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Mechanical Technology — June 2016
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Modern transport and vehicle solutions
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China launches
advanced autonomous driving experiment
V
olvo Cars plans to launch China’s most advanced autonomous
driving experiment in which local drivers will test autonomous
driving cars on public roads in everyday driving conditions.
Volvo Cars expects the experiment to involve up to 100 cars and
will, in the coming months, begin negotiations with interested cities
in China to see which are able to provide the necessary permissions,
regulations and infrastructure to allow the experiment to go ahead.
Volvo believes the introduction of autonomous driving (AD)
technology promises to reduce car accidents as well as free-up
congested roads, reduce pollution and allow drivers to use time
spent in their cars more valuably.
The Swedish company, whose name has been synonymous with
automotive safety ever since it invented the seat belt in 1959, is
pioneering the development of autonomous driving systems as part
of its commitment that no one will be seriously injured or killed in
a new Volvo by the year 2020.
“Autonomous driving can make a significant contribution to
road safety,” Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive of
Volvo Cars told a seminar in Beijing in April, entitled ‘Autonomous
Driving – could China take the lead?’ “The sooner AD cars are on
the roads, the sooner lives will be saved.”
Samuelsson welcomed the positive steps that China has taken
to develop autonomous driving technologies, but also encouraged
the nation to do more to try and speed up the implementation of
the regulations that will oversee autonomous driving cars in future.
“There are multiple benefits to AD cars,” said Samuelsson. “That
is why governments need to put the necessary legislation in place
to allow AD cars onto the streets as soon as possible. The car in-
dustry cannot do it all by itself. We need governmental assistance.”
The introduction of AD cars promises to revolutionise China’s
roads in four main areas – safety, congestion, pollution and time.
Independent research has revealed that AD cars have the
potential to reduce the number of accidents significantly. Up to
90% of all accidents are caused by human error, something that
is eliminated by AD cars.
In terms of congestion, AD cars allow traffic to flow more
smoothly, reducing traffic jams and, by extension, decreasing
dangerous emissions and associated pollution. Reduced congestion
also saves drivers valuable time.
Samuelsson welcomes moves by regulators and car makers in
the US and Europe to develop AD cars and infrastructure, but he
also encourages all parties involved to work more constructively
together to avoid patchwork global regulations, technological du-
plication and needless expense.
“AD is not just about car technology. We need the right rules and
the right laws. It is natural for us to work together,” Samuelsson
concludes. “Our starting point is that both the public and private
sectors stand to benefit from new technologies and industries,
so it is better to build bridges and work together than to all go in
different directions.”
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Volvo aims to trial up to 100 new XC90s with its autonomous driving (AD) technology on Chinese roads this year – and its Pilot Assist II and semi-
autonomous driving capability will be a standard feature on this top-of-the-range SUV from 2017 on.
Inset:
Volvo’s autonomous driving interface, the
IntelliSafe Auto Pilot, is mooted to be “the best application thus far of a smooth transition between normal and automated driving”.
With I-Shift with crawler gears drivers can haul a heavy load without worry-
ing about getting into situations that may lead to costly standstills.
Depending on application area, I-Shift is available with one or
two forward crawler gears, and with or without two reverse crawler
gears. Reverse crawler gears make it possible to reverse extremely
slowly, which is a major advantage when reversing manoeuvres
require immense precision.
In a gearbox with one crawler gear the ratio is 19:1 in a direct-drive
gearbox, or 17:1 in an overdrive gearbox – the ratio of the lowest gear
in a regular I-Shift direct-drive gearbox being 15:1. In a direct-drive or
an overdrive gearbox with two crawler gears the lowest ratio is 32:1.
The ratio of the lowest reverse gear is 37:1 in a direct-drive gearbox.
All the models on the FH, FM and FMX ranges already use Volvo’s
I-Shift 12-speed automated mechanical gearbox without a clutch
pedal. Locally, this gearbox comes standard with special software
packages that have been designed for each specific industry segment
to save on fuel costs for fleet owners.
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