ASI’S SCYTHE ACQUISITION AMPLIFIES AUTONOMOUS OFF-ROAD VEHICLE LEADERSHIP

Read News →

Tag: autonomous solutions

Autonomous Yard Shifting 101- ASI Revolutionizes Yard Shifting

Posted on by highnessteam

Autonomous yard shifting uses trucks from different OEMs to perform daily tasks and routines without the need for a driver in the cab. As a result, it offers the ability to oversee and control operations of multiple trucks from a control room onsite, or thousands of miles away. The industry’s most capable and proven command and control software, Mobius, integrated with Yard Management Software (YMS), and Vehicle Automation Kits (VAK) make autonomous yard shifting a reality. When combined, these solutions enable yard shifting to run at its highest potential, around the clock, without breaks, little maintenance, and scheduled repairs.

Yard shifting can be dull, dirty, and dangerous at times, but often is the most integral part of the supply chain. Bottlenecks and hazards at yard shifting facilities mean lost revenue, time, and resources. Consequently, a company is only as efficient as its weakest link in the supply chain, and often that weak link is in the yard shifting environment. Safety, driver shortages, inefficient use of time, improper scheduling, and the logistics of overseeing a yard are some of the major problems in the yard shifting industry.

The solution to these problems lies in autonomy. Automation in yard shifting offers a consistent, safe, and highly efficient solution to manage your facility’s operations while reducing the number of obstacles to achieve peak efficiency.

Who is ASI and what they are doing?

For over 20 years Autonomous Solutions Inc. (ASI) has been the industry leader in vehicle automation. ASI strives to help organizations reach their potential through innovative robotic solutions.  Above all, ASI provides safer, more efficient, and cost-effective solutions to improve many aspects of yard shifting.

ASI employs the most experienced team of engineers when it comes to vehicle automation.  With our 20+ years of experience, onsite testing tracks, and over 1,000 deployed automated vehicles throughout the world, ASI is the clear choice for yard shifting automation.  With partnerships including Terberg, AutoCar, FANUC, and Phantom Auto, ASI offers a proven solution with any type of yard truck. As a result, diesel, electric, and drive-by-wire yard trucks can be made autonomous through leveraging ASI’s technologies and experience.

ASI has automated vehicles with Ford Motor Company, Luke Air Force Base and Rio Tinto, and has extended that knowledge and technical expertise into yard shifting automation. A key ingredient to ASI’s automation success is our advanced automation software Mobius.  Mobius has been in development for over 20 years and has been an integral part of every vehicle we have automated. ASI has invested millions of dollars, data, and hours into Mobius and refining vehicle automation to create the best yard shifting solution on the market today. The future of yard shifting is here, and ASI is excited to share it with the world.

ASI autonomous yard shifting truck

About ASI

 Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) is a world leader in industrial vehicle automation. ASI serves clients across the world in mining, agriculture, automotive, government, and manufacturing industries with remote control, teleoperation, and fully automated solutions from its headquarters and 100-acre proving ground in northern Utah.

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) to partner with Danfoss on autonomous technology

Posted on by highnessteam

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) and Danfoss, a market leader in components and software for automation, have entered into an agreement to collaborate on technology for autonomous vehicles.

Danfoss products have long provided critical links from ASI’s software and processors to vehicle control systems and hardware via electrical, network, and hydraulic interfaces. The PLUS+1® platform has been particularly useful to ASI in automating vehicles for agriculture, mining, construction, and material handling applications.

Mel Torrie, President and CEO of ASI, says, “ASI has been using the best-in-class Danfoss components over the last 20 years to support our driverless vehicle development with the world’s leading vehicle OEMs. This new partnership will ensure manufacturers have the needed support to streamline their efforts in making autonomous industrial vehicles a mainstream reality.”

