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News Roundup: Ford Teases All-New Hybrid-Electric Self-Driving Car, Ouster Puts Its Autonomous Drive Sensor Up For Sale Online, and More

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Jennifer van der Kleut

Ford teases all-new hybrid-electric car designed specifically as a self-driving model

Ford Motors’s executive vice-president of global products, Jim Farley, gave a small sneak-peek this week as to the company’s plans for a self-driving car. In a blog post posted on Medium, Farley said the company has been hard at work behind the scenes designing an entirely new hybrid-electric model to serve as the company’s flagship driverless car. Farley says it will be suited for commercial deployment in both ride-hailing and delivery fleets. Ford representatives plan to start testing these vehicles in 2018, and said they are currently on track for commercial deployment in 2021. The cars will reportedly be manufactured at the company’s Flat Rock Assembly Plant in southeastern Michigan. Read more from Car and Driver.

 

Ouster: Our self-driving Lidar sensor is better, cheaper, and you can buy it now

It’s no secret that there is intense competition in the driverless transportation industry for the software, hardware and sensors that allow vehicles to navigate without needing human drivers. One startup, Ouster, is making waves this week by announcing to the world that their Lidar sensor is better than anything else currently on the market, is less expensive, and, most notably, it’s available for purchase now. The San Francisco-based firm has put its spinning, 64-laser OS1 Lidar sensor up for sale on its website at a price of $12,000. What’s more, the startup said it has raised $27 million from investors like Ford Motors’s Bill Ford and Cox Enterprises to boost production in anticipation of orders. In comparison, one of the most popular sensors on the market today, Velodyne’s HDL-64 sells for $75,000, and Ouster says its sensor is lighter, smaller and more efficient. Some compare the size of Velodyne’s sensor to a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken, whereas Ouster’s sensor is half the size of a standard coffee mug. Read more about Ouster and its sensor from Forbes.

 

Apple exec shows off self-driving technology to large group of researchers

The usually secretive Apple gave a rare glimpse into its work on machine learning last week when the company’s director of artificial intelligence, Ruslan Salakhutdinov, entertained a large group of AI researchers during a conference. Salakhutdinov demonstrated how Apple uses machine learning as a technique for analyzing large stockpiles of data, and how it can be beneficial to self-driving vehicles. VoxelNet, Apple’s machine learning project that pertains to self-driving cars, can reportedly detect obstacles such as pedestrians and cyclists efficiently using 3D scans taken by lidar sensors, as well as cameras that can effectively track a car’s location in real-time. Salakhutdinov demonstrated how the VoxelNet software can detect pedestrians even when they are partially hidden behind parked cars, and during inclement weather when raindrops fell on the sensors. Read more from WIRED.

Image: Ouster sensor on a self-driving car navigating in the rain. / Credit: Ouster

News Roundup: Apple Publishes Self-Driving Car Research, Uber Makes Big Purchase For Self-Driving Fleet, and More

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Jennifer van der Kleut

Apple publishes snippets of its self-driving car research online

In spite of its highly secretive past when it comes to whether or not the company is investing in the development of self-driving technology, Apple scientists this week published some of their research findings online. The paper, written by Yin Zhou and Oncel Tuzel, was submitted to the Japanese news outlet arXiv. It mostly discusses the two scientists’ ideas as to how self-driving cars could better spot human obstacles such as pedestrians and cyclists while at the same time using fewer sensors using only LiDAR. Zhou and Tuzel call their newly-dreamt-up software approach “VoxelNet.” In April, Apple filed an application for the testing of self-driving vehicles in California. Read more from Reuters.

 

Uber inks deal to purchase 24,000 Volvos for self-driving fleet

As the company deals with major blowback over its alleged cover-up of the theft of 57 million users and drivers by hackers, Uber is still moving ahead with big plans. Namely, one of its big plans that made headlines this week was a billion-dollar-deal with Sweden’s Volvo Cars to purchase 24,000 of the automaker’s XC90s for the forming of its own self-driving fleet. Uber representatives will reportedly add their own sensors and software to the cars to give them the ability to operate “pilot-less.” Uber previously agreed to use 100 XC90s for self-driving tests in Pittsburgh. Read more from SFGate.

