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Self-Driving Golf Carts May Pave the Way For Autonomous Cars
itwbennett writes: Researchers from MIT and Singaporean universities are experimenting with self-driving golf carts that use less (and relatively cheap) gear than self-driving vehicles while relying on computation-efficient algorithms. In addition to a webcam, each cart is equipped with four single-beam LIDAR (light detection and ranging) sensors from German maker Sick that have a field of view of about 270 degrees. Two of the sensors were mounted in the cart's front and used for determining its position and obstacle detection. The other two were cheaper, shorter-range sensors and were mounted on the back corners of the cart to scan for obstacles behind and on either side of it. The cost of the sensors was still high (on the order of $30,000) but that's less than solutions used in more sophisticated robotic vehicles. (Google has used $80,000 Velodyne LIDARs on its earlier self-driving cars.) A YouTube video shows the carts traveling the winding paths of a public garden in Singapore at a leisurely 24 kilometers per hour — slow enough for the computers to process all the obstacles (mainly pedestrians and animals). The researchers envision the self-driving vehicles being used in a shared transportation system, as rental bicycles are used in many cities.
do they have self putting golf carts too?
I recently moved to the SF Bay Area and already got rear-ended several times!! I'm not even surprised the only accidents Google cars get into is when other cars hit them!
Autonomous cars mandatory ASAP!
I'm going to love self driving cars. I will never own one, they'll have to tear the steering wheel out of my cold dead hands, but pranking self driving car owners will be funny as hell: https://xkcd.com/1559/
Are they able to automatically drive you to your ball after you tee-off, or does that only come with the deluxe package?
A more pertinent question is why is this being done at all. Are people so fat and lazy that they can't even drive a golf cart now?
A month ago, my department at work held a golf outing (I did not attend, but they are remarkably popular here). Over 70 people participated. Over the course of that Friday, three golf carts were rolled, one badly enough that the driver ended up with a broken arm and had to be carted to the ER.
Several engineers are now permanently banned from that course, and we may end up not having any more golf outings. So there is definitely a market for self-driving golf carts.
The downside, of course, is that they may well end up designed by the idiots who rolled them in the first place.
Ad luna, Alicia! Ad luna!
I don't think the difference of $30k in sensors vs $80k is going to make much a difference in the research stage. The idea is to create an autonomous CAR, not a an autonomous golfcart. No one wants an autonomous golfcart. Typical wasteful research spending on things people don't ever want.
If you want to design an autonomous car, start with a car.
One of the many joys of golf is having a few beers and recklessly driving the golf cart.
and Wigs.
See article on /. of Autonomous Cars and bombs
Many assembly factories (especially car factories) already have completely autonomous carts driving around specialized car parts. This allows the factory to use one line for every flavor or add-on of the car since the cart will bring that particular piece Just-In-Time the technician at that post needs it. This is probably much more complex that golf carts driving around a golf course.
"Step aside, humanoid. Playing through."
(-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
I thought autonomous golf carts have been used as research platforms for years (considering that was MIT back then too)....
Well with this generation, it's new to you!
Here's how I envision the gradual expansion of these technologies.
On the one hand we will have the open network; the public roads. Over the next two decades we'll see more and more automation integrated into our cars. Within 10 years we'll have the first vehicle-to-vehicle traffic negotiation devices show up. These will initially negotiate with the road signs, traffic signals and other vehicles. Within 20 years these devices will replace the signs and signals. The red light will be on our dashboard. The speed limit that currently shows on our GPS will have the force of law. At first the driver will be assisted by the automation technology. The computer will only take over when the driver is about to crash or run someone over.
Gradually the computer will take more and more of the driving role. It will park itself. It will brake at intersections. It will let off the brake when the light turns green (but the driver will press the gas to move forward). It will control the speed of the vehicle so the car can't go too fast. If an emergency vehicle approaches the car might pull off the road to let it pass.
In the meantime automation technologies will be integrated into private road and off-road networks. Golf carts will almost certainly be used in such a network. Standardization will allow industry to designate closed roads for moving goods between buildings and then within industrial parks. Then someone will want to connect the industrial park with the airport or seaport. Maybe they take a low use rail line and convert it to a closed road. Cities will probably close off downtown areas to non-automated traffic. People will hail a "cab" to get around downtown and use mass transit to travel outside the city.
As the technology advances the closed and open road systems will start to interact. You might drive to the airport but have your car drop you at the gate and then find a place to park itself. You go shopping and your car pulls up so you can load the groceries. In perhaps 30 years time the industrial system and the public system will be mature. Eventually we reach a tipping point where we just switch everything over to automated transportation.
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If these self driving carts can find my lost balls (that sounds awkward) I'm all for it!
On the other hand, the factory has the ability to 'control the course' much better and shouldn't have to worry about drunk workers on the floor doing stupid tricks. They can also do things like embed direction lines in the floor(or even the ceiling), so the pathing is simpler.
I don't read AC A human right
Why all these fancy Lidar systems? What is wrong with stereo vision. Full vision is a tough problem, but basic stereo was worked out decades ago. Have to cameras pointing in the same direction, recognize common features in both pictures (the tricky part), do a bit of trig (easy), and you know exactly how far away they are.
Growing up near numerous golf courses as a child in Philadelphia Pennsylvania I was forcefully exploited having to drive and park golf carts .....Damn it was sooo fun! and anyone who plays or has played golf knows that the driving the cart is at least (possible beer included) the most fun they will have all week.
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