Steel project takes a structured approach to autonomy

From the development of algorithms that help driverless cars behave in a more human like manner to advances in the sensing systems that will enable tomorrow’s vehicles to understand and respond to their environment, progress towards the fully autonomous vehicle - where the technology has removed the need for any driver controls - is well under way.

But whilst recent years have seen key advances in the underpinning technologies that will make so-called level five autonomy a reality, until now there has been relatively little attention paid to the structural engineering challenges presented by a technology area that could profoundly impact the way that cars are designed and built.

Steel E-Motive, a project involving UK engineering consultancy Ricardo and led by WorldAutoSteel (the automotive arm of the World Steel Association) is aiming to address this through the development of a virtual concept vehicle that demonstrates the role that advanced steels could play in delivering on the promise of these next generation vehicles.