The praying mantis is one of the few insects with compound eyes and the ability to perceive 3D space. Engineers are replicating their visual systems to make machines see better. Self-driving cars ...

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Autonomous vehicles can navigate complex traffic patterns and recognize road signs, but they sometimes fail at a seemingly simple task: determining how far away a parked car is.

A photograph of the artificial compound eye prototype developed at the University of Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Science by associate professor Kyusang Lee. Self-driving cars ...