Products
TORC Provides Unmanned Industry with Integration-Ready Robotic Ground Vehicle
ByWire XGV™ Experimental Ground Vehicle Platform Provides Jump Start for Autonomous Research and Development
BLACKSBURG, VA (Dec. 4, 2009) – TORC Technologies, a leading developer of robotic technologies for unmanned and autonomous vehicles, is offering unmanned systems researchers, developers and integrators in the ground vehicle market a faster way to develop and test new technologies.
TORC’s ByWire XGV™ is a JAUS interoperable, drive-by-wire controlled ground vehicle platform which utilizes the Ford Escape Hybrid as the base vehicle. The XGV comes with built-in safety components and an optional onboard power management system. This off-the-shelf, integration-ready platform has been purchased by various universities and robotics companies to have on hand for rapid integration and testing of their autonomous technologies. The platform design is based on TORC’s success as a finalist in the DARPA Urban Challenge and has been proven during thousands of hours of development, testing and operation.
ByWire XGV makes it possible to bypass the drive-by-wire conversion and jump right into the integration phase of more advanced unmanned technologies. By allowing engineering teams to remain focused on higher level technology development, the XGV eliminates the need to spend time, money and resource commitments reinventing an already proven system.
“To develop the next level of unmanned ground vehicle technologies, researchers need a reliable, cost-effective drive-by-wire platform from which they can build upon,” says Andrew Culhane, TORC’s Business Development Manager. “In the full-sized unmanned ground vehicle market this is especially important since large amounts of time and money can be sunk into developing an in-house solution that may be pulling resources away from working on the core technology under development.
“The ByWire XGV is a direct solution to the ‘base platform problem’ experienced by so many in the unmanned systems community. As a rapid go-to-market platform with a great deal of flexibility in its application, the XGV is ready to integrate higher level technologies.”
ByWire XGV focuses on reliability, safety, cost-effectiveness and performance. The conversion package includes three core areas: drive-by-wire (ability for a computer to perform both closed-loop and open-loop control of the vehicle), safety (a fail-safe emergency stop system) and power (set of flexible options for supplying power to any auxiliary equipment).
ByWire XGV utilizes the hybrid Escape’s proven vehicle technologies, tapping into electronic controls, available battery power, and all wheel drive for on-road/off-road ruggedness and flexibility of application. Controlled through a unified Ethernet interface, the drive-by-wire conversion is seamlessly integrated with the vehicle’s factory electronics, providing electronic control of the steering, throttle, shifter, braking and signals. In addition, information such as vehicle speed, warnings and errors can be monitored.
The XGV includes an integrated SafeStop™, TORC’s wireless emergency stop system, providing temporary pause and emergency shutdown functionality. Manual stop buttons are mounted inside and outside of the vehicle for additional safety. A key benefit of the XGV is the availability of onboard DC and AC power, eliminating the need for adding additional power sources to the system. The optional PowerHub™ conditioning and distribution modules allow for use of up to 6 kW of managed power, which is configurable over Ethernet through a web browser.
“The demand for unmanned ground vehicles capable of removing humans from the dull, dirty, and dangerous jobs of the world continually increases as the effectiveness of unmanned systems improve,” Culhane says. “To meet this growing demand, research and development efforts have increased to build up critical technology.”
Examples of such critical areas include sensor range and effectiveness, motion planning techniques in dynamic and unpredictable environments, behavioral architectures, and unobtrusive yet powerful human-computer interfaces. Other important challenges facing unmanned system developers include lowering cost while improving reliability and robustness.
“Achieving all these goals is necessary to boost adoption rates of unmanned vehicles by government and commercial markets,” Culhane says. “Too often these goals are not achieved, however, due to the unavailability of a reliable, cost-effective, and flexible base platform. Too much time and money is put into solving a problem that is not associated with the actual technology under development. The XGV meets this need for the unmanned ground vehicle community.”
To learn more about ByWireXGV, including video demonstrations, please visit www.ByWireXGV.com.
