USF professor makes driverless cars a reality
Xiaopeng Li, assistant professor in USF’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, is taking matters into own hands by building a driverless car.
This project has been in the works since 2015 and is funded by the National Science Foundation. Li said he was inspired to begin this project by observing rapid changes in the automotive industry, and he also wanted to target outdated transportation management systems.
“We need to have such a testbed to create, test and evaluate emerging autonomous vehicle technologies and also advise transportation managers on how to cope with these new technologies,” Li said.
In the five years since the project started, Li and his team have built two driverless cars. The car he is currently working on is a hybrid 2016 Lincoln MKZ.
“We have built two full-scale connected and autonomous vehicles and developed relevant algorithms and models,” he said.
Currently, models are able to drive around cones in an empty parking lot. In order to drive itself, Li said the car uses light detection and a remote sensing method to create a 3D map of its surroundings.
Li and his team will continue to showcase this development to government transportation services such as the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT).
“We have showcased the development to stakeholders such as high-level officials from USDOT and FDOT, and legislators. We will continue to showcase new development,” Li said.
Li said this is not the only project he has been working on.
In addition to driverless cars, he has been studying alternative ways to improve current transportation systems.
Li also said that although there have been setbacks, his team continues to persevere.
“There will be occasionally technical difficulties. We have to go through strict procedures to make sure that the technical difficulties are overcome before doing field experiments to make sure the field experiments are safe and successful,” Li stated.
More Stories
USF won’t install more physical protections following recent on-campus suicide
USF will not be implementing additional physical safety measures over a month after a student leapt from an upper floor inside the Interdisciplinary Sciences building, USF spokeswoman Althea Johnson said. The incident marked the third on-campus suicide since fall 2022. A week after a student fell from an upper floor of Beard Garage in 2022, […]
USF student body president and vice president-elect sworn in
A new era of Student Government (SG) just arrived. In a quick five-minute ceremony, student body president-elect Suryakanth Prasad Gottipati and vice president-elect Sumit Subhash Jadhav were sworn in on Wednesday afternoon. Their term will start on May 6 and last for one year. Related: Take a look at USF’s student leaders’ swearing in ceremony […]
Photos: Take a look at USF’s student leaders’ swearing in ceremony
A new era of Student Government (SG) just arrived. In a quick five-minute ceremony, student body president-elect Suryakanth Prasad Gottipati and vice president-elect Sumit Subhash Jadhav were sworn in on Wednesday afternoon. Related: USF student body president and vice president-elect sworn in :Their term will start on May 6 and last for one year. Gabrielle […]
President Joe Biden visits Tampa to talk abortion rights
Gearing up for the 2024 presidential election, President Joe Biden made a stop in Tampa to talk about reproductive freedom in Florida on Tuesday afternoon. The speech comes just two weeks before the state’s six-week abortion ban comes into effect on May 1. Biden called on Floridians to vote for an amendment deciding abortion access […]
‘Genocide Joe has got to go’: Pro-Palestine protestors gather during Biden’s visit to Tampa
While President Joe Biden took 15 minutes to talk on the protection of reproductive rights in Tampa on Tuesday, pro-Palestine protests chanted against the United States handling “on-going genocide” in Gaza, and its alliance to Israel in the conflict. Related: President Joe Biden visits Tampa to talk abortion rights “The lack of coverage in the media […]
USF students can ‘Swap Shop’ their way into free items this week
USF’s Swap Shop is just around the corner. Literally. Bulls can stop by the Swap Shop, located in Holly J, to pick up some free items – from furniture to clothing. Students, staff and faculty had the opportunity to donate items for the Swap Shop earlier this week on Monday and Tuesday. But ‘shopping’ won’t […]