Automotive – Page 50782 – I wish I had more to offer

The new Sprinter is the ideal partner for the construction site.

Recommended Kraftstoffverbrauch kombiniert CO₂-Emissionen kombiniert Stromverbrauch im kombinierten Testzyklus Product may vary after press date on 28.11.2018. 1 Die angegebenen Werte wurden nach dem vorgeschriebenen Messverfahren ermittelt. Es handelt sich um die „NEFZ-CO₂-Werte“ i. S. v. Art. 2 Nr. 1 Durchführungsverordnung (EU) 2017/1153. Die Kraftstoffverbrauchswerte wurden auf Basis dieser Werte errechnet. Der Stromverbrauch wurde auf der Grundlage der VO 692/2008/EG ermittelt.… Continue reading The new Sprinter is the ideal partner for the construction site.

Ford 'sweetens' deal for retirees in 2018; GM offer is less generous

Original Article

Communauto is enthousiast about the City of Montréal’s position shift concerning free-floating carsharing vehicles

Montréal, March 15th 2018 – Communauto, the largest free-floating carsharing operator in Greater Montréal, salutes the City of Montréal’s new position on free-floating carsharing vehicles.

“Demands for free-floating vehicles are far from being met. Also, the potential is great compared to other Canadian cities. The City’s new policy will allow us to overcome the barriers that have slowed us down in the past. It will also contribute to significantly reduce the circulation of cars and their emissions.” says Mr. Benoît Robert, CEO of Communauto.

The new administration’s initiatives : a positive response to Communauto’s demands:

Enlarging the free-floating service area to include the boroughs of Ahuntsic-Cartierville and Ville-Marie. Note that the free-floating service is already available in Verdun and Outremont. As a result, the City’s new policy will allow us to improve the service coverage in those boroughs ;

Eliminating the cap on the number of permits for hybrid free-floating vehicles and simplifying procedures to obtain them ;

The introduction of incentives for the electrification of the fleet of vehicles, starting by a lower price for the vignettes emitted for those particular vehicles. Communauto already has Canada’s largest carsharing fleet of electric vehicles (120 EV). Most of them are part of its free-floating service.

A positive alternative
“Apprehensions were brought up in the past about the free-floating carsharing service being detrimental to the cab industry, and eventually cannibalizing public transit. After several years of service, it seems obvious to us that there are more opportunities than risks in developing mobility alternatives to the private ownership of cars. Communauto is strongly committed to strengthening the relationship between the actors within this ecosystem”. adds M. Robert.

– 30 –

About Communauto
Communauto is the largest carsharing service in Québec. Founded in 1994, the company with an environmental, social and urbanistic mission has a fleet of over 2000 vehicles in 8 cities: Kingston, Ottawa, Gatineau, Montréal (Laval and Longueuil), Québec, Sherbrooke, Halifax and Paris (France).

In Montréal, Communauto offers to its users a station-bound service with reservation of over 1000 vehicles and a free-floating service, Auto-mobile, that counts 600 vehicles.

Communauto is also the largest operator of shared electric vehicles in Canada. Over the years, it also developed several partnerships with public transportation operators, urban and long distance, taxi companies and bike sharing.

For more information:

Marco Viviani, vice-président

Développement stratégique 1 514 499-2804

mviviani@communauto.ca

Innovations in AI and deep learning can help scientists predict the impact of changes in DNA structures

Artificial Intelligence is on the rise in several sectors, including genomics. Image via Pixabay. Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) technology can help in predicting the impact of changes in genomes, according to a new study led by researchers from AI firm Peltarion. Use of AI is on the rise in several sectors, including genomics. With advances in… Continue reading Innovations in AI and deep learning can help scientists predict the impact of changes in DNA structures

KAR to Extend International Footprint with Acquisition of CarsOnTheWeb

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Tesla Partners With Auction Companies To Manage Used Car Market

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Published on November 27th, 2018 |

by Steve Hanley

Tesla Partners With Auction Companies To Manage Used Car Market

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November 27th, 2018 by Steve Hanley

Car auctions move billions of dollars a year and are essential to the US automobile industry, yet operate out of the public eye. Every week, tens of thousands of used cars get redistributed from dealers and leasing companies to wholesalers and other dealers. The auctions are not open to the public, so very few people know about them, but they provide a means of turning cars in inventory into cash for sellers, and they provide a steady supply of fresh inventory for used car dealers.

