Yesterday, the integration of all key systems onto the Autonomous Vehicle (AV) was carried out, preparing the GAMMS prototype for its Test Campaign #2 (TC#2). This included the integration of the enhanced GNSS system with the CSAC and Navigation Computer (NC), the advanced Leica Pegasus Ultimate 2 Mobile Mapping System (MMS), and the real-time IMU and DMI/VDM data streams to the Navigation Computer (NC). The road wear map layer integration was also included.
Today, an intense day of testing took place in Graz (Austria), following the plan established for TC#2. The test trajectory for TC#2 is essentially the same as for TC#1, although in an extended version, and was designed to include various areas:
- Static Tests: Tests were performed with the vehicle stopped for calibration. The main objective of this static phase, known as Zero Velocity Updates (ZUPTs), is the calibrating the systems, especially the IMU, and the correct initialization of subsystems. Tests include long ZUPTs of 10 minutes at the beginning and end of the trajectory, as well as short ZUPTs (1+ min) along the route where possible (e.g., at stop signs or red traffic lights).
- Dynamic Test (Real and Varied Environment): The main part of the test consisted of driving in a real and varied environment in Graz. The trajectory included:
- Residential areas (with good satellite coverage/open sky).
- Commercial areas and near shopping centers.
- City center areas (with poor satellite coverage due to “urban canyons”).
- Segments in tunnels (where the GNSS signal is blocked).
- The complete trajectory is about 22 km long, plus an additional loop for autonomous driving.
- This mix of environments allows us to validate the system’s performance in conditions of both good and poor or non-existent GNSS coverage. The trajectory also includes several crossovers.
- Autonomous Driving: A part of the dynamic test was performed with the vehicle driving autonomously. This is crucial to test the integration of the previously generated HD map (based on TC#1 data) into the AV software. This area for autonomous driving resembles a planned autonomous driving area for TC#2.
These tests in TC#2 are fundamental to validating the complete capabilities of the GAMMS prototype, including the advanced fusion of data from sensors such as GNSS (with CSAC and OSNMA support), IMU, VDM/DMI, and the Mobile Mapping System (MMS), especially the new Leica Pegasus Ultimate 2, in real-world scenarios, including areas with degraded or denied GNSS signal. System-level validation takes place in Iteration 2.
The data collected during this intensive campaign will be analysed in detail to evaluate the system’s performance .
Stay tuned for future updates on the results of these tests!