One of the most advanced autonomous vehicles in the world is prowling among the spires of Oxford thanks to a research partnership between BAE Systems and Oxford University. Known as Wildcat, the driverless vehicle has been the subject of over five years of research and development by scientists at BAE Systems Advanced Technology Centre at Filton in Bristol. The multi-million pound vehicle has been officially handed over to University of Oxford, Department of Engineering Science for use by academics to continue research into vehicle autonomy and robotics.
The donation of Wildcat is the latest in a long line of BAE System’s funding of University research, providing resources and expertise to support projects in areas such as automotive, maritime and materials engineering. The Wildcat vehicle is a 4x4 off-road production car from Bowler, modified by BAE System's engineers. The vehicle is equipped with computer controlled steering servos, an secondary braking system and a hotline into the vehicle's engine management system for speed control. In addition, wireless data links, GPS and laser ranging sensors were installed so that the Wildcat could receive instructions, navigate and avoid hitting obstacles.
BAE Systems' Advanced Technology Centre developed Wildcat over the past five years. Autonomous vehicles have a number of clear advantages on a battlefield, but will primarily keep service personnel out of danger.
“This is an exciting joint project between Oxford University and BAE Systems”, said James Baker, Managing Director of BAE Systems Advanced Technology Centre. “Over the last 5 years, we’ve invested over £1 million in the Wildcat project, which makes it a very unique asset for the testing of autonomous technology. It is great for us to be able to offer this technology as a test-bed for the University and we look forward to seeing the results over the coming years.”
Commenting on the Wildcat testbed, Dr Paul Newman of Oxfords Department of Engineering Science said: “Wildcat is the result of years of advanced research and development from the world’s leading defence and aerospace manufacturer. It will allow us to advance our own research into autonomous transport, contributing to a future of autonomy on the roads of Oxford, and around the world.”
Dr Newman continued: “We are not condemned to a future of congestion and accidents. We will eventually have cars that can drive themselves, interacting safely with other road users and using roads efficiently, thus freeing up our precious time. But to do this the machines need life-long infrastructure-free navigation and that is the focus of this work.”
BAE Systems has links with around 100 universities globally through its university partnerships programme, with over 30 of these based in the UK. In addition, through its Skills 2020 programme, the Company invests over £50 million per annum in education liaison work with schools, colleges and skills development programmes for its employees. The Company is committed to playing a key role in supporting the development of future engineers in the UK.
Wildcat facts:
- The Wildcat has performed thousands of autonomous miles.
- The Wildcat's sensors can observe a volume larger than 120,000 squash courts in one second.
- The patented safety system allows the operator to safely monitor, operate and drive the wildcat from the driver’s seat, a chase vehicle or a remote ground station.
- The Wildcat's software has been demonstrated on over seven different types of vehicle.
- The Wildcat senses and records 1GB of data per second.
- The Wildcat's software reduces the volume of sensor data by over one million before outputting to the steering, throttle and breaks.
- The Wildcat has a flexible sensor and processing system including multiple on-board gigabit Ethernet, Firewire and fibre networks.