ASI looks forward to working with Danfoss to bring exciting new capabilities to a broader market and a wider range of applications, with world-class support for innovative new offerings. As the adoption of autonomous vehicle technology expands, more potential customers are seeing ways for automation to improve their products and services. This partnership will enable ASI and Danfoss to provide the building blocks for all kinds of implementations not viable in the past.

“This partnership demonstrates our ambition to invest in autonomy and be the innovative partner for our customers. It’s a promising partnership and we are excited about the potential in vehicle automation,” says Kim Fausing, President and CEO of Danfoss.

About ASI

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. is a world leader in vendor independent vehicle automation systems. From our headquarters and 100-acre proving ground in northern Utah, we serve clients in the mining, agriculture, automotive, construction, material handling, government, and manufacturing industries with remote control, teleoperation and fully automated solutions. ASI’s vehicle automation products can be found in companies and government agencies throughout the world. Read more about us at www.asirobots.com

About Danfoss

Danfoss engineers advanced technologies that enable us to build a better, smarter and more efficient tomorrow. In the world’s growing cities, we ensure the supply of fresh food and optimal comfort in our homes and offices, while meeting the need for energy-efficient infrastructure, connected systems and integrated renewable energy. Our solutions are used in areas, such as refrigeration, air conditioning, heating, motor control and mobile machinery. Our innovative engineering dates back to 1933 and today Danfoss holds market-leading positions, employing 27,000 people and serving customers in more than 100 countries. We are privately held by the founding family. Read more about us at www.danfoss.com.

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) receives SBIR funding for Deep Learning architecture to support multiple sensors in GPS-denied environments

Posted on by highnessteam

 

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) has been awarded a SBIR Phase I grant from the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Ground Vehicles Systems Center (formerly TARDEC) to develop a Deep Learning (DL) architecture that will support sensor fusion in environments with limited, or no, GPS.

“Environmental sensing today typically includes cameras, LiDAR and radar,” said Jeff Ferrin, CTO of ASI. “Each of these devices has a specific purpose, but not all of them work well in every situation. For example, cameras are great at collecting high-resolution color information, but do not provide much useful information in the dark.”

In addition to the challenges faced by cameras in poorly lit or degraded visual environments, LiDAR and radar sensors also have limitations. LiDAR performs well in most light conditions but may yield false positives in heavy rain, fog, snow or dust, due to its use of light spectrum wavelengths. Radar usually penetrates these degraded visual environments, but often lacks spatial resolution.

“ASI’s goal is to design a deep learning architecture that fuses information from LiDAR, radar and cameras,” said Ferrin. “We plan to build upon machine learning techniques we have already developed for LiDAR data.”

Deep learning is a branch of artificial intelligence and machine learning that allows valuable information to be extracted from large volumes of data. Cameras are often used in deep learning models because of their high output of information in regularly sampled data structures.

The case is different for LiDAR and radar. Naturally, these two sensor types do not provide regularly sampled data, making it difficult to formulate problems using current deep learning frameworks. This gap in current research efforts – deep learning for LiDAR and radar – is the focus of this grant.

Improved utilization of data from multiple devices can paint a more accurate picture of a vehicle’s surroundings, keeping it safer and making it more efficient. The details of the grant solicitation state, “It is anticipated that harnessing a wide variety of sensors altogether will benefit the autonomous vehicles by providing a more general and robust self-driving system, especially for navigating in different types of challenging weather, environments, road conditions and traffic.”

“In the last few years, we have seen a growing need in the world of robotics to advance industry capabilities in machine learning, deep learning, and other artificial intelligence algorithms to improve performance in these challenging environments,” said Ferrin.

ASI is required to demonstrate the feasibility of the deep learning architecture in a simulation environment, including a road following system that controls an autonomous vehicle, on a course with obstacles and a degraded visual environment.

About ASI

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) is a world leader in industrial vehicle automation. ASI serves clients across the world in the mining, agriculture, automotive, government, and manufacturing industries with remote control, teleoperation, and fully automated solutions from its headquarters and 100-acre proving ground in northern Utah.

