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automotive

Velodyne Lidar sensors power ThorDrive’s autonomous driving pilot

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ThorDrive, an autonomous vehicle (AV) startup, is introducing commercial vehicle services in the first of many pilots in the USA.

The initial service, in partnership with Hassett ACE Hardware, will support selected residents and fire departments in Palo Alto, California, with plans to expand to additional pilots soon.

The ThorDrive platform is using Velodyne’s lidar sensors to provide rich data content for its AV software.

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The BMW Group Autonomous Driving Campus: The first 450 days

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Six questions to Elmar Frickenstein, Senior Vice President Automated Driving and Driver Assistance, BMW AG.

In September 2017, you and your team moved to the Autonomous Driving Campus in Unterschleissheim.
What prompted the BMW Group’s decision to create this new site?

We are currently experiencing the largest paradigm shift in the history of the automotive industry. The industry is set to witness more change in the next decade than in the past 30 years. Today, we are already on the brink of highly automated driving.

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Toyota Research Institute unveils P4 automated driving test vehicle

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Toyota Research Institute (TRI) showed the TRI-P4 automated driving test vehicle at CES last week. The P4 is based on the all-new fifth-generation Lexus LS flagship sedan and will be used in TRI’s two-track Guardian and Chauffeur automated driving system development.

The P4 has Lexus’ new generation of chassis and steering control technology, which provides greater agility and allows for more responsive and smoother manoeuvres during automated driving.

It has two additional cameras to improve situational awareness on the sides and two new imaging sensors―one facing forward and one pointed to the rear―specifically designed for autonomous vehicles. The imaging sensors feature new chip technology with high dynamic range.

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Mercedes Benz Vans presents its ‘Vision Urbanetic’

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At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Mercedes-Benz Vans presented its Vision Urbanetic, a study that opens up new perspectives on autonomous driving.

It is said to enable the needs-based, sustainable and efficient transport of people and goods – and meet the needs of cities, companies from a wide range of industries, as well as travellers and commuters in innovative ways.

The concept reduces traffic flows, relieves inner-city infrastructures and contributes to a new urban quality of life. At the same time, it offers an outlook on future-oriented technologies for the interaction between human and machine.

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AVL and Comau partner to deliver advanced solutions for the electric vehicles market

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AVL List GmbH, a leader in engineering, simulation and testing technology for powertrain systems, and Comau SpA, a leading company in industrial automation products and systems, have joined forces to develop simulation, design, assembly and testing of powertrain systems and components.

As of January 1, 2018, AVL and Comau have an open cooperation in simulation, design, assembly and testing of powertrain components for electric as well as traditional vehicles.

The agreement will ensure customers have access to robust, standard solutions on a global scale, backed by a local presence, resulting in higher quality and a shorter time to market.

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Continental pioneers tyre tests with self-driving test vehicles

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At its test site in Uvalde, Texas, U.S.A., Continental has commissioned the first driverless tyre test vehicle for a wide range of road surface types.

The aim is to make the test results for Continental’s passenger and light truck tyres more conclusive and minimise the impact of the test procedure on the results. The new test vehicle is based on Continental’s automated Cruising Chauffeur, which was developed for motorways.

The test vehicle is controlled using a satellite-based navigation system. Equipped with camera and radar sensors, the car will be able to react immediately to people, animals, or other unexpected objects on the track, even without a driver.

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ZF promotes sensor portfolio for autonomous driving

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At CES this year, ZF highlighted its sensor portfolio for detecting vehicle surroundings – both inside and outside of the vehicle – to help to enhance the safety of conventional and automated vehicles.

The resulting architecture – including a new, full-range radar, solid-state LiDAR, innovative cameras and acoustic sensors – are combined with supercomputers from the ZF ProAI product family to create a powerful overall sensor system.

“As system architects for autonomous driving, we’ve developed a sensor set which equips cars with all of the necessary senses to digitally detect their surroundings,” said Torsten Gollewski, head of Advanced Engineering at ZF and general manager of Zukunft Ventures GmbH.

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Denso to form Japanese joint venture for automated driving control software

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Aisin Seiki, Advics, JTEKT Corporation and Denso Corporation have formally agreed to form a new company to develop integrated control software that will be used for automated driving, vehicle motion control, and other related functions.

The new company, J-QuAD DYNAMICS,  will be established in April 2019. In August 2018, the four companies announced their basic agreement to establish a joint venture. Denso will take an almost two-thirds stake in the new company.

To achieve safe, secure, and widespread automated driving, a more sophisticated integrated vehicle control system is required to coordinate sensors, brakes, and steering systems.

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Continental develops global 5G-hybrid-V2X solution

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Continental is developing a flexible 5G hybrid platform that allows both mobile network communication, and rapid and reliable direct exchange of data, with a first customer already signed up.

Connected vehicles allow drivers and passengers access to state-of-the-art infotainment. They also have the potential to communicate real-time traffic updates and road hazards, and future safety assist functions by communicating directly with other vehicles or the infrastructure, making driving safer and more efficient.

To achieve this, Continental’s Hybrid V2X solution integrates technologies not only for 4G and 5G network access, but also Dedicated Short Range Communication (DSRC) and Cellular-V2X for direct V2X communication.

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Nissan unveils Invisible-to-Visible technology concept at CES

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At the CES trade show last week, Nissan unveiled its future vision for a vehicle that helps drivers “see the invisible” by merging both real and virtual worlds, creating the ultimate connected-car experience.

Invisible-to-Visible, or I2V, is a future technology created through Nissan Intelligent Mobility, the company’s vision for changing how cars are powered, driven and integrated into society. I2V demonstrated the future of driving to CES visitors through an interactive, three-dimensional immersion experience at Nissan’s display.

I2V will support drivers by merging information from sensors outside and inside the vehicle with data from the cloud. This enables the system not only to track the vehicle’s immediate surroundings but also to anticipate what’s ahead – even showing what’s behind a building or around the corner.

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