D-RISK
Maximising autonomous vehicle safety
Project D-RISK has a big goal: to create the world’s largest library of driving “edge cases” - situations that are unusual or unexpected but could be dangerous.
Why? Because these can then be used in simulation to train autonomous vehicles, ensuring they can safely respond and manage these situations on our roads. The project is sourcing these edge cases from traffic cameras, road accident reports and the public.
D-RISK is part Innovate UK funded and is being delivered by consortium partners DG Cities, dRISK.ai, Imperial College London, Transport for London and Claytex.
Watch our film to learn more about D-RISK
“A gentleman in an electric wheelchair suddenly pulled out onto the road without warning”
The role of DG Cities
Our role within the project is to ensure that public opinions are heard and shape the development of this new technology. We are inviting the public to share their views on what is ‘appropriate’ behaviour for automated vehicles. Our work is also helping to extend the edge case library and ensure that real-life experiences are programmed - and appropriate responses generated - within AV software. This work involves:
Online surveys exploring opinions of AV vs Human behaviour and enabling the public to extend the edge case library
Focus groups further exploring AV behaviour as well as public views on trust, safety and accessibility of new technologies (such as AVs)
Further activities that increase public awareness and engagement of the D-RISK project and encourage discussions around the future of mobility.
Read our D-RISK research report here
Why Community Engagement?
New technologies only work if the public is involved in their development and design from the very beginning. Engaging communities every step of the way helps to ensure that innovation brings tangible value to the lives of real people, and does not inadvertently cause harm to disadvantaged groups. Whole communities need to be listened to and engaged with for new technology to help create positive change.
Community engagement therefore plays an important role in the development of safe, practical and user-friendly driverless vehicles. And because the driverless vehicles of the future will need to be able to deal with highly challenging and complex scenarios we need the public’s help to create a powerful library of real stories that can train the vehicles of the future.
You can help the road users of the future by sharing your story here.
“I was driving up a hill when a car coming in the opposite direction lost a wheel. The wheel rolled down the hill gathering speed and heading towards me.”