Meet EVENTS team-TECNALIA

TECNALIA is the largest applied research and technological development centre in Spain, a European benchmark and member of the Basque Research and Technology Alliance. With 1,520 experts from 27 nationalities, aimed at transforming technological research into prosperity, acting as agents of transformation of companies and society to adapt to the challenges of a future in continuous evolution.

Our scopes of action are aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG): Energy transition, Digital Transformation, Sustainable mobility, Health and food, Urban Ecosystem, Smart manufacturing and Circular economy. With a multi-sectoral and multi-technological perspective, we listen and work with companies to respond to the major global challenges. Within the Smart Mobility (Sustainable mobility | Tecnalia) scope we design and develop technologies and new business models that contribute to the shift towards a future scenario in which mobility has a low environmental impact and is connected, efficient, safe and inclusive.

In EVENTS Tecnalia is represented by the CCAM team, part of the Sustainable mobility unit. Our team is tasked on developing automated systems, based on a modular architecture integrating sensor signals, perception of the surroundings and navigation, make real-time decisions on the vehicle’s automatic driving in both segregated traffic scenarios -such as ports or airports- as in shared traffic scenarios in urban environments. We implement different vehicle automation degrees, from driving aid systems, through shared control technologies, to fully autonomous vehicles, with proprietary vehicle control technologies integrating commercial and advanced solutions with sensors, cameras and navigation.

What is your role and involvement in the EVENTS project?

Tecnalia’s main role in the EVENTS project is to lead the development of decision and control systems to be integrated into the vehicle experiments. We are developing solutions for dynamic path generation, behavioral planning, and fail-safe control. Additionally, we are researching the perception stack, focusing specifically on motion prediction for other agents in the scene and enhancing the scene through cooperative communication with other vehicles.

The outcomes of the EVENTS project will enable us to upgrade our current path planning methods within a new framework and develop a motion prediction algorithm, expanding our expertise in perception systems. Ultimately, we aim to provide a comprehensive solution encompassing perception, decision-making, and control to address complex urban situations.

How do you ensure that the project is aligned with industry needs and standards in the field of CAVs? 

The EVENTS project is composed of multiple stakeholders across the automotive systems chain, encompassing partners from academia to industry. Tecnalia, as the largest research center in Spain, plays an important role in bridging the gap between research and industry. Our objective is to provide industry partners with cutting-edge research results and assist them in developing solutions that can be transformed into market-ready products.

In fulfilling this role, our team closely follows emerging recommendations and regulations in the Connected and Automated Mobility (CCAM) area. We are aware of the needs arising from OEMs to Tier 1 providers, ensuring that our technical developments are aligned with these requirements. This alignment guarantees that our contributions are both relevant and valuable to the industry, while aligned with the objectives of the EVENTS project.

What challenges or issues related to Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs) do you think the EVENTS project is most focused on addressing? 

The EVENTS project is focused on addressing key challenges related to Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs), particularly in the areas of perception and decision-making. The project has established a framework for automated driving, with perception (WP3) and decision-making (WP4) as its core components. Significant advancements have been made within the consortium in developing the perception stack, where most of the effort has been allocated. While Tecnalia’s direct contribution in this area has been limited in the past, EVENTS has provided an opportunity to expand our expertise and delve into the perception pipeline.

One of the major challenges we have tackled is advancing the state of the art in motion prediction, which is a complex and critical task. Motion prediction involves anticipating the future trajectories of various agents in a dynamic environment. Our efforts in this area have already resulted in the publication of initial papers, demonstrating our progress. We anticipate that our work in motion prediction will continue to grow and evolve, leading to further innovations and collaboration in future projects. This focus on perception and decision-making is crucial for addressing the complexities and demands of CAVs in dynamic and urban environments. By improving our understanding and capabilities in these areas.

From your perspective, what are the major technological advancements that EVENTS is bringing to the field of decision-making for real-time CAV operation? 

The EVENTS project is introducing several technological advancements in decision-making for real-time CAV operation. Although not the primary focus for Tecnalia, advanced perception systems are crucial as they enhance situational awareness and accuracy in decision-making. The project has implemented various real-time path planning methods, integrating them tightly with perception systems to tackle safety-critical performance challenges. This path planning methods are one of the most critical parts of the decision stack, providing the last output to the controllers, and defining the geometry to be followed by the vehicle under different circumstances. High-level decision-making approaches are also being developed, deeply integrated with perception systems to ensure improved situational awareness. These decision-making systems are equipped with minimum risk maneuver strategies to handle safety and ensure safe transitions in various scenarios.

Furthermore, the project emphasizes the development of advanced control systems, particularly for low-speed and urban environments, with a focus on fail-safe mechanisms as a backup for safety. By incorporating control systems that perform reliably even in adverse weather conditions, the project significantly enhances the safety and reliability of autonomous vehicles. Additionally, advanced communication technologies are utilized to extend perception capabilities in complex scenarios such as roundabouts and intersections, supported by state-of-the-art systems. Collectively, these technological advancements contribute to the development of more reliable, efficient, and safe autonomous vehicles, pushing the boundaries of real-time decision-making in CAVs.

Anything else you would like to mention or highlight?

We would like to extend our gratitude to the entire consortium for the strong participation and collaboration within the EVENTS project. The EVENTS project has been pivotal for Tecnalia in researching new solutions, and with a robust consortium, it has provided a valuable learning ground for the research and development of CCAM technologies. The experiments present an excellent opportunity to demonstrate our automated vehicle technologies and we are excited to continue our collaboration and research efforts.

Tecnalia Team