The university is taking part in developing a self-driving car as a member of the alliance Technical Vision. Recently, the alliance participated in the all-Russian contest Winter City, after which unmanned flying vehicles that can move autonomously in the winter season and at different times of the day in compliance with the traffic regulations will be the tested in the regions of the Russian Federation.
Contestants must create a drone capable, subject to the rules, of covering 50 kilometers in winter conditions in no more than three hours.
The participants in the competition are 30 companies and alliances from different regions of the country, including the Tomsk SmartVision team. It plans to present the drone in the form of a mini-truck, created based on an electric vehicle.
- TSU is a member of all alliances of the SMART Technologies Tomsk cluster. We initially entered the Alliance Technical Vision with two projects: radio vision and a repository. The capabilities of our supercomputer and data center enable us to store a huge amount of data, and now, a repository of software products of all members of the alliance has been created at TSU, - notes Konstantin Belyakov, TSU Vice-Rector for Innovation. - We have experience in creating self-propelled objects that use vision technology. For example, the robot-wheel and a robot on a tracked platform that move independently and can rescue the wounded from the scene of the incident, or act as a scout to monitor areas of chemical and radiation contamination.
This week, an electric car released by one of the Russian plants will arrive in Tomsk. Based on its chassis, companies and universities that are alliance members will combine their technology to create a drone. it will be tested on the Special Economic Zone, where most of the companies of the alliance are located, at the beginning of 2019.
- We need to create mechanics, drives for all communications systems, and a control system – the “brain” of this self-driving car. Then, as we plan, it will remain in Tomsk, and we will constantly refine it. Of course, this car will not appear on public roads, now it is prohibited by law - in Russia there are only two pilot zones, Tatarstan and Moscow, where cars can drive without a driver. But in closed areas we can use such transport, - adds Konstantin Belyakov. If we succeed, Tomsk can become one of the most noticeable points of growth in developing unmanned vehicles. By the way, two years ago, an idea to create and launch unmanned wipers in the city that would clean the snow and sweep the streets was proposed. So far, for objective reasons, it has not been implemented, but our participation in the Winter City can change the situation, emphasizes the Vice-Rector. - We hope to perform successfully at this competition, and all the prerequisites for this exist.