 

UK’s new budget includes big investment to get driverless cars on public roads within the next few years

The UK’s Treasury announced this week that the government is including millions of pounds in its next budget for technology, with a significant portion earmarked for the advancement of driverless vehicle technology. The package will reportedly include 75 million for “artificial intelligence,” 160 million for the development of 5G mobile technology, and 100 million for the training of more computer science teachers throughout the nation. Interestingly, a press release by the Treasury also promised “bold reforms” and a huge investment of 28 billion for the advancement of driverless technology that means “nobody behind the wheel.” In particular, the British company FiveAI, which develops self-driving software, is already hard at work aiming to have driverless cars on public roads by 2019, though still with humans behind the wheel for emergencies. However, within just two years after that, FiveAI representatives say they expect to have fully-autonomous cars ready for the public that would include “remote supervision.” Read more from BBC News.

Image by Uber

News Roundup: Waymo Gives Driverless Cars Ears As Well As Eyes, Russia Debuts Autonomous Grain Harvesters, and More

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Jennifer van der Kleut

A roundup of headlines to come out of the driverless and connected-car industries over the past week:

New self-driving technology by Google’s Waymo gives cars ears as well as eyes

Company representatives from Waymo say new technology they have developed checks off yet another box in the efficiency of driverless cars — being able to sense sound as well as physical objects in the car’s surroundings. Up until now, cars like those developed by Waymo have featured a series of cameras and Lidar and radar sensors to help visually detect obstacles in the car’s way, such as pedestrians, animals, changes in road conditions and the like; but then there’s the matter of sound. For example, human drivers usually hear disturbances like sirens from emergency vehicles or the screeching of tires that can signal a collision may be about to happen, before they see it. Waymo engineers said they felt being able to “hear” obstacles is almost as important as being able to see or sense them, so they have designed a stereoscopic microphone that can pick up sound from twice as far away as their previous cameras and sensors, and can also detect in which direction the sound is coming from, to help pinpoint the source. Test cars featuring the new microphone technology have already been deployed in Chandler, Arizona, and are already showing promise. The cars are already collecting a vast database of sounds from a variety of sources to help future vehicles recognize sounds even faster. Read more from WIRED magazine.

 

Autonomous trucks designed to protect road workers debut in Colorado

According to reports, being a road worker is one of the most dangerous jobs there is. Countless workers are injured or lose their lives every year as they are hit by vehicles in passing traffic while they perform maintenance or repair work on the side of the road. In Colorado last week, autonomous trucks debuted that are designed to follow behind road workers and act as a barrier to protect them. Typically, these types of trucks are driven by other workers, but even that proves dangerous as the trucks are often hit by cars, injuring or killing the drivers. The autonomous trucks now being tested in Colorado are electronically “tethered” to another truck in front of them, and are programmed to immediately pull over if that electronic tether is broken or disconnects. The trucks and their underlying technology were developed by Pennsylvania-based Royal Truck & Equipment, in partnership with Colas UK out of Britain. Read more and see video footage from KGWN-TV.

 

Autonomous grain harvesters debut in Russia

Russia has debuted what is believed to be the world’s first autonomous grain harvester. The machine was designed by Cognitive Technologies and drives itself through a field, pulling up grain-a task that used to be controlled by a human driver/operator. The debut of the machine, called the Rostselmash RSM 181 Torum, took place in Rostov in southeastern Russia. Company spokesperson Andrey Zuev said the machine took five years to develop and is much lower cost than other types of driverless vehicles to build and operate, mostly due to the fact that it only requires a single video camera to detect obstacles and seek out grain to harvest. The machine’s single video camera can sense all five types of obstacles needed to do its job - grain (even as short as 30cm), edges and rows, sloping ground, parts of the machine that are in the path of the camera, and all other objects such as other machines, trees, non-grain plants and more. Cognitive Technologies expects its Rostselmash autonomous grain harvester to be ready for mass production by 2023-24. Read more from Grain Central.

Image: Autonomous trucks follow and protect road workers in Colorado / Credit: CBS

News Roundup: Mobileye and Delphi Promise Level 4 or 5 Automation By 2019, Uber Makes 3 Calculated Autonomous-Car Moves in One Short Week, and More

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Jennifer van der Kleut

A roundup of some of the most interesting headlines from the driverless and connected-car industries over the past few days.

