Semifinalist Team: University of Maine
Proposal Title: Autonomous Vehicle Assistant (Ava): Ride-hailing and localization for the future of accessible mobility
Proposal Summary: This team will work to develop “Ava”, the Autonomous Vehicle Assistant, an innovative ride-hailing and localization smartphone application designed to seamlessly assist passengers with visual impairment and older adults during pre-journey planning, travel to pick-up locations, and vehicle entry. It will use innovative human-machine interfaces and technologies such as GPS and computer vision to help users find and ultimately arrive at an ADS-DV safely. The initial rollout of Ava’s training modules can be fully deployed and utilized via users’ existing smartphones, representing a cost-effective and timely solution to the problem of trust in automated vehicles.
