AI Trucking Offer a Driver Shortage Solution
We’ve heard about autonomous driving or self-driving cars mostly in the consumer context as of lately, but this capability is also being applied to the trucking industry.
The benefits of autonomous trucks are obvious. A self-driving semi doesn’t stop to sleep, take bathroom breaks, or go on vacation. They’re capable of transporting cargo 99% of the way to a destination. Finally, AI trucks—when optimally designed—are safer for everyone. And that’s where the challenges come in.
Developing self-driving trucks that are as safe or safer than human drivers come at significant cost. In real dollars, the advanced sensor suite required to make safe self-driving a reality can cost tens of thousands of dollars. There are also many hidden costs in tailoring autonomy systems to the exact use case and deployment environment. Much of that work is fallout from the need to capture massive amounts of data and analyze it with AI inferencing algorithms in real time.
Optimizing Safety with AI Technology
The near-zero latency requirements of the use case mean that data analysis must happen locally so control subsystems can integrate information from the AI perception stack in time to act. The sheer amount of data and processing performance involved in these operations requires a full-blown server with GPU acceleration hardware.
And remember, autonomous trucking is a rugged, mobile environment that may or may not be temperature controlled.
“The more situational awareness you’re looking for around the vehicle, the more sensors required. Thus the higher the compute load, which generally requires more power,” says Jim Shaw, Executive Vice President at Crystal Group, a leading designer of rugged computing hardware. “And you can imagine the thermal challenges that kind of hardware creates because it’s cranking pretty hard.”
Thermal Management: The Hidden Cost of Autonomy
For example, TuSimple is a San Diego-based autonomous trucking company that develops self-driving perception stacks exclusively for long-haul semi-trucks. To successfully operate at SAE Level 4 Autonomy, which is fully capable to drive autonomously without human intervention, it needed an onboard computer platform with at least two GPUs to meet the real-time data processing requirements. Mechanically, the system had to manage heat dissipated by processors and be able to withstand the inherent shock and vibration of the use case.
Autonomous Trucks That Keep Their Cool
Real-time data analysis on the next-generation AVC5904 allows autonomous driving systems like the TuSimple ADS to make up to 20 decisions per second when navigating roadways. And it delivers this performance day or night, rain, or shine. This means no supply chain interruptions due to human error or other unfavorably working conditions that could cause delays.
The smart trucking system was put to the test late last year, when a self-driving truck successfully completed its first driverless runs on public roadways. These included an 80-mile, 1-hour-and-20-minute trip between Phoenix and Tucson.
Source: https://www.insight.tech/cities/ai-trucking-revolutionizes-the-driving-industry
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Posted Date : March 22 2024