ABOUT TORC TECHNOLOGIES
TORC is a leading robotics engineering and product development company focusing on unmanned and autonomous vehicle systems. The company commercializes intelligent robotic technologies into modular, interoperable, off-the-shelf products that enable customers to rapidly integrate and deploy unmanned solutions. To learn more, visit www.torctech.com.
TORC Technologies Releases the JAUS Toolkit for NI LabVIEW to Simplify JAUS Standards Based Development for Unmanned Systems
JAUS Toolkit for NI LabVIEW Accelerates Interoperability of Unmanned Systems
Blacksburg, VA – August 4, 2009 - TORC Technologies (www.torctech.com) has announced the release of its highly anticipated JAUS Toolkit™ for National Instruments LabVIEW graphical system design software to provide a simplified approach to JAUS (Joint Architecture for Unmanned Systems) development for interoperable unmanned systems.
In 2000, the United States Senate mandated that one third of all military vehicles be unmanned by the year 2015. Foreseeing the problems of various proprietary systems being incompatible with each other, the groundwork was laid for JAUS, a standard for communications between elements of unmanned systems. In order to achieve the congressional mandate and the military’s goal, the shift from legacy and proprietary development to JAUS-interoperability is inevitable and companies will need to adopt JAUS standards-based development in order to service this growing market.
The JAUS Toolkit for NI LabVIEW hopes to accelerate the widespread adoption of the JAUS standards in both military and commercial markets by significantly reducing the risks and barriers to developing JAUS compliant systems and payloads. Capitalizing on the intuitive graphical programming environment of LabVIEW, the Toolkit extends the many benefits of LabVIEW development into the field of JAUS-interoperable robotics, allowing developers to leverage prepackaged JAUS modules and tools for implementing new or experimental messages and services.
The release of the Toolkit has been a long time coming. TORC has been a supporter and advocate of JAUS for many years, involved in both the development and application of the evolving JAUS standards. TORC has also pioneered the use of LabVIEW in developing JAUS-interoperable unmanned systems. Michael Fleming, CEO of TORC, states, “It’s exciting to finally offer the first and only JAUS software development kit for LabVIEW, a tool which our engineering team uses daily. We’ve packaged TORC’s expertise in JAUS with the benefits of LabVIEW graphical programming, allowing us to simplify complex JAUS protocols into drag-and-drop components. The Toolkit enables new developers to rapidly achieve JAUS-interoperability.”
TORC utilized an earlier version of the JAUS Toolkit in its success as the lead software developer for DARPA Urban Challenge finalist Team VictorTango. Working with Virginia Tech, the team developed the only JAUS-interoperable autonomous vehicle to successfully complete the race. It has since used iterations of the JAUS Toolkit on various projects ranging from internal product development to deployments for government and commercial clients.
“At National Instruments, we are continuously amazed by the many innovative ways people use LabVIEW to design and control revolutionary applications, including breakthroughs in the field of robotics,” said Dr. James Truchard, president, CEO and cofounder of National Instruments. “The advancements TORC brings to unmanned systems technology with this JAUS Toolkit for LabVIEW not only help to illustrate the inherent power and flexibility of LabVIEW graphical system design for robotics, but also enhance the nature of autonomous control in general, and we’re proud to be a part of that.”
TORC will showcase the JAUS Toolkit in the Robotics Pavilion at National Instruments NIWeek in Austin, Texas, August 4th-6th and at AUVSI’s (Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International) Unmanned Systems North America 2009 in booth #126 in Washington, D.C. August 11th-13th. Visitors are encouraged to participate in the “JAUS Toolkit Challenge” for a chance to win a Flip Mino™ camcorder. For more information on the JAUS Toolkit, stop by at one of the events or visit us online at http://www.jaustoolkit.com/ to register for an evaluation version of the software.
