All that happened in the field of Autonomous vehicles, Connected Vehicles, Electric Vehicles and Shared Mobility in May?2020

Below are some of the developments that took place in last month (May 2020) in the field of Autonomous vehicles, Connected Vehicles, Electric Vehicles and Shared Mobility:

Autonomous vehicles might prevent only around a third of all crashes: A new study from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety suggests that only about a third of those crashes were the result of mistakes that automated vehicles would be expected to avoid simply because they have more accurate perception than human drivers and aren’t vulnerable to incapacitation. To avoid the other two-thirds, they would need to be specifically programmed to prioritize safety over speed and convenience.

Nuro and CVS partner on Autonomous Prescription Deliveries: This first-of-its-kind partnership utilizes fleet of autonomous vehicles to deliver prescriptions and essentials across three zip codes in Houston, Texas. CVS customers in the Houston pilot area can place prescription orders on the website or app. If they select the autonomous delivery option, one of Nuro’s autonomous Prius vehicles will deliver the purchase curbside at the customer’s address within three hours. To ensure the security of their prescriptions, customers will need to confirm their identification to unlock their delivery when autonomous vehicle arrives.

Hyundai Motor and Sony Pictures Entertainment partner: The companies have entered into a multi-picture promotional partnership that will feature the automaker’s new models and technologies in upcoming Sony Pictures productions. Under the deal Hyundai Motor will also offer substantial marketing support and the companies will collaborate on a wide range of ancillary content-creation. The partnership will marry Sony Pictures IP with Hyundai Motor’s technology and designs, building on the cinematic quality of the studio’s big-screen fare and bringing to life the automaker’s human-centered future mobility. The partnership will also offer a wide range of opportunities to leverage Sony Pictures IP for marketing content and immersive entertainment, collaborate on infrastructure and vehicular concepts for Sony Pictures movies, co-create virtual reality and gaming experiences, and co-produce events, among other opportunities.  

Amazon may buy the self-driving vehicle startup Zoox. According to some reports, the company is in advanced talks with the startup which is building a platform that would allow customers to hail self-driving taxis using a mobile app. There have been reports that Amazon is working internally on its autonomous delivery infrastructure therefore if this acquisition takes place it would be a significant step in this direction.

Capgemini and Audi launch new Joint Venture: The company named XL2 will support the automotive industry in digital transformation tasks. The joint venture will focus on consulting and technology services for cloud and SAP S/4HANA? includes industry solutions such as SAP Leonardo?. XL2 is designed to enable end-to-end digital manufacturing, covering all central processes, including production planning, logistics, finance, maintenance, quality and materials management. XL2 combines an agile start-up culture reinforced by two global industry-leaders. The company's goal is to expand its project business gradually and achieve a powerful workforce within the next five years.

Didi Chuxing raised more than $500 million in funding for its autonomous driving division. The round that was led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2. The company plans to use the funding for research and development and accelerating the launch of driverless vehicle services in China and other countries.

Strategic Partnership between Continental and Pioneer on New User Experience: Continental will integrate Pioneer’s entire infotainment subdomain into its high-performance computer for vehicle cockpits as part of the agreement. Integration of such extensive software packages into a complex overall solution such as the cockpit high performance computer (HPC) will offer vehicle manufacturers a much greater degree of flexibility regarding the development of cockpit systems which is crucial for future developments.

Volkswagen AG recently closed on its $2.6 billion investment in Argo AI. With the close of this agreement, and now Volkswagen and Ford integrating Argo AI’s self-driving system into their vehicles, Agro AI beomes only self-driving technology platform company with partnerships and commercial agreements for deployment across the U.S. and Europe. Munich will be the company’s fifth engineering center along with Detroit, Palo Alto, and Cranbury, N.J.

Vitesco Technologies and ROHM to cooperate on Silicon Carbide Power Solutions: Vitesco Technologies will use SiC components to further increase the efficiency of its power electronics for electric vehicles (EV). Through their higher efficiency SiC semiconductors make better use of the electric energy stored in a vehicle battery. Thus, an EV has a longer range, or the battery cost can be reduced without impacting the range.  The company is already developing and testing SiC technology in an 800-volt inverter concept to confirm the efficiency potential of the technology. The approach of this program is to look at the complete system of inverter and motor to identify the best combination of device technology and switching strategy. 

Volkswagen starts development of climate projects for CO2 compensation: The Volkswagen Group and the project developer Permian Global have signed a Joint Development Agreement to create climate protection projects. With the support of Permian Global, the Group will begin developing climate protection projects to protect tropical forests in the second half of 2020. Following successful verification, the avoided deforestation and restoration of endangered forests will lock away carbon and deliver carbon credits that will be used to compensate for CO2 emissions from the supply chain, production and logistics of vehicle, as long as these CO2 emissions cannot be avoided and renewable energies cannot be used currently.

Mitsubishi and NTT have now 30% stake in HERE Technologies. Mitsubishi Corporation (MC) and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) of Japan have completed their joint acquisition of a 30% ownership stake in the company, after receiving regulatory approvals. The company believes that this investment will further accelerate growth in the Asia Pacific region.

