Weekend Roundup

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This Week in the Unmanned Systems and Robotics World

U.S. law firm Fisher Phillips has launched its Autonomous Vehicles Practice Group, which will seek to help guide employers through emerging workplace issues that could begin as a result of the rapid advancements in autonomous vehicle technology. According to Fisher Phillips, the Autonomous Vehicles Practice Group is the “first practice group of its kind among the nation’s leading labor and employment law firms representing employers that will focus entirely on the technology’s impact on the workplace and workforce.” (Fisher Phillips)

The city of Grand Rapids, Michigan is considering partnering with May Mobility to bring a driverless shuttle to the city for a one-year pilot program starting next March. The shuttle would provide free rides to riders for a one-year period through March 2020, with a right to renew for additional years. (MLive.com)

According to the California Department of Motor Vehicles, via macReports, Apple now has 70 self-driving cars approved for testing in the state. Apple has added four self-driving cars to its fleet since macReport’s last report on July 18. (macReports)

​The truck fleet at Vale's Brucutu mine in Minas Gerais will become fully autonomous next year. This decision comes after a successful seven-vehicles-trial in which the volume of ore transported at the site increased by 26 percent in just a month. (Mining.com)

Intsite, which is a Tel Aviv-based startup, has announced a $1.35 million pre-seed round to fund what it is calling the world’s first autonomous crane technology. Intsite's automated controls can reportedly improve the cranes’ precision by as much as 30 percent. (VentureBeat)

Australia's first on-demand driverless car was recently revealed in Perth, Australia. The car is expected to undergo trials at the Royal Automobile Club of Western Australia’s private Perth Airport facility, before heading to public roads in the first half of next year. (The Sydney Morning Herald)

In preparation for the Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE final, the GEBCO-Nippon Foundation Alumni Team recently completed its first 24-hour sea trials. Several operating protocols and procedures were assessed during the sea-trials. (Marine Technology News)

In an effort to support driverless car research in Toronto, Uber Technologies Inc. has announced that it will invest more than $150 million in the Canadian city. The investment includes opening an engineering hub in Toronto early next year, and expanding Uber’s Advanced Technologies Group, which is developing a lot of the company’s autonomous vehicle technology. (Bloomberg)

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