An Edinburgh PhD student has developed a new algorithm aimed at transforming the capability of self-driving cars and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Following months of research in the labs at aerospace engineering company Leonardo, Euan Ward developed a new algorithm that uses radar technology, but is protected from radio frequency interference.
This could pave the way for the use of fully autonomous vehicles in built-up or busy areas.
At present, self-driving cars rely on sensors to avoid collisions, but these can only detect threats within a certain radius. As the use of fully autonomous vehicles grows, the potential for interference between systems will pose a threat to the safety of these vehicles.
Unfortunately, the radar will not be immune to this effect, so it must learn to operate in an environment crowded with radio frequency energy. One of the technologies that is said to interfere with aeroplane sensors is the 5G network.
Ward undertook his PhD at The University of Edinburgh, where he developed new techniques to protect modern radar systems against harmful interference.
With the support of Leonardo, Ward spent four years developing the technology that could allow low-cost radar systems to maintain their performance when operating in close proximity to one another.
During his second year of study, he was awarded an Industrial Fellowship by the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851.
Last week, Ward explained the new solution to Princess Anne at a presidential dinner at the Fishmongers Hall in London.
She asked him about how driverless car testing had so far been carried out in dry climates such as Arizona, where straight empty roads run for miles, and how such vehicles might cope with the more challenging weather and terrain.
Ward responded: “One of the big uncertainties surrounding the driverless car is how it will handle more challenging road and weather conditions like we often have in Scotland.
“Fortunately, I was able to confirm that unlike the other sensors on the driverless car, radars are able to maintain their operational performance in inclement weather, which is also true for the techniques developed in this PhD.
"This will mean that for somewhere like Scotland, where the weather is often unpredictable, the radar sensor will become even more critical for the safety of the driverless car, which brings into sharp focus the need for us to have techniques that can guarantee its reliability.“
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