RoboSense LiDAR partners with DT Mobile: RoboSense, an autonomous driving LiDAR perception solution provider, has teamed up with DT Mobile, the China’s communication equipment manufacturer, on the deployment of the Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) solution based on the MEMS solid-state LiDAR in Xiong'an New Area, Hebei China.

APCOA and HERE to partner on joint digital parking initiative: APCOA PARKING, one of Europe’s leading parking operator, and HERE Technologies, a location data and technology platform, announced plans for a strategic technology and commercial partnership. Both companies intend to develop and commercialize digital parking services and HD indoor maps of parking facilities in Europe. To this end, they plan to combine their complementary capabilities in parking and mapping to jointly pursue business opportunities in the automotive and urban mobility sectors. 

Scale AI is launching PandaSet, a new open-source dataset, for training machine learning (ML) models for autonomous driving released in partnership with the LiDAR manufacturer Hesai. The dataset will include both mechanical spinning and forward-facing LiDARs (Hesai’s Pandar64 and PandarGT)—allowing ML teams to take advantage of the latest technologies. It is also the first to be released without any major restrictions on its commercial use.

Voyage has teamed up with FCA to accelerate deployment of fully driverless cars. The company has integrated its self-driving technology into a purpose-built Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid, developed specifically by FCA for the integration of automated technology. This partnership connects Voyage’s self-driving technology with FCA’s deep expertise in building vehicles to launch truly driverless transportation services. As part of this collaboration, Voyage and FCA will jointly adapt and validate the connections between the self-driving software, sensors, and embedded systems.

Intel Corporation recently has acquired Moovit, a mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) solutions company. The deal took place for approximately $900 million. Moovit offers travelers multimodal trip planning by combining public transportation, bicycle and scooter services, ride-hailing, and car-sharing through its urban mobility application. The addition of Moovit brings Intel’s Mobileye closer to achieving its plan to become a complete mobility provider, including robotaxi services.

Cerence launches Cerence ARK Assistant:  The new turnkey automotive voice assistant in U.S. English is built on Cerence voice- and AI-based innovations and expands upon the company’s initial off-the-shelf assistant for the Chinese market that launched late last year. The company plans to deliver the product in additional languages as well.

Lotus and Centrica partner to redesign electric vehicle ownership: Centrica, the parent company of British Gas, and British motor manufacturer Lotus are working together to develop a new model for electric vehicle ownership that fully integrates future mobility and energy. By making the car an extension of the home, capable of storing electricity, minimising emissions and generating new income by providing services to the energy market, the companies aim to redefine the customer relationship with cars – one controlled by smart devices at home and on the move.

Volvo Cars will now provide LiDAR and perception technology its next generation cars. For this the company has partnered with tech firm Luminar. The partnership will deliver Volvo’s first fully self-driving technology for highways and paves the way for future active safety developments. Volvo Cars’ next generation SPA 2 modular vehicle architecture will be available as hardware-ready for autonomous drive from production start in 2022, with the Luminar LiDAR seamlessly integrated into the roof.

Identity Platform on the Blockchain for Autonomous Vehicles: South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT has joined hands with Korea Internet & Security Agency for establishing a blockchain-based platform for storing and verifying the digital identities of self-driving vehicles.

Aptiv and Hyundai Motor Group have formed an autonomous driving joint venture. The 50/50 JV is aimed at advancing the companies’ shared vision of making mobility more safe, green, connected, and accessible. It will leverage Hyundai Motor Group’s design, engineering, and manufacturing expertise and Aptiv’s autonomous driving solutions to commercialize a SAE Level 4/5 platform for robotaxi providers, fleet operators, and automotive manufacturers. The JV will be headquartered in Boston with technology centers across the United States and Asia. The companies have not announced the name of the JV yet.

Renovo has selected Parasoft's C/C++test and its Automotive Compliance Pack. Renovo will utilize Parasoft C/C++test to achieve vital safety and quality goals for their data management platform used for ADAS unified solutions to ensure automotive software safety and security compliance. Parasoft is a known name in automated software testing space, and Renovo, the global automotive software and data company

ZF acquires WABCO: The acquisition of Commercial vehicle technology supplier WABCO unites two industry leaders. The extensive combined product portfolio now encompasses conventional and electric drive and chassis components, a comprehensive suite of sensors as well as fully integrated, advanced braking, steering and driver assistance systems for OEMs seeking technological differentiation for their new vehicle platforms. Additionally, ZF can offer digital fleet management solutions and an extensive global network of aftermarket services for commercial vehicles.

Idriverplus has been included into the Automated with Velodyne integrator ecosystem, which helps companies grow their businesses while using Velodyne lidar technology. Through the program, the company will further collaborate with Idriverplus to support its continued innovation and promote Idriverplus autonomous vehicles, including street cleaners, passenger cars and logistics vehicles.

Wafer-Level Camera Module: OmniVision Technologies, a developer of advanced digital imaging solutions, launched OVM9284 Camera Cube Chip module—an automotive-grade, wafer-level camera. According to the company, this 1 megapixel (MP) module has a compact size and can provide driver monitoring system (DMS) designers with flexibility on placement within the cabin while remaining hidden from view. Additionally, it also claims to have lowest power consumption among automotive camera modules.

Based on Press Releases by different companies

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