To learn more about ASI’s work with sensor fusion technology, visit the company’s Research and Development page.

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) awarded grant for Intelligent Urgent Stop application on large autonomous ground vehicles

Posted on by highnessteam

 

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) has received Phase I funding from the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Ground Vehicles Systems Center (formerly TARDEC) to improve the way heavy vehicles stop while operating autonomously.

“Bringing large autonomous vehicles to a safe stop in varying environments can be challenging,” said Jeff Ferrin, CTO of ASI. “Having additional funding from the Army to further develop this technology will help us make autonomous vehicles safer, which is always our number-one priority.”

The objective of the Army in awarding this grant is to develop and demonstrate a system that can be operated remotely and considers both the dynamics of the vehicle, as well as the environment, to optimally and safely bring a large ground vehicle to a complete stop despite the terrain.

“ASI has been working on terrain characterization with the Army since 2014,” said Ferrin. “This project will use similar technology to make sure the vehicle is aware of the terrain around it. This model of the terrain will then be used by the vehicle to ensure a safer stop is completed.”

A significant focus of this intelligent urgent stop initiative is machine learning. This improved technology will continuously monitor the interaction between a vehicle and its surroundings and update the internal model that is used to properly halt the vehicle. This process will allow the vehicle to learn and adapt as the terrain and environment change.

As the advanced solution is developed, tested and proven, it can be used by ASI’s autonomous vehicles across all the company’s multiple industries, including agriculture, automotive, construction haulage, mining, facility robotics and more.

According to Ferrin, “The system can be used with any drive-by-wire vehicle. It will interface with the brakes and steering to bring the vehicle to a safe, controlled stop.”

Details of the Phase I stage awarded to ASI include development of a concept design using commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) sensors to perform safe deceleration of a large ground vehicle. A concept design report and performance analysis report are required deliverables before Phase II can be awarded.

About ASI

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) is a world leader in industrial vehicle automation. ASI serves clients across the world in the mining, agriculture, automotive, government, and manufacturing industries with remote control, teleoperation, and fully automated solutions from its headquarters and 100-acre proving ground in northern Utah.

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) receives Phase II SBIR award for automated convoy tests at Edwards Air Force Base

Posted on by highnessteam

 

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) is pleased to announce it recently received an AFWERX/AFRL Phase II SBIR award for $648,000 to automate a ground vehicle convoy on the test range at Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) in southern California.

AFRL and AFWERX have partnered to streamline the Small Business Innovation Research process in an attempt to speed up the experience, broaden the pool of potential applicants and decrease bureaucratic overhead. Beginning in June 2018, and through three repeat calls for ideas a year, the Air Force has begun offering ‘Special’ SBIR topics that are faster, leaner and open to a broader range of innovations.

“We are thrilled to have received funding for the second phase of this contract, and for the support of Edwards AFB,” said Jeff Ferrin, CTO at ASI. “This provides valuable resources for testing and enhancing the convoy capabilities of our Mobius command and control platform.”

The Mobius® platform is ASI’s proprietary command and control software used to operate self-driving vehicles. It has become known for delivering a powerful, user-friendly, autonomous vehicle experience to industries such as mining, agriculture, automotive, material handling, security and test range operations.

Mobius is designed to set specific tasks and control critical vehicle functions like steering, transmission, acceleration, brake and ignition of a vehicle from a remote location.

The goal of Edwards AFB is to use the Mobius® platform to improve precision, accuracy and repeatability of range testing.

Following a series of onsite visits, ASI selected the base as the best candidate for their solution.

“The most promising Air Force customer was Edwards AFB,” said Ferrin. “From the beginning of the Phase I project, they have been very interested in both Mobius and our convoy technology. The business case for efficiency and accuracy by applying Mobius at their training range is very strong.”

