic model was previously preferred due to better accuracy at lower speeds and lower computation time. Figure 10 demonstrates the increased performance of the linear time varying MPC compared to pure pursuit, as it pushes the car to its traction boundaries more. One drawback of MPC is the large computation time due to the optimisation processes [25], which may lead to instability. Hence MPC is not used in events with noncomplex tracks, such as the Acceleration event, where the MPC optimisations are not required.

Motion Control

Figure 8. Iterative steps of track discovery on a corner with short range.

Figure 9. Path Planning reference waypoints generated from ORL algorithm.

Figure 10. GG Plot of Linear Time Varying MPC (Red) and Pure Pursuit (Green).

8. Actuation

8.1 Low-level Control

As the section of the autonomous pipeline succeeding Motion Control, Actuation receives steering angle requests and velocity requests which are admitted to the MoTeC M150 ECU via the state-machine implementation on the Cypress PSoC 5LP. From a holistic view, the Actuation’s role is to provide an abstraction of the actuation hardware to the high-level software in the upper layers of the Autonomous pipeline. Functionally, actuation takes the requests from Motion Control and performs the processing and control required to realise these requests on the vehicle. The role of the MoTeC M150 ECU in the actuation context is thus to facilitate this functional role. Received steering angle requests are compared to the current steering angle as measured by a steering rack sensor. The difference in angle is then taken and converted into servo motor increments from the current position. This is then encoded and sent via CANOpen to the Moog SmartMotor.

Velocity actuation is facilitated by a cascade controller. Received velocity requests are first passed to a proportional controller implementation on the ECU. This velocity request is compared to the current speed of the car (the response) as measured by wheel speed sensors for the front, undriven wheels of the vehicle to produce an error value for the velocity. This velocity is then scaled with the proportional coefficient to produce a target acceleration. The value of the target acceleration then determines whether the car is to coast, accelerate or brake. If the target acceleration is high enough, it is passed to the acceleration PI controller which then produces a request that is sent to the vehicle’s inverter. Conversely, the target acceleration is sent to the braking PI controller which then produces a pressure request that is sent to the service brake pressure regulator.

8.2 Braking and Safety

The braking system is the most critical safetyrelated component on the driverless vehicle. The vehicle must be able to safely stop itself at any time regardless of the state of the carpowered or otherwise.

This function is facilitated by the Remote Emergency System (RES) in tandem with the EBS. The MMS EBS implementation is a pneumatic actuation system that is retrofitted onto the pre-existing braking line. It consists of two air reservoirs for redundancy, should one of the reservoirs fail to actuate when required. When the reservoirs are pressurised, they provide a constant force on the brake pedal that keeps the brake pedal fully engaged in the absence of an opposing force against the EBS. The design of this was intentional as to keep the brakes fully engaged by default. When the vehicle is required to accelerate,

the acceleration PI controller sends a nonzero encoded pressure request to a pressure regulator connected to the service brake side of the EBS actuator. The force from the pressure on the service brake side then opposes the constant force provided by the filled EBS reservoirs. This effectively releases the brakes on the vehicle and allows it to accelerate or perform intermediate braking. The EBS is constantly connected to the RES, which upon activation causes the car to lose all power and causes the pressure regulator connected to the service brake side of the EBS actuator to release all pressure. This in turn allows the force from the pressure on the EBS side of the actuator to fully engage the brakes and bring the car to a safe stop.

8.3

Steering

Steering requests on the Autonomous vehicle are ultimately serviced by a Moog SmartMotor servo which is mated to a reduction gearbox and manipulates the steering column via a belt.

The servo motor takes in requests for relative movement in the form of signed motor increments from its current position. These requests are made via the CANOpen application layer protocol and transportation of these messages is done via the CAN data link layer protocol. Upon successful reception of these requests, the servo motor utilises an internal PID controller alongside set acceleration and velocity targets to realise the requests on the steering column.

9.

Conclusion

An overview of an autonomous pipeline has been illustrated through examining both the software and hardware involved in the system and their respective functions. The software packages have been developed for our Formula Student Driverless application and the hardware has been specifically chosen for reliability and performance.

Future developments include a focus on lower latency landmark association and mapping given the increased range of the Baraja Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR. This should allow us to discover new tracks faster leading to more stability in Path Planning and Motion Control. This increased range means that we can push the car harder when discovering to minimise lap time. This is important because of the limited computational resources given the capabilities of the Xavier. The team is always looking to increase the efficiency and latency of algorithms so that the autonomous vehicle problem can be solved faster. Future developments for motion planning include better control of the vehicle so that calculation of the optimal racing line is achievable with reliability. Furthermore, better control of the vehicle means the car’s speed can be maximised without sacrificing reliability. This can be achieved by a more accurate plant model for the MPC. Also, reducing the

delay in the pipeline will lead to better MPC performance. Formula Student Driverless is a constantly evolving competition which requires continuous effort to improve current driverless systems.

Acknowledgement

We would like to thank all present and past members of Monash Motorsport, especially our former and founding members of the Autonomous Department for laying the foundations on which we build upon today. We have been truly lucky enough to stand on the shoulders of giants. Equally, thank you to Monash University, and our sponsors, particularly Baraja, SMC, Xenon, and Adept Turnkey, for providing us with the trust and support that allows us to reach our potential.

Figure 11. EBS Actuator Cylinder

Figure 12. Autonomous Systems Brake Overview