Until now, Tesla has been managing its own used car inventory, but as sales of new cars ramp up, there are more Teslas being traded in. As much as Tesla likes to be a vertically integrated company that controls every aspect of its business, established auction houses like Adessa and Manheim are very good at what they do, and so Tesla has contracted with them to help manage its burgeoning supply of used cars, according to CNBC.

The majority of cars that go through the auction process are off-lease vehicles — something that Tesla is starting to have a lot of as leases from 2016 and earlier are just starting to mature. To handle the influx of more used cars — some of which may be trade-ins from other manufacturers or repossessions — Tesla now has postings on Glassdoor for used vehicle quality specialists, a remarketing manager, and used vehicle sales advisors. The company is targeting a “30-day or less turn-rate in the sale of pre-owned inventory.”

Many people have a negative attitude toward cars purchased from auction houses, but in truth, the supply of off-lease cars is the lifeblood of the used car industry. They are typically 2 to 3 model years old with between 30,000 and 50,000 miles on them. They are professionally reconditioned by the auction staff and often cannot be told from new. If you think all 300 used cars in inventory down at your local dealer are local trade-ins, you don’t understand how the used car business in America works.

Because Teslas will now be available at major auctions, that means they will soon start showing up on dealer lots alongside other cars in the used car inventory, meaning people interested in buying a used Tesla will have more options and possibly somewhat lower prices.

The secret to the used car business is turning the inventory. Many of the top used car retailers set 30 days as the maximum time a car can remain on the books. After that, it goes back up for auction. The theory is that it is better to lose a little money now if the proceeds can be reinvested in fresh inventory that will sell quickly and generate a profit later.

When your children ask you for career advice, tell them to become an auctioneer. Those who make it are typically some of the wealthiest people in the community. They get paid a fee by sellers to include their cars in the auction and another fee by buyers when the car sells. Most operate finance companies that loan buyers the money to purchase the cars. They operate inspection and reconditioning services that generate income as well.

Forget being a lawyer or a doctor or even a Wall Street trader. Being an auctioneer is where it’s at. You own nothing and have little overhead. No one dies or goes to jail if you make a mistake. It’s the perfect business for anyone who wants to make a lot of money with minimal headaches.

And it’s addicting. Once a week, the cars start rolling across the auction block at 9:00 am at a rate of 2 per minute until well into the afternoon. The bigger auctions have up to 15 lines running simultaneously and sell as many as 1,500 cars in a day. It’s insane, and crazy good fun. Way better than playing video games in your mom’s basement.

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About the Author

Steve Hanley Steve writes about the interface between technology and sustainability from his home in Rhode Island and anywhere else the Singularity may take him. His muse is Charles Kuralt — “I see the road ahead is turning. I wonder what's around the bend?”

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‘GM is Oshawa’: Canadians respond to General Motors’ decision to close plant

General Motors Following announcement that company will close three plants, Oshawa employees wonder why theirs is shutting down General Motors workers gather for a meeting near the assembly plant in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada on 26 November. Photograph: Carlos Osorio/Reuters Wet flurries blanketed a sombre Oshawa as hundreds of workers quietly shuffled out of the General… Continue reading ‘GM is Oshawa’: Canadians respond to General Motors’ decision to close plant

Pininfarina reveals near-complete PF0 electric hypercar

AEye Advisory Board Profile: Willie Gault

We sat down with each of our Advisory Board Members to ask them why they’re excited about working with AEye…
Willie Gault is a former NFL wide receiver and Olympic athlete. Gault was an All-American at the University of Tennessee from 1979 to 1982. He played in the National Football League for 11 seasons for the Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Raiders. Considered one of the fastest NFL players of all-time, Gault was a member of the Chicago Bears team that won Super Bowl XX, and was also a participant of both the summer and winter U.S. Olympic teams. Gault is currently an investor, remains active, and holds several world records in masters track and field.

