May Mobility, the autonomy specialist, has unveiled its latest autonomous driving system, claiming it offers significant improvements in safety, efficiency, and rider satisfaction. The third-generation system features a range of enhancements, including increased speed, tele-assist capabilities, and improved detection accuracy, all of which combine to make the vehicle more adept at navigating a variety of different scenarios.
One of the most notable improvements to the system is the enhanced pedestrian modeling, which enables the vehicle to make more robust predictions about pedestrian behavior in complex environments. This allows May Mobility’s vehicles to operate more efficiently in busy, pedestrianized downtown areas. Other changes include improved policies that enable the vehicle to move more smoothly within its lane.
The system also boasts enhanced tele-assist capabilities, which help the vehicle to navigate through pop-up situations such as roadworks for a more efficient journey. The tele-assist system combines in-the-moment human insight with May Mobility’s Multi-Policy Decision Making (MPDM) technology, allowing the vehicle to remain autonomous throughout the assistance, while a human operator monitors the surrounding situation to ensure the vehicle stays within its designed operating parameters and approves the actions that the vehicle proposes to take.
Moreover, the system now includes version two of May Mobility’s on-vehicle traffic light detection (OVTL), which further enhances safety by increasing precision in challenging lighting conditions. The enhanced vision also detects non-working traffic lights, ensuring the vehicle treats them as stops.
According to Edwin Olson, CEO of May Mobility, “The fundamental thesis behind May Mobility is to make public transit better than taking a personal car. By improving the quality and scope of our autonomy system and delivering a more efficient service, we can gradually reduce the need for personal car ownership.
May Mobility’s latest advancements bring the company one step closer to commercial driverless operations, and the updates prepare it to launch driverless commercial operations by the end of the year.
