In the busy streets of Luxembourg, something exciting is happening. Scientists are working on perfecting autonomous driving, so that you and I can be chauffeured to work or school by a self-driving car. This future is what drives Professor Raphaël Frank and his team: they want to change the way we travel and make our daily trips safer and easier.
It all started many moons ago, when Raphael Frank watched the movie Back to The Future. Then, the researcher caught the show Knightrider on TV.
He was hooked.
They say you create your best work where talent, passion and purpose meet. It looks like Raphael Frank found precisely that sweet spot.
His team, the Ubiquitous and Intelligent Systems (UBIX) research group , took a normal car and added sensors and cameras, and customised open-source software. The scientists now use this autonomous vehicle for all their research.
They study how the car sees the world and how it can drive through busy streets without human help. Raphael Frank says, "We’re always trying to understand and improve how the car avoids obstacles and plans safe routes." The team’s goal is to make these self-driving cars communicate better with other cars and with the city’s infrastructure (think traffic lights and signs). This will ensure a safe and easy ride for everyone.
The team pays close attention to digital high-definition maps, which offer precise information that helps the car understand the road. Postdoctoral researcher Gamal Elghazaly says that these maps have greatly improved in the last ten years. The maps work with the car’s sensors to create a very accurate picture of the city. In 2023, the team published their research on these maps in the IEEE Open Journal of Intelligent Transportation Systems.
The main software that runs the UBIX self-driving car is called Robocar. This software helps the car plan its routes and navigate safely. Over the past year, the team tested Robocar on public roads in Belval and Kirchberg. These real-world tests gave them valuable information, and this spring the team decided to share their findings by releasing an open-source version of their software. This way, other professionals can build on their work.
Ok, so we might not be using flying cars anytime soon. But the reality is: a future with self-driving cars isn’t so distant anymore. Before you can nap in the backseat while your car drive you around, the technology will need to be safe. That’s what Raphael Frank and his team are working on: their research aims to create safer roads, easier commutes, and a world where intelligent systems change our daily lives.
