Electric scooters are inundating cities, and for good reason. They’re relatively easy to use, accessible, cheap and even a fun means of traveling short distances. And yet, scooters aren’t infallible. For one, it’s nearly impossible to use hand signals, a problem that jacks up the danger factor of these increasingly popular devices. Audi introduced an… Continue reading Audi’s new scooter might actually solve a major problem with scooters
Category: Automotive
Automotive marketplace Carro acquires Indonesia’s Jualo, extends Series B to $90M
Carro, an automotive marketplace and car financing startup based in Singapore, said it has raised $30 million to extend and close its $90 million Series B financing round and acquired Indonesia-based marketplace Jualo as it looks to further scale its business in Southeast Asia. The Series B round, for which Carro raised $60 million last… Continue reading Automotive marketplace Carro acquires Indonesia’s Jualo, extends Series B to $90M
BMW reveals steering wheel for self-driving iNext electric SUV
Once cars are able to drive themselves, drivers—er, occupants—shouldn't need steering wheels to control them.
Yet when BMW teased a new picture of its planned self-driving, electric iNext SUV last month, the photo showed nothing more than a steering wheel—which itself is not even round.
BMW says that in the iNext the driver is no longer required to take care of the task of driving but can still actively take command at any time. When drivers need to take over from the automated system, the off-center octagonal wheel will help drivers identify where it's pointed.
With the hub below center, it leaves more room for those in the driver's seat to slide in and out—and potentially to open a book or boot up a tablet in their laps. The company says the large opening at the top will also make it easier to see the gauges, although it's not really clear what they'll need to see when the car is driving itself.
BMW says the design was inspired by racing cars. It's flat at the top and bottom with curved hand rests at the sides. Fiber optics in the wheel will illuminate sections in different colors to indicate when the car can drive itself and when drivers need to retake the “wheel.”
BMW Vision iNext concept
The iNext is a large electric SUV that is scheduled to debut in 2022 as one of the most advanced cars in BMW's new round of 13 electric vehicles expected to debut by 2023. When it arrives it could be known as the i5 or the i7.
As BMW's first planned self-driving car, the company experimented with lounge seating and other new interior ideas for the iNext concept car.
BMW curved display in iNext SUV
Last month, the company teased pictures of the car's curved touch-screen display perching on the edge of the dashboard like the center screen of the Tesla Model 3.
It's designed to mimic the latest curved EV screens for more seamless entertainment while on the road. The touch screen will also monitor trip parameters and let drivers know when they need to take over and when they can let the car do the driving.
With all this new technology, the iNext may be on track to become BMW's first “ultimate riding machine.”
Electronic Design Coverage: Velodyne Powers Autonomous Street Sweepers in China
August 1, 2019 While lidar technology in self-driving cars garners much attention, the technology supports several vehicle applications including street sweepers. Murray Slovick of Electronic Design wrote an article on a street cleaning vehicle from Idriverplus, called “Viggo,” which is an unmanned, purely electric solution that intelligently sweeps roads. The article notes: “Velodyne Lidar sensors… Continue reading Electronic Design Coverage: Velodyne Powers Autonomous Street Sweepers in China
Forbes Covers Velodyne Lidar’s Mapper Acquisition
July 30, 2019 The combination of Velodyne lidar hardware and emerging software capabilities is poised to revolutionize advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) performance and safety. In an article in Forbes Magazine, Liane Yvkoff wrote that Velodyne Lidar acquired mapping and localization software as well as intellectual property assets from Mapper.ai. Mapper technology gives Velodyne access… Continue reading Forbes Covers Velodyne Lidar’s Mapper Acquisition
MADD Teams with Velodyne Lidar for a Second Year to Advance Understanding of Autonomous Vehicle Technology
July 30, 2019 Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) is proud to partner for a second year with Silicon Valley-based Velodyne Lidar, Inc., a market leader of real-time 3D perception systems used in a variety of commercial applications, including autonomous vehicles. The partnership continues a public education effort across the country on the safety benefits of… Continue reading MADD Teams with Velodyne Lidar for a Second Year to Advance Understanding of Autonomous Vehicle Technology
Report: Honda Clarity PHEV Sales Now Limited To Only California
Is this why sales have declined sharply in the past few months? Honda has reportedly pulled the Clarity PHEV out of widespread availability by limiting distribution to just ZEV states before pulling back the Clarity Plug-In Hybrid even more by making it a California-only offering. Here’s one thread on the situation, but other reports sent… Continue reading Report: Honda Clarity PHEV Sales Now Limited To Only California
Didi Chuxing Spins Off its Autonomous Driving Unit as an Independent Company – FutureCar
author: Eric Walz Didi Chuxing, the world’s largest transportation provider, announced that it has spun off its autonomous driving unit into an independent company. Didi said new unit will continue to focus on research and development, product application, and business development related to autonomous driving technologies. DiDi’s CTO, Zhang Bo, will lead the new autonomous… Continue reading Didi Chuxing Spins Off its Autonomous Driving Unit as an Independent Company – FutureCar
RoboSense partners with ControlWorks to provide Smart LiDAR sensor system to Korean automotive industry – Green Car Congress
RoboSense, a supplier of LiDAR perception systems for autonomous driving, and ControlWorks, a provider of automotive electronics systems in Korea, will partner to provide RoboSense‘s Smart LiDAR Sensor Systems to Korean OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, etc. ControlWorks will provide localized sales channels, product services and technical support for the Korean market. Targeted to Level 3+… Continue reading RoboSense partners with ControlWorks to provide Smart LiDAR sensor system to Korean automotive industry – Green Car Congress
Geely Owned Volvo Unveil Cars Containing Recycled Cobalt Tracked On Blockchain – Coinrevolution.com
The world’s first cars to use recycled cobalt whose supply chain is tracked on Blockchain has been produced by Volvo. The global car maker that is owned by a Chinese firm – Geely used recycled cobalt. This strategy could guarantee the brand a positive reception in a market that is becoming more concerned and involved… Continue reading Geely Owned Volvo Unveil Cars Containing Recycled Cobalt Tracked On Blockchain – Coinrevolution.com