Master Thesis, 30 HP: UGV Traversability Planning with Large Language Models

Master Thesis, 30 hp: UGV traversability planning with large language models

Are you a student eager to apply your theoretical knowledge and fresh perspectives to real-world challenges? At Saab, we believe that innovation thrives on new ideas, and your master thesis project could be the spark that ignites our next technological breakthrough.

Your role

We recognize the immense value that students bring to our company. Your academic rigor, combined with your enthusiasm for cutting-edge technology, allows you to approach problems with a unique and insightful lens. At Saab, you'll have the opportunity to collaborate with experienced engineers and specialists, gaining invaluable practical experience while making a tangible contribution to our growth and development.

Background
Dynamics is pursuing a UGV initiative in which the Mission Autonomy section serves as both a stakeholder and contributor. Following the initial platform integration that is currently being realized, continued capability growth (both targeted and exploratory), as well as organizational development will be essential.

Master´s thesis project is an excellent mechanism for supporting this progression and we have selected a highly promising proposal, that meets all the criteria we use to evaluate and prioritize thesis opportunities.

Description of the Thesis Project
The purpose of this thesis project is to investigate how multimodal large language models can be utilized for planning the movement of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) through off-road terrain.

Autonomously traversing areas of dense vegetation, wetlands, snow and mud entails a non-trivial, platform- and weather-dependent motion planning problem. UGVs with small wheels may have a much tougher time navigating sand than a UGV with continuous tracks. Traversing a muddy trail might be much easier when its dry than when it has rained heavily. Additionally, the mission that the UGV is supposed to accomplish might put additional constraints on its movement.

Conventional approaches require taking different cases and factors into account when designing the motion planning system. An alternative approach is to utilize a large language models and reason about the situation of the vehicle and choose the path forward depending on its conclusions. The latter is an avenue that we would like to explore with this thesis.

The thesis work shall include a literature study on the subject and implementation of an LLM-based planning system. The system shall be evaluated quantitatively and qualitatively against publicly available datasets for autonomous off-road ground vehicles.

The thesis work will be carried out together with the Mission Autonomy group at Saab Dynamics, which works on agentic intelligence for future unmanned systems.

Your profile

The project is suitable for 1 student. You are in the final stage of Engineering Physics, Computer Science, AI/ML or equivalent and are about to begin a 30 hp thesis project.

We provide the support and guidance you need to translate your theoretical knowledge into practical solutions. Join us and become a driving force behind Saab's technological advancements!

This position requires that you pass a security vetting based on the current regulations around/of security protection. For positions requiring security clearance additional obligations on citizenship may apply.

Kindly observe that this is an ongoing recruitment process and that the position might be filled before the closing date of the advertisement.

Contact information

Erik Söderberg, Manager

073-418 1786

erik.soderberg@saabgroup.com

What you will be a part of

Explore a wealth of possibilities. Take on challenges, create smart inventions, and grow beyond. This is a place for curious minds, brave pioneers, and everyone in between. Together, we achieve the extraordinary, each bringing our unique perspectives. Your part matters.

Saab is a leading defense and security company with an enduring purpose, to help nations keep their people and society safe. Empowered by its 28,000 talented people, Saab constantly pushes the boundaries of technology to create a safer and more sustainable world.

Saab designs, manufactures and maintains advanced systems in aeronautics, weapons, command and control, sensors and underwater systems. Saab is headquartered in Sweden. It has major operations all over the world and is part of the domestic defense capability of several nations. Read more about us here.