Mobileye and Delphi Automotive announce plans to leap-frog competitors and achieve Level 4-5 automation by 2019

Auto technology supplier Delphi Automotive and sensor manufacturer Mobileye made a big announcement Tuesday. The two are partnering up for autonomous cars, and made the bold pledge to offer a car capable of at least Level 4 automation-and possibly even Level 5-by 2019, which would likely put them at least a year or more ahead of major competitors such as Google, Tesla and Ford. Level 4 automation, on a scale that goes up to 5, would mean the car could completely drive itself in almost every situation, with little to no assistance. The two companies said they plan to have their product ready to show off at the next Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas in 2017, and be completely production-ready by 2019. Read more about the Mobileye-Delphi announcement on USA Today.

 

Uber makes three bold moves in one week in an effort to push past Google on driverless cars

Ride-hailing supergiant Uber had a busy week last week, moving several puzzle pieces into place to secure itself a slot ahead of Google in the driverless car race. In one short week, the company purchased Otto, the self-driving truck company started by former Google execs; launched a pilot program to try out driverless taxis able to be hailed via an app in Pittsburgh; and ponied up $300 million to secure a partnership with Volvo to design and manufacture autonomous cars by 2021. Read more about Uber’s busy week on Forbes.

 

Intel shows off its intent to get in on the autonomous car industry during San Francisco developer forum

Intel is best known for its computer chips, but the tech giant made it clear during its developer forum in San Francisco last week that it has eggs in several technology baskets at once-including that of autonomous cars. Intel showed off its research and development work in several areas such as Internet of Things and many facets of the autonomous car world such as in-vehicle technology, communications and analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning and human-machine interfacing during the forum. Read more about the roughly one dozen demos Intel hosted on Post and Parcel.

News Roundup: Apple Secures First Vehicle Patent, Google Driverless Exec Quits, and More

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Jennifer van der Kleut

A roundup of headlines from the driverless and connected-car worlds so far this week:

Apple finally secures its first vehicle patent - but it’s not what we expected

After much of the industry has been holding its breath, waiting for the first real, confirmed news of an Apple car, news finally came on Tuesday-but it’s not what any of us expected. Apple’s new patent is for an “articulated vehicle,” and as oApple-articulated-vehicle-patent-2ne reporter described the plans, it looks like a European-style “bendy bus” with a pivoting mechanism connecting the front and back cabins. Some are saying this could help vehicles steer more efficiently in ice and snow, and would help funnel brake fluid, hydraulics, cardan shaft or other important components through a large vehicle. So while it’s not the self-driving smart car many in the industry were hoping for, as one Gizmodo reporter said, “at least we know Apple engineers are working on things like how vehicles are controlled.” Read the full article on Gizmodo.

Big news from Google: Self-driving car exec leaving the project

Reuters reported big news on Monday: Chris Urmson, who has led Google’s self-driving car initiative for the past seven and a half years, announced Friday will be his last day with the project. Reuters said he has been considering the departure for a while and now is making the move. Urmson said on Twitter he is ready for a “fresh challenge” and the chance to gain some perspective from outside of Google. This is the latest in many departures from Google’s self-driving car project-Anthony Levandowski, the project manager, left earlier this year to launch his own startup with two other former Google employees. Read Reuters’ full story.

Israeli autonomous car Lidar manufacturer raises $9 million

Innoviz, an Israeli company that manufacturers Lidar sensors for autonomous cars, announced this week it has secured $9 million in funding to continue its work. The company’s technology is called High Definition Solid State Lidar and, according to the company, it enables a high level of performance and accuracy compared with other current mechanical solutions. Innoviz says this technology will serve as the basis for the entire sensing system required for autonomous driving. Read more about Innoviz from Globes English.

 

‘Olli’ the Self-Driving Bus Debuts in Maryland

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Jennifer van der Kleut

The company Local Motors says autonomous driving may not be as far in the future as many are saying. In fact, their self-driving shuttle “Olli” is ready to hit the roads safely now-all that’s needed is the legal permission to do so.

Local Motors introduced Olli last week on Thursday, June 16 to much fanfare. It is now ready to begin testing at the expansive, popular shopping area called National Harbor in Maryland, just outside Washington D.C.

Olli can seat 12 people, and can be summoned with an app similar to Uber or Lyft, explains Phys.org.

One of the most amazing facts about Olli? It can be “printed” via a 3-D printer in a factory in a matter of a few hours.

