How students and HERE are shaping the future of autonomous racing

Ecurie Aix is one of the biggest student-driven projects at RWTH Aachen University. Each season, the team designs and builds a race car that can drive both on its own and with a driver behind the wheel.

Almost everything—from the software to the carbon fiber parts—is created by the students themselves, with a sharp focus on getting every detail just right. When it comes to the complex world of autonomous driving, Ecurie Aix’s driverless software team is at the forefront, pushing the technology forward.

The collaboration with HERE kicked off in early 2023, and it quickly grew into something much more than just a standard partnership. With HERE’s expertise in location tech and Ecurie Aix’s passion for top-tier engineering, the two teams clicked right away.

It’s not just about sharing tools or resources—it’s about working together, supporting each other and pushing the boundaries of autonomous technology as a team.

Smarter, faster, unstoppable

Ecurie Aix is working on a race car that can reach Level 4 autonomy without compromising on performance when driven manually. To make this happen, they’re innovating in every area of the project. The car’s autonomous systems need to accurately sense its environment, create detailed maps, and navigate tricky courses quickly and precisely.

The driverless software group breaks their work into five main modules, each one crucial to making the car run smoothly. For example, their perception module uses lidar and cameras to spot and analyze the cones marking the track. Other modules, powered by machine learning, focus on localization and mapping (SLAM), ensuring the car knows exactly where it is and what’s around it during the race.

Even with their major progress, the team still faces challenges—like working with limited sensors and narrow field-of-view in sharp corners. But their determination to refine planning algorithms and improve vehicle control shows just how committed they are to pushing the limits of autonomous racing.

More than just a tech partner

Although Ecurie Aix hasn’t fully integrated HERE Technologies’ solutions yet, they’re in talks to bring HERE’s products into the car’s software stack. HERE’s expertise in spatial data is a big draw, especially when it comes to boosting the driverless software team’s mapping and localization abilities. Tools like high-definition mapping could really help improve the team’s planning and make the system more reliable overall.

But it’s not just about the tech. HERE’s team also provides valuable mentorship, shares insights, and supports Ecurie Aix at competitions. Moments like meeting HERE reps at last year’s Formula Student Germany event have made this partnership a key part of Ecurie Aix’s journey and success.

The road ahead

Ecurie Aix’s focus right now is getting their latest race car, the eax04, ready for its big debut.

With Formula Student events coming up in Austria, Czechia and Germany, the team is fine-tuning every aspect of the car to make sure it performs at its best. This includes innovations like kinematic modeling for better state estimation, improving perception accuracy and making the driving controls even more responsive.

With HERE by their side, Ecurie Aix is pushing the boundaries of autonomous driving and helping shape the future of transportation.