The MOST National Center is an interdisciplinary project organized in a Hub&Spoke model, where a central Hub coordinates strategic activities and fosters innovation, while 14 thematic Spokes develop advanced solutions for the sustainable mobility sector. Key objectives include emission reduction, integration of advanced technologies, and strengthening the cooperative network between the public sector, private industry, and academia.

Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CAV)

Within the MOST project, DIEM is involved in the activities of Spoke 6 (CAV), which focuses on the research and development of autonomous and interconnected vehicles. These vehicles communicate with each other and with road infrastructure, two critical areas for the future of safe and sustainable mobility. Spoke 6 activities center on developing autonomous driving systems and vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication technologies. Specifically, three main application areas are explored:

• Urban/highway driving: Focuses on implementing innovative vehicle technologies to improve safety, traffic management, and energy efficiency on urban roads.
• Indoor or off-road driving: Includes developing vehicles and mobile robots for specific applications, such as logistics and autonomous movement, in unstructured environments like pedestrian zones, industrial areas, or rural settings, which lack marked lane boundaries.
• Racing contexts: Involves developing remote or assisted driving technologies for high-performance racing circuits, characterized by high speeds and extremely low latency requirements.

Partners

Spoke 6 benefits from collaborations with research institutions and universities, including the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia (leading the Spoke), the Politecnico di Milano and Politecnico di Torino, the Mediterranea University of Reggio Calabria, and various CNR institutes, which contribute their expertise to achieve the project’s objectives.

Significant partnerships also involve prominent players in the national and international automotive industry. These include Stellantis, Ferrari, Fincantieri, Leonardo, Poste Italiane, UnipolSAI, Pirelli, Mermec, Iveco, and Autostrade per l’Italia, which provide human resources and infrastructure to support the research teams.

Projects

Key initiatives include developing "smart" infrastructures and improving road safety through advanced technologies such as V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything) systems. These technologies support specific tasks like assisting drivers in overtaking under low-visibility conditions. To support these activities, Spoke 6 plans to create or enhance multiple living labs, essential infrastructures for implementing secure testing scenarios.

Projects also aim to monitor fleets of connected vehicles via OnBoard Units (OBU) for purposes such as recognizing driving styles and identifying hazardous situations. Other projects focus on developing autonomous or assisted driving modules, often using Artificial Intelligence, for tasks like supporting postal delivery in pedestrian or traffic-restricted areas.

In this context, DIEM’s research group is engaged in developing autonomous driving systems for off-road applications in smart agriculture. These efforts leverage Artificial Vision techniques to process data acquired from onboard sensors, such as cameras, radar, and LiDAR. The project involves equipping various vehicle platforms—both tracked and wheeled, designed for off-road movement—with AI modules capable of recognizing traversable areas, planning safe paths based on vehicle kinematics, and executing vehicle commands.

Additional Information