LOAD & HAUL
Sensor technology is key to successful automation. “Sensors and computers are the heart of the machine,” confi rms Faß. “To be safe around humans, lidars, radars and ultra sonics with cameras and GPS are needed. When humans are not around, then we could use fewer of these sensors. As the electric site was a confi ned area, with limited access we reduced the amount of sensors to just lidars and radars for the HX2.” Safety is always uppermost in the
research. Faß says, “T ere’s a lot we can do here. We are working towards zero accidents in the future. We’re doing a lot of research with insurance companies and end users to get proper statistics on what happened to cause an accident. Automation will ultimately bring us the freedom of full awareness during an entire shift. No operator will get tired and careless by for example operating a vibrating machine. T is builds trust.” Getting humans completely out of the
The HX2 prototype
the public space – they have used these sensors for many years to cope with their environment – so our industry has seen semi-autonomous and autonomous machines earlier than with passenger cars. T at said, the variables are relatively uncomplicated compared to automotive. But progress is super rapid. Years ago, it was single layer lidar – now it’s 64.”
picture is the goal, and Volvo’s customers are already talking about totally people- free underground mines that one day will run 24/7 for 365 days a year.
SOUND AND VISION Volvo is really pushing the boundaries with the research. Faß says, “We are working at the limit of what’s possible - of course - we always will be. 100 megapixel cameras exist today - and with good quality. Price is an issue though; they are too costly. Sadly the compression of the data is not good enough yet. Raw data transfer is not good enough either; we need to improve, but it is happening.” So what is the next step? Faß thinks
resolution will get better, with high dynamic range (HDR) technology coming to the fore. “When we talk vision now, we talk about an RGB camera with a seamless sensor. HDR off ers the ability to capture multiple frames and merge them together. It mimics the way the eye sees things – normal cameras can’t do that. HDR is standard in mobile phones now and we need to use it. And fuse lidar with RGB data – we want manufacturers to take the lead with this. “Also we need to take into account the wider environment, so stationary cameras and drone-based cameras will be useful. Don’t just rely on what’s in the machines – but build static cameras and mobile cameras outside the machine. Because of this external vision, being able to see around corners becomes possible. And don’t forget infrared – night vision is almost as good as day vision now. T e resolution and price are going up and down respectively. It’s astonishing.” T e beauty of the HX2 project is
what Volvo is learning about adapting to the specifi cs of obstacles in diff erent environments. “So for mining,” thinks Faß, “when underground it’s harsh, with tight turns, narrow spaces and it’s often wet and dark. Above ground in quarries you have snow, rain, dust and sometimes elevation to contend with. Also there is a desire for speed. “If we broaden this out, we can learn lessons about what needs to be done for other environments, so in forestry we need accurate positioning and for agriculture it’s slippery and we need to avoid running over the crops. T e trend is for smaller machines to be used in a fl eet, which
Volvo’s LX2 electric wheel loader
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