“We hope to be able to print this vehicle in about 10 hours and assemble it in another hour,” said Local Motors co-founder and chief executive, John Rogers. He told Phys.org he envisions hundreds of “micro-factories” producing the vehicles around the world, for markets that are ready for them.

Rogers said the shuttles are ready for deployment as soon as laws and regulations will allow them.

Over the next few months, Olli will begin public testing at National Harbor, and is expected to hit other areas like Las Vegas and Miami, as well as international spots like Berlin, Copenhagen and Canberra, Australia in the future.

Olli uses the interface Watson by IBM, which allows users to have “conversations” with Olli, such as to name their destination.

“A vehicle that understands human language, where you can walk in and say, ‘I’d like to get to work’ — that lets you as a passenger relax and enjoy your journey,” Rogers explained.

The vehicle relies on more than 30 sensors and streams of data from IBM’s cloud, Phys.org reports.

“With Watson, passengers can ask about how the vehicle works, where they are going, and why Olli is making specific driving decisions,” Phys.org says. “And it can answer the dreaded driver question, ‘Are we there yet?'”

It also can offer recommendations for popular restaurants or historical sites based on the personal preferences of the passenger.

Rogers said Las Vegas has already purchased two shuttles, and they are in negotiations with Miami-Dade for testing as well. All in all, they have had or are currently in discussions with 50 locations across the globe.

According to CNBC, a Local Motors spokespersons says it is quite possible that several hundred Ollis could be on public roads in different locations by the end of this year.

How Ford’s New Driverless Car Algorithm Can ‘See’ Raindrops and Snowflakes

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Jennifer van der Kleut

There have been several news reports about the progress Ford Motor Co. is making in helping their driverless test cars to perform safely in inclement weather such as rain, snow and ice.

A new report says they have taken that progress to a new level, with a special algorithm that allows the car to “see” falling rain, snow or ice.

As Quartz explains, “Ford’s autonomous cars rely on LiDAR sensors that emit short bursts of lasers as they drive along. The car pieces together these laser bursts to create a high-resolution 3D map of the environment. The new algorithm allows the car to analyze those laser bursts and their subsequent echoes to figure out whether they’re hitting raindrops or snowflakes.”

In other words, Ford’s autonomous software is becoming so advanced, it can now sense the difference between different things in the environment surrounding the moving car, such as potholes, obstacles in the road, and even different types of precipitation.

As Quartz explains, it all allows Ford’s systems to create a more detailed, complete picture of its surroundings.

“When a laser goes through the rain or snow, part of it will hit a raindrop or snowflake, and the other part will likely be diverted towards the ground. The algorithm, by listening to the echoes from the diverted lasers, builds up a picture of the ‘ground plane’ as a result, said Jim McBride, technical leader for autonomous vehicles at Ford.”

Ironically, as The Inquirer explains, “Ford got a little too good with Lidar sensors and found they were identifying snowflakes and raindrops as obstacles. This returned false information to the autonomous system, giving the impression that precipitation should be avoided.”

So, Ford partnered with the University of Michigan to help develop and fine-tune the new technology.

The Inquirer reports, the technology is also proving helpful in other ways. For example, the sensors can sense landmarks and other points of interest on the horizon, and “these are then contrasted against the 3D map information, which Ford claims is able to provide more accurate positioning than GPS.”

Check out some of the new technology, which Ford has affectionately dubbed “Snowtonomy,” in their video below.

 

Self-Driving Fords Could Be on Phoenix Roads by Summer

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Jennifer van der Kleut

Some may not realize, in addition to racking up miles at Michigan’s Mcity testing ground, Ford Motor Co. has also been logging plenty of miles at another testing ground - the Arizona Proving Ground.

Now, after what they say has been countless hours of successful testing around the Proving Ground, located in Wittman outside Phoenix, media are reporting that self-driving Fords could be ready to hit public roads by this summer.

KPNX 12 News in Phoenix obtained video of a self-driving Ford Fusion navigating real-world road situations at the Proving Ground this week, and posted it on its website.

The video shows “a hands- free safety driver driving seamlessly through various road features thanks to multiple onboard sensors and cameras,” KPNX said.

Ford researcher Jim McBride said Ford is pleased with how all tests have been going, and is confident their cars will be attractive to the public - and, above all, safe.

“Every time I’ve had someone ride in the car,  within five minutes, they’ve completely forgotten that a computer is driving them around,” McBride said to KPNX. “And their next question is, ‘When can I buy one?'”

