This course provides an overview of autonomous vehicles. The overall architecture of autonomous driving systems, the various levels of autonomous driving technologies, and the state‐of‐the‐art of autonomous driving technologies will be discussed. Topics covered include: advanced driver assist systems and active vehicle safety systems; sensors and sensor fusion; computer vision basics and deep learning for perception; localization and mapping; vehicle‐to‐vehicle and vehicle‐to‐everything communication technologies; navigation and vehicle control; and system reliability, stability, and limitations.
The essentials for mechanical engineering machine design are taught. This includes the application of appropriate safety factors, failure criteria, failure analysis with application to components under static and fatigue loading conditions, along material selection criteria. The analysis of machine elements such as shafts, fasteners, nonpermanent joints, and welds is covered. Machine elements such as springs, bearings, and gears are analyzed and sized for proper application
This course briefly introduces advanced tire mechanics and interaction, including hard and soft soil. Emphasis will be placed on the basic mechanics governing the vehicle’s directional, tractive, braking, and ride performance on both road and off-road terrains. Steering and steady state handling characteristics of wheeled vehicles will also be introduced and analyzed. The state-of-the-art approaches to designing syntheses of automotive vehicles will also be discussed through students’ projects. This course will help prepare the students for the research and development of modern road vehicles.