ASI was originally awarded Phase I of the federal grant as a result of the company’s response to a solicitation through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program, titled Open Call for Innovative Defense-Related Dual -Purpose Technologies/Solutions.

According to the solicitation details, the objective of the grant was to “explore options for solutions that may fall outside the Air Force’s current fields of focus but that may be useful to the US Air Force.”

Companies were required to complete a feasibility study and prototype validated concepts requested in both Phase I and Phase II schedules.

ASI received $50,000 for Phase I of the grant in 2018.

About ASI

Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) is a world leader in industrial vehicle automation. ASI serves clients across the world in the mining, agriculture, automotive, government, and manufacturing industries with remote control, teleoperation, and fully automated solutions from its headquarters and 100-acre proving ground in northern Utah.

ASI Gives Back to Schools, and Others, in Guatemala

Posted on by highnessteam

CEO and founder of Autonomous Solutions, Mel Torrie, has an ambitious goal to give back one billion dollars through various charitable activities striving to help others reach their fullest potential.

ASI Gives Back, the volunteer group responsible for ASI’s charitable initiatives, regularly organizes events in which its employees participate. Autonomous Solutions, Inc. is the corporate sponsor for the Wayne Julien Torrie Foundation, a nonprofit organization that manages fundraising activities in alignment with the ASI Gives Back group.

Recently, ASI Gives Back dreamed bigger and organized an event that gave volunteers the opportunity to make an impact for underprivileged children in Guatemala by providing things like LEGO robotics kits, tablets, musical instruments, efficient gardening systems and more.

A lot of work and contributions went into making these efforts possible. ASI Gives Back, along with the foundation, organized several events for employees and the community to donate to the cause. These fundraising events were highlighted by the first Robot Days 5K Fun Run, hosted at ASI’s 100-acre facility in northern Utah. Runners young and old were able to race a robot on ASI’s vehicle tracks, enjoy a pancake breakfast, play with LEGO robots, win prizes and more.

With preparations completed and funds raised, the ASI team traveled to Guatemala. It was made up of volunteer ASI employees and their families. They had an amazing experience and loved helping the people of Guatemala.

The goal was to help local elementary schools raise their educational capabilities through several projects focused on music, gardening, and technology. ASI Gives Back teamed up with theTango Foundation which provides medical services in impoverished areas and is familiar with some of the challenges these schools face. ASI Gives Back also worked with Pueblo a Pueblo, a local non-profit in Guatemala to help plan and organize these efforts.

One project involved building an efficient gardening system to increase the yield of their crops. Well before heading to Guatemala, the group designed and tested several innovative ways to grow crops. They found that a certain vertical growing structure performed the best and made the most sense. These growing systems will provide more food, leading to fewer malnourished children.

Another project done jointly with World Possible, another non-profit, provided access to educational websites for five schools in areas where the internet is not accessible. ASI supplied 50 tablets and five servers and installed a system called RACHEL, “a portable plug-and-play server which stores educational websites and makes that content available over any local (offline) wireless connection.” Then the tablets can be used by students in the classroom, as if they were on the internet, to enhance their education and open new opportunities.

The last focus was music. ASI brought keyboards and drum kits for the schools to teach music to their students. In addition, volunteers held music sessions to share the instruments and their rhythmic talents with the children.

Other projects included teaching entrepreneurial and QuickBooks trainings and providing resources for those interested in starting small businesses in the area, such as bee keeping. The group also helped tile the floor of one of the libraries and supplied bee keeping equipment and materials to build bee hives. They also teamed up with Days for Girls and gave more than 80 women and girls the tools they needed to improve their quality of life.

ASI volunteers made some great friends and lasting memories from this experience. One of the Guatemalan school teachers has a Youtube channel. Interested viewers can subscribe to his channel to see the impact these volunteers had on his school and students. ASI Gives Back would like to thank all of the individuals, companies and organizations that helped make this possible.

Follow ASI on Facebook to learn more about future ASI Gives Back activities.