Singapore A*STAR lab and BYD to collaborate on developing EVs with autonomous capabilities
29 January 2014
Singapore’s A*STAR’s Institute for Infocomm Research (I2R) and BYD Company Limited have signed a joint laboratory agreement to develop electric vehicles with autonomous vehicle sensors to advance clean technology in Singapore’s transport system.
The joint laboratory will leverage I2R’s expertise in integrating autonomous vehicle (AV) technologies and BYD’s electric vehicle (EV) capabilities to develop:
A drive-by-wire system in BYD’s electric cars using electronic controls to activate the brakes, control the steering and operate other systems in the vehicles.
An autonomous vehicle fleet management system that can dynamically allocate AV resources based on real time information or vehicle-location, route, and origin-destination information.
As Singapore’s largest ICM (information and communication management) research institute, I2R will implement its primary autonomous vehicle sensory system that collects data on AV intelligence and AV fleet management in these electric vehicles.
These data will be useful for the AV systems to learn situation awareness in the context of Singapore traffic rules, road environment and to make intelligent judgements based on predicted and typical responses of drivers. This will enable the driverless system to co-exist seamlessly, predictably and safely with human-driven vehicles in the future.
I2R is very proud to be able to attract BYD, one of China's largest companies specializing in electric vehicles to invest in Singapore and jointly develop more than one hundred electric cars with autonomous capabilities for test-bedding purposes. With I2R’s expertise in the autonomous vehicle technologies, BYD’s vast experience in electric vehicles and strong support from the relevant Singapore authorities, we hope to benefit the transport industry in Singapore and countries all over the world.
—Dr. Lee Shiang Long, Executive Director of I2R
This is good news for future autonomous electrified vehicles.
Autonomous drive e-taxis together with appropriate automated dispatch system could maximize passenger loading and reduce the number of taxis required. It could help to reduce traffic in Singapore and many other large cities.
Many would get used to share a cab for part of the way and save etc. Others would not and would prefer to pay more.
Posted by: HarveyD | 29 January 2014 at 04:20 PM