After three years, the twelve project partners from industry, science, software development, and infrastructure have reported a successful outcome for the research and development project ATLAS-L4 (Automated Transport between Logistics Centers on Highways at Level 4). Thanks to the work of around 150 engineers, the autonomous truck on the road has become a reality, as stated in the conclusion. Now, the project participants presented the results of the project to about 200 guests, in the presence of representatives from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, with driving demonstrations at the ADAC Mobility Test Center in Penzing and on the highway, an exhibition on approximately 1,000 square meters, and scientific lectures.
MAN Truck & Bus, Knorr-Bremse, LEONI, Bosch, FERNRIDE, BTC Embedded Systems, Fraunhofer AISEC, Technical University of Munich, Technical University of Braunschweig, TÜV SÜD, Autobahn GmbH, and the Würzburg Institute for Traffic Sciences (WIVW GmbH) have joined forces for this. The consortium set the goal within the project, funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic
Affairs and Climate Action with a total budget of 59.1 million euros, to bring a Level-4 automated and therefore autonomously driving truck for hub-to-hub transport onto highways. The basis for this was the 2021 law that allows autonomous driving on fixed routes under technical supervision, bringing Germany into a global pioneering role.
"Together with our partners, we set a high goal and realized an industrializable basic concept for autonomous driving in hub-to-hub use. The development and integration of the redundant components necessary for safe use, such as steering, brake, and onboard network, as well as the creation of a validation concept, required interdisciplinary competence and close teamwork. As a consortium, we proved with the project: Autonomous trucks are feasible," summarizes Frederik Zohm, Board Member for Research and Development at MAN Truck & Bus.
From his perspective, innovations like autonomous driving require cooperation to advance future technology in Germany and Europe. The starting shot for ATLAS-L4 was fired on January 1, 2022. After the Federal Motor Transport Authority
issued the first Level 4 testing approval for a commercial vehicle manufacturer in April 2024, the premiere in public road traffic took place with the first highway drive of an autonomous truck in Germany - accompanied by Federal Minister of Transport Volker Wissing. A safety driver was always on board during this and all subsequent test drives. The automation software in the vehicle was continuously optimized over a long period through regular releases and directly tested in practice.
In the end, the mission is accomplished!
The consortium claims that they checked off all project goals. The safety-relevant components for the Level-4 architecture, such as the redundant braking system, onboard network, and steering, were developed. A validation concept was created, and in parallel, the control center for technical supervision was put into operation. Risk analyses and safety considerations for Level 4 – including cybersecurity, such as authentic and encrypted communication, and the definition of functional safety measures like redundancies and degradation concepts for the autonomous driving system –
took place. The result is a prototype technology serving as a blueprint for further projects and series developments.
To be continued
From the perspective of those responsible, the work of ATLAS-L4 can be used as a basic concept for future industrial developments, with various detailed questions, highlighted by the project, still needing resolution for a serial autonomous truck.
"We have done valuable pioneering work by providing practical proof of the technical feasibility of autonomous trucks," says project coordinator Sebastian Völl, MAN Truck & Bus. "These concepts now flow into further development work for the series development of autonomous trucks."
Because Logistics 4.0 offers a lot of potential. Driverless trucks as part of a hub-to-hub automation for shuttle trips between logistics yards could make a significant contribution to more efficiency and the avoidance of traffic jams and accidents, argued the participants. Automation concepts also offer a solution approach for the driver shortage, from which the industry has been suffering for years. Already today, about 100,000 truck drivers are
