ARC Hosts Digital Engineering Workshop to Shape the Future of Ground Vehicle Systems
On December 9, 2024, the Automotive Research Center (ARC) at the University of Michigan, a U.S. Army Center of Excellence for Modeling and Simulation of Ground Vehicle Systems, hosted a half-day workshop on Digital Engineering (DE). The event served as a critical step in defining ARC’s research blueprint to support the U.S. Army’s directive on advancing DE for autonomous and off-road ground vehicle systems.
“This workshop is a significant step forward in understanding what the basic research questions are in Digital Engineering” said Dr. David Gorsich, Chief Scientist of the Army Futures Command Ground Vehicle Systems Center and a key architect of the U.S. Army’s Digital Engineering initiatives.
The workshop aimed to identify key DE practices for an ARC testbed and define fundamental research questions to guide future innovation. The event combined traditional panel discussions with an idea lab format, where participants grouped by shared interests brainstormed, clustered, and refined research questions into actionable themes.
“The outcome of this workshop fascinated me,” said Professor Bogdan Epureanu, Director of ARC. “It identified critical challenges in the foundational science needed for DE and introduced innovative research questions we had not previously considered.”
The agenda included a panel discussion led by ARC thrust area leaders covering key Army priorities such as Vehicle Controls, Human-Autonomy Interaction, and Advanced Structures. The idea lab sessions encouraged interdisciplinary collaboration, with participants crafting and prioritizing research questions and conceptualizing attributes for a DE testbed. This interactive approach ensured the development of actionable outcomes aligned with the Army’s needs.
This workshop sets the stage for ARC to lead national efforts in Digital Engineering, establishing a collaborative testbed and advancing DE practices for ground vehicle systems. The results will accelerate the development of innovative and efficient autonomous vehicle systems, driving the future of military technology.
This event underscores ARC’s dedication to bridging academia and military priorities, ensuring cutting-edge advancements in Digital Engineering for the U.S. Army.