SAVIE - Safe Autonomous Vehicles for Industrial Environments

The purpose of the SAVIE project is to develop navigation components for the next generation of Automated Ground Vehicles (AGVs). The central aim is to achieve flexible and safe navigation in dynamic industrial environments. Flexible navigation includes automatic path generation and localization without reliance on installed infrastructure. Safe navigation means the ability to move towards a goal location without colliding with other objects.

The scientific objectives and research problems of this project are: (1) self-localization using non-artificial features of the environment; (2) collision-free navigation at high speeds in the presence of static and moving objects; (3) detection and tracking of humans in the vicinity of the vehicle; (4) generation of paths using traffic information, such as loading/unloading areas, free navigation areas, one-way roads, crossings, etc. and (5) incorporation of traffic rules in monitoring the execution of paths - these rules may include the "right hand" rule in crossings, a "give way" rule when secondary roads meet main roads, etc.