Florida Polytechnic University shifts into gear on self-driving cars

Gary White, The Ledger
·5 min read
Onur Toker, an associate professor at Florida Polytechnic University in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, sits inside the autonomous Ford Fusion sedan the school recently received. Researchers at Florida Poly's Advanced Mobility Institute are beginning a new phase in their work on autonomous vehicle testing and verification.
Onur Toker, an associate professor at Florida Polytechnic University in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, sits inside the autonomous Ford Fusion sedan the school recently received. Researchers at Florida Poly's Advanced Mobility Institute are beginning a new phase in their work on autonomous vehicle testing and verification.

As an assistant professor of applied mathematics and a researcher, AJ Alnaser explores such lofty and abstract subjects as algebraic number theory and rational integers.

But even such a serious academic figure as Alnaser is not immune to vehicular allure. Alnaser is one of two professors at Florida Polytechnic University leading the research on autonomous vehicles, using a Ford Fusion that recently arrived on campus.

“Imagine having the biggest toy you've ever gotten,” Alnaser said. “Yes, it's quite exciting.”

Florida Polytechnic’s Advanced Mobility Institute obtained the vehicle through a $350,000 combined grant from the National Science Foundation and the state of Florida. The Lakeland school also used part of the funding to create a simulation facility on campus that will propel research to be applied to the test vehicle.

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The white Ford Fusion sedan, adorned with the Florida Poly logo on its hood and doors, arrived equipped with electronics installed by a Michigan company that allow researchers to remotely control its steering, acceleration, braking and other actions. But it is far from being a safely self-driving vehicle at this point, Alnaser said.

“The car is autonomous, minus the brain of the car,” he said. “So the decision-making algorithm that tells the car what to do and gives the car a certain input, right now it's vacant, and the idea is that we can plug in multiple brains, basically.”

Onur Toker, an associate professor at Florida Polytechnic University in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, occupies the school's autonomous Ford Fusion sedan as it travels around the Lakeland campus.
Onur Toker, an associate professor at Florida Polytechnic University in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, occupies the school's autonomous Ford Fusion sedan as it travels around the Lakeland campus.

Florida Poly researchers are developing their own algorithm to control the vehicle’s capacity for maneuvering without a driver. Researchers will also be able to plug in software from car manufacturers for testing, Alnaser said.

While Alnaser holds a doctorate in mathematics, the other lead researcher on the project, Onur Toker, has a doctoral degree in electrical engineering. Toker is an associate professor of computer engineering.

Toker said having both a sophisticated simulation facility and an autonomous test vehicle allows Florida Poly to develop its research along two tracks.

“Although the initial NSF proposal was about building simulators, which are economically more attractive compared to doing the actual experiments, right now we have an advanced simulator in our lab, which can simulate different driving scenarios in a lab environment with photorealistic visualization,” Toker said. “But at the same time, we also have a real vehicle equipped with computers and lots of expensive electronic stuff to do the actual testing.”

Onur Toker, an associate professor at Florida Polytechnic University in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, poses with an autonomous Ford Fusion sedan the school recently received. Researchers at Florida Poly’s Advanced Mobility Institute are beginning a new phase in their work on autonomous vehicle testing and verification.
Onur Toker, an associate professor at Florida Polytechnic University in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, poses with an autonomous Ford Fusion sedan the school recently received. Researchers at Florida Poly’s Advanced Mobility Institute are beginning a new phase in their work on autonomous vehicle testing and verification.

The professors said the simulator and the car will allow Florida Poly to develop guidance systems for autonomous vehicles and test technology created by private companies.

“The idea is that you can use this testing facility, when it's built and ready, to help move the process forward,” Alnaser said. “There is very little research done the past few years on testing autonomous vehicles. Everybody wants to build one; nobody wants to test one. So that's what we're trying to do. That's the niche that we're trying to go after.”

The simulation lab, which Toker compared to “a very, very advanced car-racing game,” contains computers connected to two driving simulators. The setup includes racing seats, steering wheels, pedals and large screens, Florida Poly said in a news release.

The simulator will accelerate the process of developing and testing programs for controlling the autonomous vehicle. Florida Poly researchers can create whatever conditions they need, such as rain or darkness, and test the results without endangering anyone or damaging the real vehicle in case of an accident.

“So it makes testing a lot easier, a lot cheaper, a lot safer and a lot faster,” Toker said.

The simulator will also allow researchers to test different algorithms and control systems in exactly the same conditions, Alnaser said.

“So we can basically compare apples to apples by duplicating tests, which is hard to do in real life on an actual track,” he said. “On a simulator, that's very, very easy to do. And we can duplicate that indefinitely. We can run millions and millions of miles very quickly, instead of actually having to start driving.”

Shane Holmes, a Florida Polytechnic University junior majoring in computer engineering, demonstrates autonomous vehicle testing equipment at the new simulation facility on campus. Onur Toker, standing left, and AJ Alnaser are researchers working on the effort.
Shane Holmes, a Florida Polytechnic University junior majoring in computer engineering, demonstrates autonomous vehicle testing equipment at the new simulation facility on campus. Onur Toker, standing left, and AJ Alnaser are researchers working on the effort.

Along with the two professors, the first round of development and testing involves students in electrical and computer engineering and computer science. The students are now testing lane-detection algorithms, Toker said.

The researchers said the project requires a multi-disciplinary approach.

“You can't really solve problems like this with just a computer software designer,” Alnaser said. “They don't have the capabilities of doing it. And that's where our students benefit. They get all of this interaction with multiple disciplines all at once, and we think this is kind of like the future of education, where it’s supposed to be going.”

Arman Sargolzaei, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Tennessee Technological University, served as a visiting faculty member and is collaborating with Florida Poly researchers on the project, Florida Poly said in the news release. His facility is researching the security elements of autonomous vehicles.

The Ford Fusion is not yet equipped to function without a driver, but as the researchers and students continue to develop driving programs they will be able to test them in the vehicle on campus.

“Autonomous vehicles have computer systems that you can think of like a child — it needs time to mature, grow, and learn,” Alnaser said in the news release. “Once it learns enough, we have to test it. We have to be able to trust that we can give it a driver’s license and it can drive safely.”

The researchers have not set a timeframe for when the vehicle might become truly autonomous. And Toker said the transition to self-driving vehicles faces challenges beyond the technological ones his team is addressing, such as insurance issues, government licensing and public acceptance of the vehicles’ safety.

Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on Twitter @garywhite13.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Florida Poly researchers testing new autonomous vehicle on campus