Q: What in your past experience ultimately drew you to the autonomous vehicle arena?
As a professional athlete, I have always been fascinated and amazed by human perception and the role it plays in athletic performance. The brain’s ability to sense the details in the world around you and then accurately calculate where your body needs to be in space and time is remarkable. I have been curious about how these capabilities might be replicated with technology and artificial intelligence. Recently, I have been tracking the application of artificial intelligence in autonomous vehicles which led me to AEye.

Q: Why AEye?
What AEye is doing aligns with my interests in biomimicry, which uses knowledge of natural processes found in humans, plants, and animals to better inform technology and design. After I found out AEye was pursuing research in this field, I knew I had to be part of it.

Q: Where do you see ADAS solutions, autonomous vehicles, and/or artificial perception, heading within the next few years? The next decade? Beyond? How do you see AEye playing a pivotal role in this vision?
I live in Southern California where traffic has a major impact on quality of life. Autonomous vehicles will not only improve safety and efficiency on the roads, but will greatly improve quality of life around the world. I would like to see this technology adopted quickly and widely. However, one of the barriers to its adoption is cost. I believe that AEye’s iDAR system can be manufactured at tremendous scale, efficiently, and at a price point that encourages rapid adoption.

ALL PROFILES
Advisory Board Profile: Elliot Garbus — The Future of Autonomous Vehicles: Part I – Think Like a Robot, Perceive Like a HumanAEye Introduces Groundbreaking iDAR TechnologyThe Future of Autonomous Vehicles: Part II – Blind Technology without Compassion Is RuthlessCB Insights Unveils Second Annual AI 100 Companies at A-ha!Observe, Orient, Decide, Act: How AEye’s iDAR System Adopts Principles of the OODA Loop to Achieve Intelligent, Long-Range DetectionAEye Announces the AE100 Robotic Perception System for Autonomous VehiclesAEye Announces Addition of Aravind Ratnam as Vice President of Product ManagementAEye Introduces Next Generation of Artificial Perception: New Dynamic Vixels™Nate Ramanathan Joins AEye as Vice President of OperationsElon Musk Is Right: LiDAR Is a Crutch (Sort of.)

Elon Musk Is Right: LiDAR Is a Crutch (Sort of.)

By Luis Dussan

Tesla founder Elon Musk recently declared that LiDAR is a “crutch” for autonomous vehicle makers. The comment sparked headlines and raised eyebrows in the industry. Given that this vision technology is the core of many companies’ self-driving car strategies, his view strikes many as anathema or just plain nuts.

But for the moment, let’s ignore the fact that LiDAR is vital to self-driving cars from GM, Toyota and others. Forget that the most advanced autonomous vehicle projects have focused on developing laser-sensing systems.

Even disregard that the alleged theft of LiDAR secrets was at heart of the legal battle between Uber and Alphabet’s Waymo. Waymo claimed that LiDAR is essential technology for autonomous vehicles and won a settlement recently worth about $245 million.

The truth is: Mr. Musk is right. Relying solely on LiDAR can steer autonomous vehicle companies into innovation cul-de-sacs.

LiDAR is not enough. Autonomous vehicles require a rapid, accurate and complete perception system. It is a system-level problem that requires a system-level solution.

My agreement with Mr. Musk may seem surprising given that our company, AEye, sees LiDAR as playing a significant role in making driverless cars a commercial reality.

But we too have realized that if autonomous vehicles are ever going to be capable of avoiding accidents and saving lives, LiDAR is not the answer. At least not by itself.

