ISO/IEC Course in Autonomous Navigation Systems
Online 300-hour course in ISO/IEC for autonomous navigation systems. 6 modules covering ISO 21448 (SOTIF), ISO 26262 (functional safety in vehicles) and ROS 2 (Nav2). Dedicated tutor and open enrolment.
ISO/IEC Course in Autonomous Navigation Systems — studying from Ireland
Ireland maintains a small defence force, the Defence Forces, which operates its own engineering corps and equipment maintenance capabilities. Defence procurement and development are handled through the Department of Defence, while much of the wider defence-related industrial activity involves dual-use technologies, electronics and communications systems supplied by domestic and international firms. Engineers in this area typically work on land vehicle maintenance, military communications, protective equipment and systems integration. Policy and procurement are governed by national and European frameworks, including EU defence initiatives.
Fees for Ireland: €546 (Euro), with instalments and employer sponsorship available.
Relevant bodies in Ireland
Typical roles
Questions from Ireland
Which Irish bodies oversee defence engineering and does a private qualification count?
Defence in Ireland is overseen by the Department of Defence, and the Defence Forces run their own training and technical structures. Engineers Ireland sets general professional engineering standards. SEIUM's qualifications are private and not state-awarded, and they are not accredited by any national body, so recognition for any defence-related role is decided by the relevant authority or employer.
Do Irish defence and land-systems employers hire people with private online qualifications?
Irish defence-related hiring is limited and often subject to security vetting and specific qualification requirements, so employers set their own criteria. A private online qualification may be taken into account alongside experience, but we cannot say how any employer will view it or guarantee any result. Check requirements for particular roles directly.
Can I study this from Ireland while working, and what is the workload?
Yes, the programme is 100% online and taught in English, so you can study from home without travel or a student visa. Master's programmes total 1,900 hours, postgraduate diplomas 800 and specialist courses 300. Each student has an assigned technical tutor, fees can be paid in instalments, and employer sponsorship may be possible. Plan your weekly hours realistically around your job.
Take the controls.
Run a real engineering trade-off from this field. Move the sliders, watch the model react in real time and beat the challenge.
What you will be able to do
Describe the functional architecture of an autonomous navigation system.
Select sensors and techniques for environmental perception.
Apply simultaneous localisation and mapping algorithms.
Design trajectory planners and control laws.
Fuse GNSS, inertial and perception information.
Plan safety tests in accordance with applicable standardisation.
Develop an integrative autonomous navigation project.
Who it's for
- Autonomous navigation engineer who wants to specialise in ISO/IEC for autonomous navigation systems.
- Perception engineer who wants to specialise in ISO/IEC for autonomous navigation systems.
- Localisation and mapping engineer who wants to specialise in ISO/IEC for autonomous navigation systems.
- Vehicle control engineer who wants to specialise in ISO/IEC for autonomous navigation systems.
- Mobile robotics engineer who wants to specialise in ISO/IEC for autonomous navigation systems.
- Functional safety engineer who wants to specialise in ISO/IEC for autonomous navigation systems.
- Engineering or science graduates seeking to enter the automotive industry.
What you'll work with
- ISO 21448 (SOTIF)
- ISO 26262 (functional safety in vehicles)
- ISO 3691-4 (driverless industrial vehicles)
- ISO 22737 (low-speed automated driving systems)
- IEC 61508 (functional safety)
- RTCA DO-229 (augmented GNSS equipment)
- ISO 13482 (personal care robots)
6 modules · 300 h
1.1Functions: perception, localisation, planning and control1.2Data flow between functions1.3Functional and performance requirements1.4Applicable international robotics standards1.5Vocabulary and classification standards for robots1.6Safety requirements for mobile robots1.7Structured and unstructured environments1.8Levels of autonomy and their definition1.9Sector vocabulary and acronyms1.10Exercise: decomposing the navigation of a system
2.1Distance sensors: laser, radar and ultrasound2.2Monocular and stereo cameras2.3Inertial sensors and magnetometers2.4Sensor fusion and synchronisation2.5Intrinsic and extrinsic calibration2.6Obstacle detection and classification2.7Segmentation of the navigable space2.8Limitations due to weather and lighting2.9Perception performance metrics2.10Practical: calibrating and evaluating a sensor set
3.1State estimation and filtering3.2Odometry and error accumulation3.3Simultaneous localisation and mapping3.4Metric, topological and semantic maps3.5Loop closure and map consistency3.6Localisation in a prior map3.7Relocalisation after loss of reference3.8Position integrity and its estimation3.9Degradation in repetitive environments3.10Practical: evaluating localisation accuracy
4.1Global route planning4.2Local planning and reactive avoidance4.3Kinematic and dynamic constraints4.4Prohibited zones and geofences4.5Trajectory control and tracking4.6Behaviour when encountering unexpected obstacles4.7Safe stopping and degraded states4.8Speed and safety distances4.9Interaction with people and vehicles4.10Practical: designing the safe-stop logic
5.1Risk analysis of the navigation system5.2Safety functions and their integrity5.3Independent supervision and behaviour monitoring5.4Definition of the permitted operating environment5.5Tests in laboratory, track and real environments5.6Catalogue of test scenarios5.7Safety metrics and acceptance criteria5.8Data logging and incident analysis5.9Documentation for conformity assessment5.10Practical: navigation test plan
6.1Choice of platform and environment6.2Functional specification of the navigation6.3Sensor selection and calibration6.4Localisation and mapping design6.5Planning and control design6.6Risk analysis and safety functions6.7Test plan and metrics6.8Conformity documentation6.9Technical report6.10Defence of the work
How you'll learn
100 % online training on the SEIUM campus, with downloadable material, recorded classes and a dedicated technical tutor. No fixed timetables: students progress at their own pace within the intake, making it possible to combine study with work.
Each module combines theory, guided reading of the original standard and applied exercises. The working software is ROS 2 (Nav2), Autoware, MATLAB (Navigation Toolbox), OpenCV, Gazebo, in free, academic or evaluation versions. Tests are studied using real autonomous vehicle test track procedures, GNSS and inertial localisation tests, and perception tests with labelled datasets. Assessment is continuous per module plus the final integrative project.
Build it end to end
Your final project follows the real engineering workflow, step by step, reviewed by your tutor.
Describe the functional architecture of an autonomous navigation system.
Select sensors and techniques for environmental perception.
Apply simultaneous localisation and mapping algorithms.
Design trajectory planners and control laws.
Fuse GNSS, inertial and perception information.
Where this takes you
Requirements
- No prior qualification required.
- Internet connection and a computer capable of running the programme's software.
- Sufficient Spanish to follow technical standards documentation.
Ready to start?
Send your application today. Our admissions team replies within 72 hours with your study plan and funding options.
Frequently asked questions
The programme is 300 hours in total, spread over 3 to 5 months. That is between 10 and 15 hours a week on average, compatible with a full-time job.
Work is carried out with ROS 2 (Nav2), Autoware, MATLAB (Navigation Toolbox), OpenCV, Gazebo. Free, academic or evaluation versions are used, and the tutor indicates the open-source alternative where one exists.
An SEIUM own diploma upon passing the continuous assessment and the integrative project. It is in-house training, not an official Ministry qualification.
Yes. Modules passed in a course or Postgraduate Diploma in the same area are credited towards the higher programme. Check the credit transfer policy when you enrol.
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