Developing a ‘Yard Tractor’ That Drives Itself Safely Without Accidents

Busan Port Authority Promotes Development of Eco-Friendly and Safety New Technologies for Autonomous Yard Tractors

Operational flowchart of the yard tractor developed by Busan Port Authority.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] A ‘yard tractor’ equipped with emergency braking and accident avoidance systems that moves autonomously is expected to appear at Busan Port.

Busan Port Authority (BPA) announced on the 7th that a consortium including BPA was finally selected for the research and development project of the ‘Automatic Steering-Based Accident Avoidance System for Electric-Driven Port Yard Tractors,’ part of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s commercial vehicle industry innovation growth and future industrial ecosystem establishment project.

The main research content of the automatic steering-based accident avoidance system for electric-driven port yard tractors is to develop integrated control technology capable of longitudinal emergency braking and lateral accident avoidance steering by utilizing electric-driven yard tractor development, obstacle recognition technology through cognitive sensor fusion, and situation tracking technology.

The consortium consists of the lead organization, Kanevicom Co., Ltd., and BPA, Controlworks Co., Ltd., EN Plus Co., Ltd., Maru ENG Co., Ltd., and the Korea Automotive Technology Institute, which possess autonomous driving and special vehicle manufacturing technologies and related infrastructure.

In particular, the accident avoidance system developed in this project will undergo the first operation test at the Saemangeum Driving Test Site, followed by on-site tests at the Busan New Port Container Terminal to verify the safety required for commercialization.

Over the next three years, 7.5 billion KRW, including national funds, will be invested. BPA will be responsible for establishing accident avoidance scenarios based on analysis of past yard tractor accident cases, analyzing port operation facilities and infrastructure environments, creating port electronic maps and installing electric charging facilities to create a driving environment, and conducting interlocking tests with terminal operation systems.

Nam Ki-chan, President of BPA, said, “Through this research and development project, we will minimize accidents involving yard tractors and secure safe driving technology, and domestic production of core eco-friendly autonomous driving technologies for port transport equipment is expected.” He added, “This will be an opportunity for Busan Port to grow into an advanced smart port leading autonomous driving technology.”