Group of Texas A&M mechanical engineering students focus on autonomous shuttles to assist Aggies with disabilities

Texas A&M's department of mechanical engineering is continuing work on fully autonomous self-driving vehicles -- and an aspiration is a fleet of golf cart-style vehicles on the campus could help students with disabilities and injuries as they travel to and from classes.

During Howdy Week, the department tested an autonomous shuttle outside of Kyle Field where more than 100 students and parents rode in the self-driving vehicle as it carried them across the sidewalks of Rudder Plaza. The prototype was equipped with exterior cameras, speakers, a laser sensor, interior computer monitor, GPS system and other features that enabled the vehicle to follow a pre-determined path on its own.

"I don't know the exact number, but out of 125 people who participated in the test, more than 90 percent wanted an autonomous vehicle done by yesterday," said Texas A&M professor Sri Saripalli, one of the spearheads of the project, "They didn't know why we didn't already have something like this."

The project's students and professors have not been able to test the shuttle nor the new recently acquired Yamaha vehicle in full form on campus, as smaller tests are still needed and parts to be added to both vehicles before they are sent before a review board that would approve trials on campus.

"The school reviews what we want to do to make sure it's OK, make sure it's safe," Saripalli said, "... We also want to have a few more vehicles before we present them to an institutional review board."

A dozen capstone students in the mechanical engineering department are dedicating their focus on features of the shuttles that would benefit disabled students, particularly those who are wheelchair-bound or vision impaired.

"The major thing is that Texas A&M is a very big campus, and sometimes buses and vans can't come close enough to a building," Saripalli said. "Some students also have to book a ride in advance."

Alyssa Wallis, president of the disability-focused student organization Aggie Adaptive Sports, said she thinks autonomous shuttles on campus sidewalks would be useful.

"At one of our last meetings, I talked with one student in a wheelchair who needed someone to pick him up," Wallis said. "He's very reliant on transit with his wheelchair. I think it would be helpful for him not to have to rely on other people to get around."

While the campus' buses and paratransit van service do transport students with special physical needs, nothing is ever as easy as it seems.

"On the bus I've heard over the radio people just having problems getting on the bus, getting secured, and sometimes the drivers aren't strong enough to lift them, and other people on the bus have to help," Wallis said.

Taylor Sutton, an Aggie freshman from Melvin, is a member of Aggie Adaptive Sports and uses a power chair to get around. She said the buses and paratransit vans are able to successfully get her where she needs to go, but travel isn't without its hiccups.

"The aratransit vans are helpful, but there are times the staff is short-handed and they have a lot of other pick-ups to do," she said. "... And on the buses sometimes making sure the aisle is wide enough to turn around can be an issue."

Sutton said the idea of an autonomous shuttle for the those with disabilities is interesting and she would enjoy having shuttles on campus, though she noted they would need to be able to carry her wheelchair with her. Peter Lange, associate vice president of Texas A&M's Transportation Services, agrees that autonomous shuttles could be a helpful addition to the transportation system on campus, and said his department is supportive of what Saripalli, his colleagues and students are doing.

"A van can only get as far as parking lots and streets," he said.

Lange pointed out that there are a lot of obstacles that will need to be overcome as the project moves forward, however. There would still be scheduling needs for the self-driving shuttles, and wheelchair-bound students would need to be able to be properly seated and secured. In the meantime, Lange said he hopes Transportation Services can acquire more vans for paratransit.

"We would like to have more of everything all of the time," he said.

It may be a few years before a full fleet of 20 or more shuttles are ready to transport students around campus, Saripalli said.

The project receives funding from several different places, including the support from partnering Texas A&M Transportation Institute. Progress will be made in the form of two steps. The first step is to simply acquire more vehicles.

"The second step, of course, is to transform these vehicles to have access for people with disabilities," Saripalli said. "This will take much longer because we have a lot more we will need to do."