Not THE answer, but part of the answer…
At Tesla, Mr. Musk is forsaking LiDAR for a 2D camera-based vision system. While Mr. Musk is known for disruptive thinking, it is hard to escape the fact that autonomous vehicles move through a 3D world and successful navigation of that world requires the seamless integration of both 2D and 3D data precisely mapped to both time and space.

At AEye, we believe LiDAR is the foundation of the solution when it seamlessly integrates with a multi-sensor perception system that is truly intelligent and dynamic. Our research has produced an elegant and multi-dimensional visual processing system modeled after the most effective in existence — the human visual cortex.

In fact, AEye’s initial perception system, called iDAR (Intelligent Detection and Ranging), offers a robotic perception system that is more reliable than human vision. LiDAR integrates with a low-light camera, embedded artificial intelligence and at-the-edge processing to enable a car’s vision system to replicate how the human visual cortex quickly interprets a scene.
In short, iDAR enables cars to see like people.

Why this is the superior approach?
In his skepticism of LiDAR, Mr. Musk has curiously bet on a “camera-mostly” strategy when building a vision system for autonomous Tesla vehicles. He has previously made bold (many say unrealistic) predictions that Tesla would achieve full Level 5 autonomous driving with camera-mostly vision in 2019. Navigant Research, in their annual ranking of self-driving vehicle makers, says this is “unlikely to ever be achievable” and rates Tesla at the back of the pack.

The company’s Autopilot system relies on cameras, some radar, and GPS. It has suffered setbacks due to a split with its camera supplier in 2016 after a fatal accident that investigators have blamed partly on Autopilot. Last month, a Tesla smashed into a firetruck in Culver City, California, and the driver said it was “on autopilot.”

The evidence strongly argues against Mr. Musk’s decision to bet on passive optical image processing systems. Existing 2D image processors and 2D to 3D image conversion concepts have serious flaws that can only be addressed with massive computing power and more importantly — algorithms that have not been invented, and are many years away from becoming a reality. This makes this approach too costly, inefficient and cumbersome to achieve Level 5 autonomous driving at commercial scale.

At AEye we know that integrating cameras, agile LiDAR, and AI equals a perception system that is better than the sum of its parts. It surpasses both the human eye and camera alone, which is required if you don’t have the sophistication of the human brain yet replicated.

In his “crutch” comments, Mr. Musk predicted that LiDAR-based systems will make cars “expensive, ugly and unnecessary,” adding: “I think they will find themselves at a competitive disadvantage.” The truth is that size, weight, power, and cost are decreasing for vehicle navigation grade LiDAR. And they will fall further. AEye, and maybe others, will see to that.

We respect Musk’s innovations and are grateful to him shedding light on where LiDAR needs to go to reach full autonomy. But in the end, as we see LiDAR as a lever, rather than a crutch, we can only give him partial credit for his understanding of the way forward.

ALL NEWS & VIEWS
Elon Musk Is Right: LiDAR Is a Crutch (Sort of.) — AEye Introduces Groundbreaking iDAR TechnologyObserve, Orient, Decide, Act: How AEye’s iDAR System Adopts Principles of the OODA Loop to Achieve Intelligent, Long-Range DetectionAEye Introduces Next Generation of Artificial Perception: New Dynamic Vixels™AEye Announces the AE100 Robotic Perception System for Autonomous VehiclesThe Future of Autonomous Vehicles: Part I – Think Like a Robot, Perceive Like a HumanAEye Announces Addition of Aravind Ratnam as Vice President of Product ManagementCB Insights Unveils Second Annual AI 100 Companies at A-ha!AEye Granted Foundational Patents For Core Solid-State MEMs-Based Agile LiDAR And Embedded AI TechnologyGartner Names AEye Cool Vendor in AI for Computer VisionAEye Welcomes James Robnett to Executive Team as Vice President of Automotive Business Development