The VTT robot car Marilyn parks in the furthermost lot fully autonomously
Tests on parking with help from the Internet of Things underway in Tampere
The VTT robot car Marilyn is currently undergoing tests on fully autonomous parking in the area furthest from its driver, at a distance of up to a hundred metres. The Internet of Things assists the car in finding and driving into a free space.
The robot car Marilyn tests automated valet parking as part of the AUTOPILOT project, which is funded by the European Commission to investigate the potential of IoT in automated driving. Tampere is one of the projects European test sites alongside Livorno, Italy, Brainport (Helmond-Eindhoven), Netherlands, Versailles, France and Vigo, Spain. The project also has a test site in Daejeon, South Korea.
In its automated parking demonstration, the VTT Marilyn utilises UWB-based positioning technology by HERE, which is able to position vehicles indoors without the need for satellite positioning. UWB, or Ultra Wideband, is a radio technology that transmits data in extremely short and low-power pulses over a very wide frequency band (e.g. 1—2 GHz).
In practice, the car is parked by means of a specially developed application that the driver can use to reserve a parking space. Once the car arrives at the parking area entrance, the parking guidance system verifies that the space is free, checks for potential obstructions along the route using traffic cameras connected to an open IoT platform, and transmits the route information to the vehicle. Assisted by IoT, the car then drives automatically to its reserved space.
The AUTOPILOT project focuses on five different driving modes, with automated valet parking technology under development and testing at VTT in Tampere. The project is also developing a range of services for various driving modes, such as platooning and car sharing.
In the future, VTT will also demonstrate the use of traffic cameras at stop lights to assist automated driving in situations where a turning vehicle must be able to detect and give way to pedestrians and cyclists.
The project will run until December 2019.
Watch the video on parking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=22&v=SODPKgDomaQ
Featured Product

OnLogic's Helix 520 Series of Scalable Fanless Computers
The Helix 520 series utilizes the latest Intel Core Ultra processors with integrated edge AI capabilities to deliver exceptional performance and industrial-grade reliability for demanding applications in automation, robotics, machine vision, and more. Its unique modular design allows for flexible scaling of CPU and GPU performance, while robust connectivity and expansion options ensure seamless integration.