Mobileye to develop software, hardware and maps for self-driving VW ID. Buzz AD
21 March 2024
Following a pilot phase with road testing in Germany and the US, Volkswagen ADMT GmbH, part of Volkswagen AG, is announcing a cooperation agreement with the technology company Mobileye Global Inc. Mobileye will develop and supply software, hardware components and digital maps for the self-driving ID. Buzz AD.
The main part of the agreement covers delivery and use of a self-driving system (SDS) for a special version of the ID. Buzz, which has been under development for autonomous driving since 2021. It corresponds to the Level 4 definition of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), in which the autonomous vehicle operates self-driving in a defined area such as a city.
The basis for this is various software and hardware components, including two independent high-performance computers as well as 13 cameras, nine lidar and five radar units, each of which is capable of producing 360-degree surroundings. A constant online connection to clouds provides the autonomous vehicles with swarm data from other road users about the traffic situation as well as updates to the three-dimensional maps.
An advantage of the cooperation is the synergy with systems for automated driving in the Volkswagen group; depending on the expansion level, modules can be shared across SAE levels from 2+ to 4. The aim of Volkswagen ADMT GmbH is to develop the fully electric autonomous ID. Buzz AD for the use in mobility and transport services from 2026.
This also includes intelligent fleet control. The Volkswagen Group company MOIA has been operating Europe’s largest private ride pooling service in Hamburg since 2019 and has transported more than ten million passengers to date. MOIA brings its practical know-how into the development. Unlike individual (partially) autonomous cars, which are used individually by vehicle owners, mobility services are dedicated to transporting passengers to their desired destinations within the defined urban area and drop them off safely.
Another use case for self-driving vehicles is, for example, the transport of packages. The logistics market has grown significantly in recent years due to the increasing share of e-commerce. Delivery capacity is already one of the biggest challenges the industry is facing due to the driver shortage.
Autonomous transport will therefore be a possible solution to ensure long- term delivery capability and participate in market growth. Volkswagen ADMT GmbH is working intensively on autonomous freight transport for various industries as a second important pillar alongside autonomous passenger transport. In the future, autonomous vehicles shall be able to drive to certain loading and unloading stations or to customer addresses independently.
Autonomous VW electric vans seem like a good vehicles for delivery
in the suburbs and cities.
Posted by: SJC | 22 March 2024 at 06:35 PM