What's the news?
We're all aware that autonomous cars are on the way, but it's one thing to think of a vehicle trying to follow a motorway using cameras and sensors, and quite another to consider that such technology might transfer to the off-road arena. Land Rover, though, has other ideas.
It has demonstrated a number of research technologies that would allow an autonomous off-roader to drive itself over any surface or terrain, part of a multimillion-euro project to bring this stuff to market.
Tony Harper, head of research for Jaguar Land Rover, said: "Our all-terrain autonomy research isn't just about the car driving itself on a motorway or in extreme off-road situations. It's about helping both the driven and autonomous car make their way safely through any terrain or driving situation.
"We don't want to limit future highly automated and fully autonomous technologies to tarmac. When the driver turns off the road, we want this support and assistance to continue. In the future, if you enjoy the benefits of autonomous lane keeping on a motorway at the start of your journey, we want to ensure you can use this all the way to your destination, even if this is via a rough track or gravel road."
Anything else?
Sensors are the key to the technology, as they are 'always active and can see better than the driver', says Land Rover. First up is Surface Identification and 3D Path Sensing, which uses camera, ultrasonic, radar, and light detection and ranging (lidar) sensors to give the car a 360-degree view of the world around it. The sensors are so advanced they can determine surface characteristics down to the width of a tyre, even in rain and falling snow, to pick its route through the scenery. It can scan up to five metres in front of the car and can also look for overhead problems, like branches overhanging a track, and avoid those too; even if you've got bikes or a roof box on top of the vehicle, you can programme in the height prior to a trip to avoid any issues.
Terrain-Based Speed Adaption uses cameras to sense bumpy terrain, including washboard roads, potholes and standing water, works out what speed will be the most comfortable for the car's ride, and then adjust the vehicle's velocity to what it thinks is the best pace.
Finally, Dedicated Short Range Communications works best with two Land Rovers, which can connect up via vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) technology to follow each other in an Off-Road Connected Convoy. This system shares information including vehicle location, wheel-slip, changes to suspension height and wheel articulation, as well as All-Terrain Progress Control (ATPC) and Terrain Response settings instantly between the two vehicles. Clever stuff.