Autonomous ATV

A team at UNC Charlotte has been working on an autonomous vehicle to drag a cart that has sensing equipment. Starting with a stock Honda ATV, different systems were added to give a Renesas processor control of the ATV. A model airplane receiver was attached to the Renesas to give remote control for Phase 1 of the project. Basically they’ve turned the ATV into a giant remote controlled car.

Later revisions will incorporate LIDAR, cameras, and multiple GPS units so the ATV can autonomously traverse most terrain with a high level of accuracy. Path planning will become a large part of the project at that point.

Comments [21]

tagged: atv, autonomous, camera, gps, lidar, path planning, radio controlled, rc, robot, video

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(say it with me) REMOTE CONTROL != AUTONOMOUS

I realize they have plans to get there, but at this point it is a big RC toy.

Best of luck guys and CAN i have a RIDE?!

Posted at 5:52 pm on Mar 23rd, 2009 by gazorp

I was waiting for a mythbusters moment where the deadman switch didn’t work and it went crashing through a chain like fence.

Posted at 5:59 pm on Mar 23rd, 2009 by barry99705

A big part of ATV riding is the rider changing the COG with his or her body weight. I’m curious as to how the ATV will handle at any speed without that movable weight. I predict rolling.

Posted at 6:04 pm on Mar 23rd, 2009 by JdR

Yes I got this far into the darpa challenge myself, though it was at about 1/8 scale to what these guys did. Same basic result though unless they go a lot further.

Posted at 6:14 pm on Mar 23rd, 2009 by localroger

It would be a lot of fun to take this someplace public and adding a audio system with a distortion have it go talk to people.

*vroom* “Hey, you by the Toyota. How’s it goin’? You, uh, you got anything for me?”

Posted at 9:57 pm on Mar 23rd, 2009 by K

They’ve got a ways to go. I was part of 2 darpa grand challenges myself(making it to the final event both times).

As far as using an ATV goes, our first platform was based off a stock Honda ATV. With a proper control system, it’s actually quite manageable and controllable, even at speed. We did roll it once(at 50 mph), but that was due to a, umm, software malfunction.

Posted at 10:07 pm on Mar 23rd, 2009 by chriggy

Yeah I know someone who has an autonomous car, although as of yet it has a driver, but once he gets rich and the technology is there he’ll add lidar and what not, and it already has GPS so it’s more advanced than this..
(internet-required note: I’m being sarcastic.)

Posted at 10:08 pm on Mar 23rd, 2009 by Wwhat

Sounds kind of like the Army Crusader project where the ammunition trailer could detach from the tank and be controlled remotely to return to the ammo supply depot and return to the tank in the field. But that project was dumped by G.W. Bush shorty after starting his first presidential term.

Posted at 3:15 am on Mar 24th, 2009 by jrocky

This is definitely pretty cool, but not as cool as a remote control Delorean.

Posted at 6:06 am on Mar 24th, 2009 by David

Nothing unique here. Many of the Darpa grand challenge schools/groups started with atv level vehicles or use them for other projects in their research divisions.

Posted at 10:02 am on Mar 24th, 2009 by Red

someone already demonstrated an autonomous motorbike on youtube, a lot more impressive than a 4 wheel ATV that doesn’t need active balancing to stay up. hackaday’s losing luster again.

Posted at 11:48 am on Mar 24th, 2009 by michiru

Maybe some of you people should change the way you think of hackaday. I enjoy when they post projects that are on-going. It gives me a chance to follow them. Sure people have done this and much more before, but that’s the past and it’s interesting to see what else is going on. Perhaps they will do something different or interesting.

It’s not everyday that an amazing project is completed that’s never been done before, so why hope for that? Hackaday has done a nice job compiling project pages and even doing their own segments, I think the page is just as good as ever.

Posted at 12:38 pm on Mar 24th, 2009 by Greg

this team’s about 6 years late. google “darpa grand challenge spirit of las vegas” for an autonomous honda atv with GPS, video, etc sensors.

Posted at 1:30 pm on Mar 24th, 2009 by nick

Wow, I wish my school had that much parking.

Posted at 1:50 pm on Mar 24th, 2009 by grey

Roll or fly! It is all about the endless nights and lines of code at the end of the day!

Though this not some dream anymore, it is certainly a fun project we are getting to work on at UNC CHARLOTTE. We have a few people who also competed in the Urban Challenge.

Lets see what happens next ;)

Posted at 2:16 pm on Mar 24th, 2009 by engrforever

If anyone on that team has a dog, the absolutely HAVE to train it to sit on the ATV whilst its in motion.
Just think of the other road users faces when the see a dog pull up alongside them at an intersection.

Posted at 9:33 pm on Mar 24th, 2009 by Paul G

I just love the fact that the guy remote controlling it is wearing a helmet!

Posted at 6:58 am on Mar 25th, 2009 by dan

@ dan: safety first! hahahaha

Posted at 8:08 am on Mar 25th, 2009 by grizball

Thank`s =)

Posted at 1:18 pm on Apr 4th, 2009 by KamiKaDze

I got a laugh out of the guy controlling it too, why the helmet anyway, ATV safety to the extreme ? Great article.

Posted at 3:20 am on Apr 6th, 2009 by ATV

‘If my calculations are correct, when this baby hits 88 miles per hour. You’re gunna see some serious shit!’

Posted at 7:42 am on Aug 3rd, 2009 by studioeng

Autonomous ATV

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