STEER Tech, an autonomous vehicle technology company, announced that it was awarded funding under the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) Automated Vehicles Program to develop a cutting-edge testbed at the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) that will demonstrate a comprehensive automated parking ecosystem.
In partnership with DFW, STEER Tech will integrate its existing autonomous vehicle technology to create the most advanced live autonomous ecosystem. The demonstration will consist of three subsystems: low-speed vehicle automation for automated valet parking, supervisory parking management for autonomous vehicles, and active digital curb management. These three interconnected subsystems aim to provide a solution to the overutilized and heavily congested curbside drop-off and pick-up areas at DFW caused by the rise of air travel and increased use of ride-hailing services when fully implemented.
“The [autonomous vehicle] tests fit into the airport team’s focus on efficient mobility throughout the airport, including the dropoff curb and parking,” Paul Puopolo, the executive vice president of innovation at the DFW International Airport. Puopolo said this project will help the airport prepare for the new technology.
“Auto-valet services create a win-win scenario for travelers, employees, airport operations, and sustainability when effectively coordinated with a curb management process,” Anuja Sonalker, CEO of STEER Tech. “For DFW and other airports to maximize the benefits of auto-valet services, the automated technology must be integrated with a curbside management system such as the one this demonstration will use.”
In an industry-leading move and in the interest of interoperability with other systems, STEER will ‘open-source’ the data interfaces such that any vendor may participate, subject to common interface standards in the future. The goal of such a groundbreaking move is to keep the airport stakeholders and customers at the center of the experience.