Competing with autonomous model vehicles: a software stack for driving in smart city environments

Abstract

This article introduces an open-source software stack designed for autonomous 1:10 scale model vehicles. Initially developed for the Bosch Future Mobility Challenge (BFMC) student competition, this versatile software stack is applicable to a variety of autonomous driving competitions. The stack comprises perception, planning, and control modules, each essential for precise and reliable scene understanding in complex environments such as a miniature smart city in the context of BFMC. Given the limited computing power of model vehicles and the necessity for low-latency real-time applications, the stack is implemented in C++, employs YOLO Version 5 s for environmental perception, and leverages the state-of-the-art Robot Operating System (ROS) for inter-process communication. We believe that this article and the accompanying open-source software will be a valuable resource for future teams participating in autonomous driving student competitions. Our work can serve as a foundational tool for novice teams and a reference for more experienced participants. The code and data are publicly available on GitHub.