AUTOPAVE

National CPF projects

01.- NAME OF THE PROJECT

AUTOPAVE: AUTONOMOUS COMPACTION OF PAVEMENTS

02.- SUMMARY

The AUTOPAVE – Compactación Autónoma De Pavimentos project aims to advance with determination towards the industrialization of civil works and the digital transformation of construction processes with a clear focus on CONSTRUCTION 4.0. Its main objective is the automation of the pavement compaction process through robotization and the interoperability of the compaction train with conventional machinery, to improve efficiency, safety and sustainability in road construction.

The expected results of the project are:
– Two robotization kits capable of transforming two conventional compactors, a pneumatic compactor and a smooth compactor, respectively, into self-propelled and autonomous mobile robots, capable of performing the pavement compaction operation without human intervention and in coordination with the rest of the machinery.
– A kit for determining and communicating the status of conventional vehicles involved in the compaction process, including the design of the communications infrastructure and software for task sequencing, coordination and control of the process.

The specific objectives that emanate from the main objective of the project and that respond better to social and economic aspects are summarized in the substantial improvement of the efficiency of the compaction process through the assurance of the work sequence, the increase of workers’ safety by reducing monotonous and repetitive work that can lead to accidents on site, and the improvement of the sustainability of the process through its optimization.

03.- GENERAL DATA

• Description: CHALLENGES-COLABORATION 2017
• Proposal Number: RTC-2017-6219-4
  
• Date awarded: 09/18/2018
• Date of execution: 01/09/2018 TO 31/08/2021

04.- TECHNICAL INFORMATION ON THE PROJECT AND ITS OBJECTIVES The main objective of the project is the automation of the pavement compaction process through robotization and interoperability of the compaction train with conventional machinery, through a Construction 4.0 approach, and for the improvement of efficiency, safety and sustainability in road construction.

To this end, the following specific technical objectives are proposed to be achieved:

• Design, development, fabrication and validation of two kits of robotization capable of transforming two compactors a conventional compactor, a pneumatic compactor and a pneumatic compactor. in self-propelled mobile robots and in smooth robots, respectively. autonomous, with the capacity to carry out the operation of compaction of pavements without human intervention and in the form of coordinated with the rest of the machinery. The kits of robotization will lead to the design and development of the following subsystems:
  • Automated vehicle actuation and control system with the ability to act on the steering system to control and reduce the compactor’s original speed of the compactor until it comes to a complete stop.
  • Perception and localization system with obstacle detection in dynamic environments structured, such as roads under construction, which are allows the robot to avoid collisions with both humans and animals. with other fixed and/or static elements and positioning and local to allow the robot to be located with the accuracy during the autonomous driving of the vehicle in the environment of the site.
  • Autonomous navigation system where an autonomous navigation system will be designed. complete software architecture that will be in charge of generating the control commands to direct the compactors during the entire automated process of compaction of the pavements through a planning and planning subsystem and a trajectory tracking to provide the vehicle with a and optimizing the sequence and quality of the cycles of the past.
• Design, development, manufacturing and validation of a determination and reporting of vehicle status involved in the process of compaction and compaction of the including the design of the communications infrastructure and a software for task sequencing, coordination and process control.
  

The main business objective is aligned with the project objective, which is the automation of the pavement compaction process through robotization and interoperability of the conventional machinery fleet. Through this objective we seek competitive improvement through the:

• Improving the efficiency of the compaction process by ensuring a complete work sequence with less uncertainty than the current one.
• Improved worker safety by automating the process, reducing monotonous and repetitive work that can lead to accidents on site.
• Improved process sustainability by optimizing the process.

At the same time, the success of the project would help to:

• To strengthen SACYR in particular, and the Spanish construction in general, as a world technological leader in the construction of transport infrastructures.
• Positioning the Instituto Tecnológico de Aragón as a Center for Technological reference in Construction 4.0.
  

In addition, the project has set social objectives, which aim to transfer to society the advances and research generated during the development of the project:

• Eliminate the risk of accidents by reducing the monotonous and repetitive work of the operator, which can lead to accidents on site.
• Eliminate the risk of exposure to environments harmful to health by reducing the presence of people in the compaction process (the compactor operator).

05.- PROJECT LEADER AND PARTNERS (CONSORTIUM)

Leader: SACYR CONSTRUCCION SA (SACYR)

Participants: Technological Institute of Aragon (ITAINNOVA)

06.- FPC PROGRAM TO WHICH BELONGS THE PROJECT

State Program for R&D&I Oriented to the Challenges of Society – Challenges-Collaboration 2017.

07.- GENERAL AND SPECIFIC BUDGET FOR ITAINNOVA

• Total bankable project budget: 714,220 euros
• Fundable budget of ITAINNOVA: 250,120 euros.

08.- FINANCING

Funded by: Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities- State Research Agency.

• Total grant approved for the project: 652,670 euros
• Grant approved for ITAINNOVA: 226,610 euros.

09.- LOGOS