Mcity opens for remote testing of autonomous vehicle technologies, calls for federal standards

October 9, 2024
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Remote testing could accelerate the adoption of autonomous vehicles, but innovators need to know the safety regulations they must meet

A man sits low in the seat of a driving simulator, with a steering wheel extended from the console in front of him. To his right, another man stands with his hands turning an imaginary steering wheel in demonstration. A third man sits to the right of the other two, in front of a computer console using a mouse as part of the demonstration.
From left, Daniel Linzell, director of the National Science Foundation’s Division of Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation with the NSF, sits in a driving simulator during a demonstration with Mcity Research Director Greg Stevens, standing, and Mcity engineer Raj Patnaik, seated. Image credit: Brenda Ahearn, Michigan Engineering

As Mcity begins welcoming researchers in autonomous and connected vehicle technologies from around the U.S. to be remote users of its physical and virtual testing environment, its leadership is calling for federal standards for safety testing, arguing that the lack of clear goalposts is hampering development.

The opening also coincides with a new industry partnership project announced at the NVIDIA AI Summit.

Following two years of upgrades, the University of Michigan’s hub for autonomous testing has officially kicked off its remote program with a series of demonstrations for industry and state and federal government officials. By allowing outside researchers to tap into Mcity research vehicles and testing technologies from afar, U-M seeks to accelerate the development of autonomous vehicle technologies to enable safer and more efficient transportation. Funded by the National Science Foundation, the capabilities are initially available to academic researchers.

Mcity Director Henry Liu announced Wednesday that the autonomous vehicle testing hub is now available for remote testing by U.S.-based researchers. By making U-M’s facilities and simulations available to a wider group, Mcity officials hope to speed the adoption of autonomous technology that could ultimately provide safer, more efficient and more accessible transportation. Image credit: Brenda Ahearn, Michigan Engineering
Mcity Director Henry Liu announced Wednesday that the autonomous vehicle testing hub is now available for remote testing by U.S.-based researchers. By making U-M’s facilities and simulations available to a wider group, Mcity officials hope to speed the adoption of autonomous technology that could ultimately provide safer, more efficient and more accessible transportation. Image credit: Brenda Ahearn, Michigan Engineering

“This is particularly valuable for academic institutions, including many that serve minority students, that do not have the resources of large, public institutions like U-M,” said Henry Liu, U-M professor of civil and environmental engineering and director of both Mcity and the Center for Connected and Automated Transportation. “We call it Mcity 2.0—the next-generation automated vehicle test facility.

“We believe Mcity 2.0’s capabilities will expand the volume and increase the speed of AV research that will be conducted and published. This could help put more refined, safer AVs on our roads sooner.”

At the same time, a new Mcity partnership announced at the NVIDIA AI Summit in Washington, D.C., aims to advance its remote testing capabilities for industry as well as academic users. Mcity simulation tools are being tapped for a new project in partnership with NVIDIA and nonprofit research managing firm MITRE. The goal is a full simulation version of Mcity that industry and academic researchers can use to rigorously test and validate AVs, accelerating their development and adoption.

An invitation to researchers across the U.S.

In the coming year, Mcity plans to assist 10 research teams from academic institutions in the U.S. with their testing needs. Researchers can submit proposals to Mcity.

By connecting to Mcity’s cloud-based digital infrastructure, researchers operating from their home bases can test their autonomous algorithms in virtual and mixed reality environments. Using 5G wireless communications, they can control physical vehicles and traffic signals on Mcity’s test streets, and receive real-time data in return—all while protecting proprietary information.

“We invite researchers from across the country to connect with us and join the effort to accelerate developing and deploying connected and autonomous vehicles that will make transportation safer, cleaner and more accessible,” said Karen Thole, the Robert J. Vlasic Dean of Engineering. “Please add your brain power to advancing tomorrow’s technologies.”

One man sits, reclined as a driver would, with a steering wheel and dashboard set up immediately in front of him, along with a large screen further away that gives a view from the driver's perspective on a remote controlled car. To the right, sits another man at a desk behind a bank of computer screens.
The University of Michigan’s Mcity testing hub officially opened its real and virtual facilities to outside researchers looking to develop and improve their algorithms for autonomous and connected vehicles. Here, researchers are seen earlier this month, using a simulator made by VI-grade, that allows the driver to teleoperate an autonomous vehicle remotely on the facility’s real-world test track. Image credit: Marcin Szczepanski, Michigan Engineering

The critical role of federal regulation

While Mcity looks to accelerate that research, U-M researchers see federal leadership—in the form of testing standards and funding—as crucial to keeping it on track. Several unanswered questions lie at the heart of the matter, including:

  • How should AVs be tested and evaluated? How safe is safe enough?
  • How do we properly prepare our infrastructure to support AV technologies?
  • How should AVs be licensed?
  • How should AVs be insured?

“Typically, regulation follows innovation,” Liu said. “With AVs, however, the lack of a federal safety testing framework has created uncertainty that is thwarting innovation and delaying the adoption of technologies that we know can save lives and improve the quality of life for millions of people who do not have reliable access to transportation.”

Mcity has developed a two-part methodology for evaluating AV safety, called the Mcity Safety Assessment Program. The first component tests driving algorithms’ basic competency in ordinary traffic scenarios. The second component challenges the software with a diverse set of dangerous driving scenarios—representing those that most often result in crashes, injuries and fatalities.

Opened in 2015, Mcity was the world’s first purpose built-proving ground for connected and automated vehicles. In 2022, a $5.1 million grant from the National Science Foundation helped U-M develop Mcity’s digital infrastructure—leading to Mcity 2.0.