The Brake Report

ADASTEC Selects Teledyne FLIR for Autonomous Bus Platform

ADASTEC Corp., a San Francisco-based company, has made significant progress in the autonomous public transport sector with the release of flowride.ai, the world's first full-size, full-speed autonomous bus platform. The platform is designed to operate continuously 24/7, even in changing weather conditions, to help build a complete autonomous vehicle ecosystem. To create a safe autonomous vehicle system for mixed traffic environments, ADASTEC Corp. integrated a suite of sensor modalities, including thermal cameras from Teledyne FLIR. Thermal cameras can detect heat produced and reflected by everything on earth, including pedestrians, bicyclists, and animals that move towards the path of the bus.

The thermal cameras are essential in detecting pedestrians who are partially obscured by nearby vehicles and other urban objects, making the detection and classification of all vulnerable road users much easier. Furthermore, thermal cameras provide an effective solution in challenging weather conditions such as fog, smoke, and dust, where other sensor technologies might be challenged. The flowride.ai automation platform has two Teledyne FLIR thermal cameras installed, with one positioned at the front of the bus and the second camera mounted on the right side of the bus, scanning side-to-side.

ADASTEC has partnered with Karsan, a Turkish commercial vehicle manufacturer, to integrate the flowride.ai platform in its 8-meter ATAK Electric Bus. Currently, autonomous buses are deployed in Romania and Turkey for several projects, and plans are underway to expand deployment into the United States and Europe as part of upcoming projects in 2021. ADASTEC's latest platform is a significant milestone towards developing a complete autonomous vehicle ecosystem and improving road safety by providing a comprehensive and effective solution for autonomous public transport.

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