Australian researchers have discovered a way for autonomous cars to “see” the world around them so they can track running pedestrians hidden behind buildings, and cyclists obscured by trucks and buses. The ground-breaking development uses so called X-ray styled vision to penetrate beyond traffic blind spots. Unlike Superman’s ability to see through solid objects, however, the technology relies on multiple vehicles sharing lines of sight. It is expected emerging intelligent transportation systems (ITS) will facilitate the concept, known as co-operative perception (CP). Engineers and scientists have said that roadside information-sharing units or ITS stations equipped with camera and radar sensors will allow driverless cars to share what they “see” with others using vehicle-to-X communication. This will allow them to tap into various viewpoints. The breakthrough is the product of three years of collaboration between the University of Sydney’s field robotics centre and software company Cohda Wireless. Its creators believe hooking vehicles up to the one system will …