GM to supply Bolts for SAE AutoDrive Challenge II
By Phil Royle – April 15, 2021
In an effort to grow autonomous tech through university student involvement, General Motors and SAE International are partnering for the AutoDrive Challenge II. In the second iteration of the program, over the course of the next four years, students from 10 universities will outfit EVs with self-driving tech and have them complete an autonomous challenge on an urban driving course. The autonomous EVs will navigate the course as described by SAE J3016 Standard Level 4 automation.
There are five levels of driving automation. The AutoDrive Challenge II is aiming for Level 4. (Image courtesy SAE International)
The program’s intent is to prepare students with real-world experience in a world heading toward automotive self-driving autonomy. Here’s how SAE International explains the competition:
Throughout the four-year competition, participants are required to meet yearly benchmarks for the design and development of their AV systems, while continuing their education through SAE professional development courses. To participate in AutoDrive Challenge II, participating universities committed to relevant curriculum, vehicle testing facilities, undergraduate participation, and faculty and graduate student leadership in their proposals. Challenges will present students with real-world applications of sensing technologies, computing platforms, software design and implementation, and advanced computation methods such as computer vision, image processing, machine learning, artificial intelligence, sensor fusion and autonomous vehicle controls.
The vehicles to be used in the challenge will be the newly announced Chevrolet Bolt EUV, donated by GM. The Bolts will be modified by the 10 teams utilizing their own autonomous driving solutions. “Over the next four years, the teams will meet annually for competitive events at The Mcity Test Facility, located on the University of Michigan Campus in Ann Arbor, Mich.,” SAE International explains, with GM stating that the company is excited about the partnership.
“At General Motors, we envision a future of zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion, and we have committed ourselves to leading the way toward this future,” said Dan Nicholson, GM vice president, global electrification, controls, software and electronics and executive sponsor of the competition. “The AutoDrive Challenge is a great way to give students the hands-on experience they need to find success. We are very excited to work with these talented students over the course of the competition and know they will make an immediate impact on the automotive industry upon graduation.”
The university teams selected for the challenge include Kettering University, Michigan Technological University, North Carolina A&T University, The Ohio State University, Penn State University, Texas A&M University, University of Toronto, University of Wisconsin – Madison, Queens University, and Virginia Tech.
Many of the universities participating in the challenge are well known for placing engineering students into the workforce with major OEs like GM and Ford. Kettering University, for example, was originally called The School of Automobile Trades upon its founding in 1919, and by the mid-1920s General Motors had purchased the school. GM divested its stake in the university by 1983, but ties to the manufacturer still run deep through internships and job placement programs.
While self-driving autonomy is very much at the forefront of the current automotive conversation, the technology is far from a level that is safe for unbridled public consumption. Programs like this, meanwhile, have the capacity to bring forth a fresh perspective and mindset that stand to benefit the entire world. It’s exciting to see what will come from this program in the coming years, as well as what these students accomplish further down the road.
(Main image courtesy Chevrolet)
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