This Week in the Unmanned Systems and Robotics World
In association with JR East Group, Panasonic Corporation and Panasonic Production Engineering Co., Ltd. have launched a mobility service trial using Panasonic's robotic mobility device, an electric wheelchair with autonomous tracking function. The goal of the trial is to verify serviceability of the devices in a sunny, semi-outdoor environment. (Panasonic)
Mobility
Mobility
Navistar, TuSimple partner to co-develop SAE Level 4 self-driving semi-trucks
Navistar International Corporation and TuSimple have entered into a strategic partnership to co-develop SAE Level 4 self-driving semi-trucks targeted for production by 2024.
The strategic partnership is the result of a successful technical relationship between the companies for more than two years. Navistar has also taken a minority stake in TuSimple.
“Navistar’s strategic partnership with TuSimple positions us to be a leader in developing solutions for our customers by leveraging our organizations’ collective expertise to integrate our vehicle design and systems integration capabilities with TuSimple’s innovative autonomous technology,” says Persio Lisboa, president and CEO, Navistar.
Navya launches level 4 fully autonomous shuttle service in France
Navya has announced that on June 22, the company launched a level 4 fully autonomous shuttle service, which means there is no safety operator on board the vehicle.
In partnership with Keolis, the service launched at the National Sport Shooting Centre (NSSC) in Châteauroux, France. Since the launch of the service, the shuttle, known as the “Autonom Shuttle Evo,” has been operating within the National Shooting Sport Centre, providing athletes and visitors with a way to move from the car park to the reception area.
The shuttle operates at a maximum speed of 18 kilometers per hour along the 1.5-kilometer route.
Amazon acquires autonomous vehicle company Zoox
Amazon has signed an agreement to acquire autonomous vehicle company Zoox.
Described as a “forward-thinking team that is pioneering the future of ride-hailing by designing autonomous technology from the ground up with passengers front-of-mind,” Zoox will continue to operate as a standalone business under its current leadership of Aicha Evans, Zoox CEO, and Jesse Levinson, Zoox co-founder and CTO.
“Zoox is working to imagine, invent, and design a world-class autonomous ride-hailing experience,” says Jeff Wilke, Amazon’s CEO, Worldwide Consumer.
Breezy One disinfecting robot deployed at Albuquerque International Sunport airport
Fetch Robotics, Build with Robots and the City of Albuquerque, New Mexico have launched the Breezy One disinfecting autonomous mobile robot (AMR), which is designed to protect employees and passengers from both harmful pathogens and cleaning agents.
Described as the first platform to offer efficient, hands-free, and safe sanitization specifically designed for large scale facilities, Breezy One uses a patented, environmentally safe disinfectant to quickly, safely and effectively decontaminate spaces over 100,000 square feet in just 90 minutes. The disinfected space can be re-entered in as little as two hours with no harmful residue or risk to employees or passengers.
Venti Technologies deploys two autonomous SUVs in China
On Friday, June 12, safe-speed autonomous mobility company Venti Technologies announced that it successfully deployed two autonomous SUVs at a school at Nanning City, the capital of Guangxi Province, China.
The product of SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile (SGMW), the joint venture formed by Chinese automakers SAIC and Wuling, along with GM, the SUVs provide shuttle transportation services to students and visitors. They are booked via a hailing app for destinations along a 9-station loop, and run on a 3K loop in opposite directions.
WHILL's Autonomous Drive System to be used at Haneda International Airport to prevent spread of COVID-19
WHILL has announced that its WHILL Autonomous Drive System will be used at Haneda International Airport in
Pony.ai to equip its robotaxi fleet with the NVIDIA DRIVE AGX Pegasus platform
To meet the massive computing demands required to bring robotaxis to market, Pony.ai will equip its robotaxi fleet with the NVIDIA DRIVE AGX Pegasus platform, the company recently announced.
According to Pony.ai, DRIVE AGX Pegasus achieves an unprecedented 320 TOPS (trillions of operations per second) of deep learning. The platform integrates two NVIDIA Xavier SoCs and two NVIDIA Turing Tensor Core GPUs; both of which achieved top results in MLPerf Inference, the first industry-standard, independent AI benchmarks.
Weekend Roundup: May 15, 2020
This Week in the Unmanned Systems and Robotics World
To further commercialize its autonomous aerial vehicles (AAVs), EHang has entered into a strategic partnership with a Shenzhen-listed tourism platform company called LN Holdings. EHang will integrate its Urban Air Mobility (UAM) platforms into LN Holdings’ hotel/tourism businesses. (EHang)
Weekend Roundup: May 1, 2020
This Week in the Unmanned Systems and Robotics World
The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) is working with stakeholders across various communities to study challenging, dynamic scenarios involving automated driving systems. The collaborative team is also examining ways to facilitate communications between these systems and their supporting physical infrastructure. (Virginia Tech Daily)