About TORC Technologies
TORC is a robotics engineering and product development company focused on unmanned and autonomous vehicle systems. TORC is automating dull, dirty, and dangerous tasks by commercializing intelligent robotic technologies into modular, interoperable, off-the-shelf products that enable customers to rapidly integrate and deploy robotic solutions. To learn more, visit www.torctech.com
About National Instruments
National Instruments (www.ni.com) is transforming the way engineers and scientists design, prototype and deploy systems for measurement, automation and embedded applications. NI empowers customers with off-the-shelf software such as NI LabVIEW and modular cost-effective hardware, and sells to a broad base of more than 30,000 different companies worldwide, with no one customer representing more than 3 percent of revenue and no one industry representing more than 15 percent of revenue. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, NI has more than 5,000 employees and direct operations in more than 40 countries. For the past 10 years, FORTUNE magazine has named NI one of the 100 best companies to work for in America. Readers can obtain investment information from the company’s investor relations department by calling (512) 683-5090, e-mailing nati@ni.com or visiting www.ni.com/nati.
LabVIEW, National Instruments, NI, ni.com, and NIWeek are trademarks of National Instruments. Other product and company names listed are trademarks or trade names of their respective companies.
Sales Contact:
Andrew Culhane, Business Development Manager
TORC Technologies
540-443-9262 x 4251
http://www.torctech.com
Media Contact:
David Cutter, Marketing Manager
TORC Technologies
540-443-9262 x 4256
http://www.torctech.com
TORC’s ByWire XGV Tested at 102 Miles per Hour Under Drive-By-Wire Control
TORC Technologies Successfully Operates its Commercially Available Drive-By-Wire Platform in Excess of 100 Miles per Hour While in Computer Control
Blacksburg, VA – February 9, 2009 – TORC Technologies (www.torctech.com) reports that its ByWire XGV™, drive-by-wire converted Hybrid Escape platform, was successfully operated at speeds of up to 102 miles per hour in January of 2009. The tests were run on the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute’s “Smart Road,” a 2.2 mile road closed to outside traffic and pedestrians. The ByWire XGV provides unmanned system developers, researchers, and integrators with a scalable, computer controlled ground vehicle platform with integrated SafeStop™ safety and PowerHub™ power management systems.
Ready for the addition of an autonomous navigation system, the ByWire XGV conversion is tightly integrated to the existing vehicle systems. Controlled through a single interface using JAUS (Joint Architecture for Unmanned Systems) or other proprietary standard over Ethernet, the steering, throttle, shifter, braking, and signals can all be controlled electronically. The safety systems on the XGV are centered around the TORC SafeStop, an off-the-shelf wireless emergency stop system, which provides up to a six mile line-of-sight range and allows for both disable and pause-vehicle states. An internally mounted emergency stop button, easily accessible from both front seats, and two optional externally mounted emergency stop buttons provide for additional safety.
A key benefit of the XGV is the availability of onboard electric power, which prevents the need for adding additional sources of power. TORC’s PowerHub power conditioning and distribution options allow for use of up to 2 kW of managed power, configurable over Ethernet through a web browser.
“The XGV is another product that TORC has developed based on needs from the DARPA Grand Challenges and other robotic programs from a variety of government groups and industry sectors. We see cutting edge robotic organizations spending too many resources reinventing drive-by-wire, safety, and power details rather than focusing on the higher level perception, planning, and control issues. The XGV allows organizations to leverage our experience solving the ‘Base Platform’ problem,” states Michael Fleming, CEO of TORC. “We are excited to demonstrate the XGV at closed-loop control at speed at over 100 miles per hour.”
The ByWire XGV uses multiple embedded modules to convert the stock vehicle to by-wire control. At the heart of this system is the National Instruments CompactRIO (cRIO) real-time system. The cRIO handles closed-loop control of the steering, throttling, and braking, as well as shifting, and lighting commands and feedback. Furthermore, the National Instruments cRIO provides the user access to the XGV system through a unified input over Ethernet.
“National Instruments is excited about TORC Technology’s’ ability to leverage LabVIEW and NI CompactRIO for leading autonomous vehicle design and deployment. TORC has been able to create unique offerings in the market through drive-by-wire technology,” states Shelley Gretlein, Robotics Business Development Manager at National Instruments.
A number of other performance tests were also completed in addition to the high speed runs. An operator was able to safely change lanes at speeds of up to 80 miles per hour, and the ByWire XGV was also able to slalom between two lanes at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour. Both tests demonstrate the quick response time of the drive-by-wire conversion, and the accuracy at which desired commands can be achieved.
