Computer Science Visiting Speaker Series: first event

Speaker: Dr Andy Backhouse, Senior Function Developer, Volvo Car Cooperation

Title: Autonomous when needed: Developing the uncrashable car

Abstract: Each year one million people die in traffic accidents and more than 50 million are seriously injured. It is the leading cause of accidental deaths and therefore it is vital to solve this problem. Volvo’s vision is to design cars that do not crash. Our first step towards this goal is that by 2020, no-one should be killed or injured in a Volvo. In order to design vehicles which can avoid crashes, they need to be equipped with sensors which can detect other road users and have smart algorithms which know when it is necessary, but also safe to intervene in order to prevent a collision. This talk will look at the way these algorithms work and the sensors which are used. It will also look at the process which is involved in going from initial research to the final production. Finally, we shall look at the future challenges and problems which we will need to solve, before we can build an uncrashable car.

Refreshments will be available afterwards in the The Hub in the Computer Science Building.