Living in Rome as I do, or any other major city, it's hard not to notice the rise and dominance of electric scooters, as a pedestrian or a driver of a larger vehicle, micro-electric vehicles have created a set of new challenges for development engineers, especially concerned with autonomous vehicles and ADAS systems.
German Testing company Messring has announced that they will offer a new target for tests of advanced driver assistance systems and autonomous driving functions. ASTERA E-Scooter mimics female road users on an E-Scooter.
Messring has identified the changing landscape and the challenges road users and new ADAS systems face; therefore, the tests for validating safety systems need to be updated. The ASTERA E-Scooter presents another cornerstone for variable and diversified tests with so-called Vulnerable Road Users (VRU). E-scooters, which belong to the category of electric micro-vehicles, represent as traffic participants a new group with altered behavior compared to non-electric micro-vehicles. The target realistically replicates a female on an E-Scooter in terms of shape and sensor signature and is suitable for numerous test scenarios.
The target consists of two parts, the scooter, and the woman dummy to be mounted on it. At 1.66 m, this corresponds to the average body height (P50 median) of 16 to 18-year-old girls (according to the Robert Koch Institute, as of 2013) and the average body height of the total female population in Germany (German Federal Statistical Office as of 2017).
The scooter is compatible according to ISO19206 with common motion platforms such as the NCAP belt system, the ABD Launchpad Mini, the Humanetics UFOnano as well as the MESSRING 6D Target Mover. The low-contrast black and gray outer cover provides camera sensors with a real challenge for resilient test results.
"Automated driving and driver assistance systems face a highly complex challenge when participating in road traffic. Validated, realistic testing tools such as the ASTERA E-Scooter Target help vehicle developers to simulate reality in its diversity and provide for more safety on the road,"
Dr. Igor Doric, Executive Director of MESSRING Active Safety GmbH.
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