The ByWire XGV is currently available for purchase through TORC Technologies. The clean installation, intuitive user interface, and rapid conversion make the XGV ideal for unmanned system developers, system integrators and research universities. See the ByWire XGV in action, reaching 102 mph, in the online video at www.ByWireXGV.com.
About TORC Technologies
TORC is automating dull, dirty, and dangerous tasks by commercializing intelligent robotic technologies into interoperable off-the-shelf products, providing the essential building blocks for rapidly enabling autonomy on virtually any platform. TORC’s product line offers an integrated set of functionalities necessary for implementing varying levels of unmanned and autonomous operation that can increase your speed to market while reducing risks and development costs.
Sales Contact:
Andrew Culhane, Sales Engineer
TORC Technologies
540-443-9262 x 4251
http://www.torctech.com
Media Contact:
David Cutter, Marketing Manager
TORC Technologies
540-443-9262 x 4256
http://www.torctech.com
TORC Announces ByWire XGV: Commercially-Available Drive-by-Wire Ford Escape for Unmanned Research and Development
TORC Turns DARPA Urban Challenge Success into New Product Launch
SAN DIEGO – June 10, 2008 – TORC Technologies (www.torctech.com) has announced the commercial availability of the ByWire XGV™, a drive-by-wire converted Ford Escape Hybrid. The unmanned system is based on the company’s successful partnership with Virginia Tech on Odin, the fully autonomous Ford Escape Hybrid that placed 3rd in the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge.
The ByWire XGV is a seamless integration of the TORC ByWire™ technology using National Instruments CompactRIO FPGA-based hardware and LabVIEW graphical system design software, TORC SafeStop™ emergency stop system, and the Ford Escape Hybrid sports utility vehicle. The result is a drive-by-wire converted, Join Architecture for Unmanned Systems (JAUS) interoperable Ford Escape Hybrid, ready for industry applications or further autonomous research and development.
“It’s important for TORC to continue to commercialize these technologies into off-the-shelf products so developers of autonomous systems can spend their time working on higher level autonomy, not converting vehicles or building components such as an emergency stop system,” said Michael Fleming, CEO of TORC. Fleming adds “LabVIEW plays an important role in facilitating this development by providing a powerful and flexible programming language for sensor and actuator interface development, advanced control algorithm engineering, and custom communication protocol design.”
The ByWire XGV provides a unified interface that controls the throttle, brake and steering, with additional sensor feedback for control. The clean installation consists of a touch screen interface in the center console, a system arm key and a fully integrated safety system utilizing TORC’s SafeStopTM product. The SafeStop provides manual internal and external emergency stop buttons mounted on the vehicle in addition to the wireless handheld transmitter unit. The tightly packaged conversion leaves the front and rear seats open and unaltered, providing for extreme flexibility in its potential applications while leaving plenty of room for additional customization. Additional options include custom operator control units, power supply and a proprietary power distribution system located in the cargo space of the vehicle.
“TORC extended LabVIEW and CompactRIO to create an off-the-shelf autonomous vehicle development platform,” said Pete Zogas, senior vice president of sales and marketing at National Instruments. “The combination of LabVIEW, CompactRIO and their integrated vehicle platform makes it easy for engineers to implement complex control and vehicle communications on a flexible FPGA-based embedded system.”
Because of its extreme flexibility and cost effectiveness, the ByWire XGV is ideal for universities, unmanned systems developers and lead system integrators for further research and development. It is a rapid go-to-market option for industry and government organizations with mission-specific objectives such as surveillance and perimeter security. The ByWire XGV also is available with varying levels of autonomy with the addition of the AutonoNav™ product line, an autonomous navigational system from TORC.
The ByWire XGV now is available for purchase through TORC Technologies. Visit torctech.com to learn more about the ByWire XGV. To learn more about National Instruments technology used in robotic applications including autonomous vehicles such as Odin, visit ni.com/robotics.
