INS Ellipse-D powers Leo Drive’s autonomous innovation

Collaborating with SBG Systems and integrating the Ellipse-D into our vehicle has been essential in achieving the precision and reliability critical to our R&D efforts and autonomous operations

Oğuzhan Sağlam - Sales Manager

What does Leo Drive do?

Leo Drive is the leader in autonomous vehicle technology, pioneering the future of autonomous transformation. The company specializes in providing scalable software and hardware solutions, offering an end-to-end, one-stop service for integration of autonomous systems. Their mission is to make autonomous technology more accessible and widely adopted across various industries.

Leo Drive’s innovative approach allows their products to be adaptable and applicable to a wide range of scenarios, ensuring that autonomous technology can be seamlessly integrated into any environment.

End users of Leo Drive’s solutions span various industries, including UAVs, UGVs, and autonomous driving systems. These users rely on the high accuracy and reliability of INS for applications such as aerial mapping, gimbal camera stabilization, and ground vehicle navigation.

 

Initial engagement and customer journey

Our relationship with Leo Drive began years ago, during the launch of our first Inertial Navigation System, IG-500 series.

Over the years, Leo Drive has continued to trust us for their advanced INS solutions and is now a proud partner. The trust and reliability established in the early stages of this relationship has only deepened, making our products an integral part of Leo Drive’s autonomous technology solutions.

 

Leo Drive’s technical requirements

Leo Drive required a high-precision inertial navigation system that could provide accurate real-time positioning and orientation data for its autonomous test vehicles. The vehicles run on Autoware software, world’s leading open source software project for autonomous driving.

Leo Drive’s key requirements included:

  • Dual-antenna RTK capability: To ensure high precision in positioning and orientation.
  • Reliability: Provide consistent and accurate data crucial for the safety and efficiency of autonomous operation.
  • Integration flexibility: The system had to be compatible with Leo Drive’s existing platforms and robust enough to meet the demands of real-time processing in dynamic environments.

Their application and the solution offered by us

After carefully analyzing Leo Drive’s requirement, our experts recommended Ellipse-D, a dual Antenna RTK Inertial Navigation System (INS), to fulfill the localization needs. Ellipse-D was selected for its accuracy, reliability, and advanced features, that are essential for autonomous vehicle development and testing.

Ellipse-D INS was integrated into Leo Drive’s Autonomous Test Vehicle, a passenger car converted for autonomous operations. Equipped with GNSS/INS systems, multiple cameras, and LiDAR sensors, the vehicle requires  precise navigation and accurate positioning data for safe and efficient operation. This vehicle serves as a critical platform for research and development (R&D) and technology demonstrations.

The test vehicle is powered by Autoware software, hosted by the The Autoware Foundation. It is a non-profit organization committed to the development of open source, collaborative software for autonomous vehicles. The membership affiliation between SBG Systems and The Autoware Foundation ensures our sensors and software integrate seamlessly with Autoware’s platform, enhancing tools and resources for the autonomous vehicle community.

Integration, support, and beyond

Leo Drive mounted the Ellipse-D INS on their test vehicles using non-ferromagnetic materials to prevent interference and ensure optimal sensor performance. The electrical connections were made via RS-232/422 and CAN interfaces, and custom drivers were used within ROS2 environment to integrate the Ellipse-D’s real-time data into their sensor fusion algorithms. The integration with Autoware platform was seamless, thanks to ROS2 Ellipse- D driver.

During the integration phase, our Support team provided ongoing assistance, quickly addressing any challenges that arose. The SBG Systems Support portal was also a valuable resource, providing comprehensive guidance and troubleshooting assistance.

Important features of Ellipse-D that played key role in Leo Drive’s Autonomous Vehicle

  • Accurate positioning: Ellipse-D provides high-accuracy real-time navigation data.
  • Robust orientation data: Dual-antenna RTK capabilities ensure that orientation data is reliable and supports the vehicle’s complex navigation algorithms.
  • Seamless integration: The sensor’s RS-232/422 and CAN connections allowed for easy integration with Leo Drive’s onboard computers. Custom drivers and nodes in the ROS2 environment facilitated smooth communication between the Ellipse-D and other vehicle sensors, enhancing overall system robustness.

 

Ellipse-D exceeds expectations and meets 100% of Leo Drive’s requirements

Since integrating Ellipse-D INS into their autonomous vehicle, Leo Drive has experienced several significant improvements:

Improved accuracy: The high accuracy in positioning and orientation provided by Ellipse-D has been instrumental in refining the performance and reliability of Leo Drive’s autonomous systems.
Increased efficiency: Ellipse-D’s advanced algorithm enables smoother development processes and more accurate test results, streamlining R&D efforts.
Timely support: The comprehensive customer support, including detailed documentation and a responsive Technical Support team, ensured a seamless integration process.
The reliable sensor data from Ellipse-D has also been crucial for quality control, allowing Leo Drive to perform accurate tests on other sensors and further improve the overall reliability of their autonomous vehicles.

Leo Drive identified three standout qualities of SBG Systems that have been critical to their success: Exceptional customer support, high quality products, and a user-friendly support portal.

For our team at SBG Systems, working on this project with Leo Drive has been an enriching experience. We view this collaboration as a true partnership, not just a customer relationship. Integrating the complex algorithms required for autonomous technology posed some challenges, but thanks to the dedication of our Sales, Business Development, and Algorithm teams, we were able to fully grasp and meet the technical requirements. In the end, we’ve earned the trust of a satisfied partner in Leo Drive. Ultimately, in the navigation industry, it’s all about building reliance and trust along the way.

About Ellipse series
About Leo Drive