French company Robosoft has unveiled what it calls a "cybernetic transport system." The robuRIDE carries 30 passengers and reaches 24 kilometers per hour, driving autonomously using differential GPS and onboard sensors.
A safety system relies on a laser scanner to avoid collisions. In the video below, the researcher demonstrates it by putting his body on the line. The vehicle detects him and slowly decelerates, stopping about 2 meters from him. Even if this system fails, a soft foam bumper stops the vehicle if it hits something, or someone.
Now my favorite part: According to the video, you can regulate the vehicle's cabin temperature by "opening windows and [using] fans." Elegant engineering.
This is the system's second generation, and the video shows a test conducted in France last month. The robuRIDE is part of Rome's Cybernetic Transport System, a program to implement a high-tech transportation infrastructure at the city's new convention center. Is this the future of mass transit?
Vincent Dupourque, CEO of Robosoft, says:
We have completed the 2nd generation of our robuRIDE, used to implement Cybernetic Transport Systems. It can reach 24 km/h with 30 passengers, and has a dynamic accuracy of a few centimeters, thanks to the hybrid navigation system based on GPS, inertial and odometry.
This video has been done during Factory Acceptance Tests of the robuRIDE for ROME Cybernetic Transport System, in May 2010, in Dax, Biarritz and Bidart. We explain here the vehicle and how it works, show how it can be transported from one site to another, and also some users give their first impressions.
Photos and video: Robosoft