About TORC Technologies, LLC
TORC Technologies is automating dull, dirty, and dangerous tasks by commercializing intelligent robotic technologies into interoperable off-the-shelf products, providing the essential building blocks for rapidly enabling autonomy on virtually any platform. TORC’s product line offers an integrated set of functionalities necessary for implementing varying levels of autonomous operation. From teleoperation to autonomy, TORC’s modular solutions can increase your speed to market while reducing risks and development costs.
CompactRIO, LabVIEW, National Instruments, NI and ni.com are trademarks of National Instruments.
Sales Contact:
Andrew Culhane, Sales Engineer
TORC Technologies, LLC
540-443-9262 x 4251
http://www.torctech.com
Media Contact:
David Cutter, Marketing Manager
TORC Technologies, LLC
540-443-9262 x 4256
http://www.torctech.com
TORC & Virginia Tech Finish 3rd in 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge
On November 3rd, 2007, Team VictorTango’s race vehicle Odin, successfully completed the 60 mile DARPA Urban Challenge. Originally slated for the second pole position, Odin was first out of the gates at 8:04 am. Odin ramped up his speed to 25 miles per hour while rounding the traffic circle and disappeared into the morning mist of the California desert. Four hours and thirty six minutes later, Odin returned safely, 26 minutes behind the winner. During the race, Odin encountered four-way intersections, where he yielded to manned and unmanned traffic. Odin merged onto busy city streets avoiding traffic drivers trying to confuse him and other robots that often forgot to follow California highway rules.
At times, the DARPA provided mission file sent him to areas where he was called him to park in a specific parking place, demonstrating a simulated military re-supply mission. In the end, Odin’s courteous and calculated nature helped to hold off any fender benders. After a long day in traffic, Odin and Team VictorTango were awarded 3rd place in the competition. As one of only three robots to finish under the DARPA imposed time limit, Odin’s journey was fraught with peril. Many of the competitors were pulled from the course due to collisions with other robots and buildings. The completion of the course marks a huge success for TORC Technologies (TORC) and Virginia Tech Unmanned Systems, which allowed them to display the incredible advances that have been made in autonomous vehicle technology. The success in the challenge was the crowning achievement of thousands of hours of research and development spent in the lab, in the simulator, and on the road.
Odin, the competition vehicle, was based on a Ford Escape Hybrid donated by Ford Motor Company. TORC served as lead software architect and developer for the team. The modular software architecture utilized the SAE AS-4 JAUS (Joint Architecture for Unmanned Systems) standard for inter-process communication. JAUS promoted interoperability between systems and increased the efficiency of system development, testing, data logging, and playback. Using a simulation environment tailored for urban ground vehicle navigation, TORC was able to develop and debug software, safely test autonomous behaviors and verify interactions with sensors and the environment. Prior to the Urban Challenge Race, Team VictorTango had navigated similar courses and environments thousands of times in the simulator. This approach significantly improved overall robustness of the software. New behaviors and algorithms were proven well before they hit the street with real vehicles and live drivers.
Due to the inherent need for improved safety in unmanned grounds systems and the specialized needs of large vehicles preparing for the DARPA Urban Challenge, TORC developed the SafeStop™ Wireless Emergency Stop System. The SafeStop™ was utilized by several teams during site visit and qualification. Based on technology inspired by efforts on the Urban Challenge, TORC also commercialized several JAUS-interoperable products such as the ByWire™ Drive-by-Wire Conversion Module, AutonoNav™ Autonomous Navigation Controller, and InterOp™ Collaborative Online JAUS Integration Environment. These products serve to provide vehicle-independent, JAUS-interoperable, autonomous solutions. The combination of these TORC products allows for complete autonomous vehicle solutions, autonomy and safety, as well as simulated environment to develop and evaluate algorithms.
TORC Technologies, LLC is an applied research company focusing on improving our quality of life by automating dull, dirty, and dangerous work through modular and interoperable robotic technologies. TORC employs mechanical, electrical, and software engineers and provides turn-key robotic solutions to system integrators. TORC is located in the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center in Blacksburg, Virginia.