The Phoenix Business Journal points out that Ford has made a point to test its self-driving cars in extreme conditions, such as ice and snow in Michigan, and now in the sun, heat and dirt of Arizona.

McBride told the Business Journal will head to California next. Ford previously opened a research and development center in Silicon Valley.

“It’s nice to test the car in sunshine, but every place presents unique challenges,” he said. “Eventually we want to drive everywhere, but first we have to go out and map everything. The algorithm development is first.”

McBride also told the Journal that its autonomous car project is close to entering the “advanced development” phase, at which point the company will triple the number of autonomous test cars in its fleet.

McBride said Ford is confident that its car is on track to be available to the public within four to five years-but that safety is important above all else.

“We’re more concerned with safety and the mass market than getting it out first,” he said.

Nissan Brings Us Self-Driving……Chairs?

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Jennifer van der Kleut

Japan may not have self-driving cars loose on public roads yet-but they at least have self-driving chairs.

Yes, we said chairs! In a new video uploaded to YouTube, Nissan shows off its latest creation-office chairs that reset themselves to their original position, tucked into a table or desk, at just the clap of your hands.

Nissan’s fancy, autonomous “smart chairs” can reset themselves either with or without a human sitting in them.

In a press release, Nissan explains the new technology behind the chairs, which they say was inspired by self-parking technology they are already working on in cars.

The system appears to function with sensors on each chair that pair up with wireless cameras placed on the room’s ceiling.

“The ‘Intelligent Parking Chair’ is a unique chair that automatically moves to a set position,” Nissan’s press release states. “The chair includes a roller to automatically move 360 degrees, paired with a system that indicates the target position. Four cameras placed on the room’s ceiling generate a bird’s-eye view to wirelessly transmit the chair’s position and its route to destination.”

When the chairs are empty, someone can clap their hands and all the chairs in the room will automatically guide themselves back into position at the table, as Nissan’s video illustrates.

When someone is in the chair, he or she appears to be able to use controls, similar to those on an electric wheelchair, to guide themself back into position at the table.

Though they call the self-parking chairs a “novelty,” Tech Times said, “It’s proof that autonomous vehicle technology has implications far beyond the automotive field.”

Tech Times points out that the smart chair technology could prove particularly valuable for large rooms like auditoriums and cafeterias.

See Toyota’s self-parking smart chairs in action in their YouTube video:

 

Testing Driverless Cars in Snowy Winter Weather - Check!

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Jennifer van der Kleut

It’s an announcement industry followers have been waiting for.

Finally, a company that is heavily invested in autonomous and connected-car technology is putting it to the test in extreme weather.

Ford Motor Co., together with the University of Michigan, announced this week that the partners have been testing the technology in snowy, icy winter weather over the past month, and will continue.

As Forbes points out, one of the factors that makes Michigan an ideal location for testing autonomous cars is the widely varying weather from season to season-that and, of course, the fact that the University has Mcity, its 32-acre testing ground with a fake cityscape, built specifically for testing autonomous and connected-car technology.

One burning question that industry professionals have long been asking is how well autonomous car technology would fare in extreme weather when rain, snow or ice might obstruct cameras and sensors. As WIRED puts it, “Radar and LIDAR do most of the work looking for other cars, pedestrians, and other obstacles, while cameras typically read street signs and lane markers.”

If those systems are obstructed, one could find himself in a dangerous situation. This is why many are eager to hear how Ford’s tests are going.

Jim McBride, Ford’s head of autonomous research, told WIRED that Ford creates a high-fidelity, 3D map of the area its test car is going to travel before a test drive. This form of “self-locating” helps its cars compensate in inclement weather conditions.

According to McBride, “Those maps include details like the exact position of the curbs and lane lines, trees and signs, along with local speed limits and other relevant rules. The more a car knows about an area, the more it can focus its sensors and computing power on detecting temporary obstacles—like people and other vehicles—in real time.”

News like this sheds light on why high-profile deals and partnerships with mapping and navigation companies like TomTom and Nokia’s HERE are such big business right now, and why industry analysts think Google’s acquisition of traffic tracking app Waze a few years ago will prove to be a big boon in the driverless race.

All in all, McBride told WIRED he is very confident Ford’s tests in snow and ice will go well.

“We’re able to drive perfectly well in snow,” he said.