In the latter part of March, Toyota will establish a new company in Tokyo called the “Toyota Research Institute-Advanced Development” (TRI-AD). The company is expected to accelerate Toyota's efforts in “advanced development for automated driving.”
TRI-AD will be led by Toyota Research Institute, Inc. (TRI) Chief Technology Officer Dr. James Kuffner, who will serve as the company’s CEO.
“Building production-quality software is a critical success factor for Toyota’s automated driving program,” Dr. Kuffner says.
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Skyguide and AirMap team up to develop and deploy first national UAS traffic management system in Europe
Skyguide, which is a Swiss air navigation service provider, and AirMap, which is the leading global airspace management platform for UAS, have announced that they will develop and deploy the first national UAS traffic management system in Europe.
The resulting system from this partnership between the two companies will be the first national deployment of U-space, which is Europe’s vision for the “digital infrastructure that will support safe and secure access to European skies for millions of drones.”
U-space is similar to the U.S. “Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM)” initiative, in that it is a “collaborative effort to enable situational awareness, data exchange, and digital communication for the European drone ecosystem.”
BWI and AUVSI Announce Drone Insurance Partnership
For Immediate Release: March 5, 2018
AUVSI Contact: Tom McMahon, tmcmahon@auvsi.org, (571) 255-7786
BWI Contact: Matt White, Matt.White@bwifly.com, (800) 666-4358
BWI and AUVSI Announce Drone Insurance Partnership
Expanded products, services and discounts for AUVSI members and BWI customers
Ford testing its self-driving vehicle service in Miami
Ford has announced that it will test its self-driving vehicle service in Florida, on the streets of Miami and Miami Beach.
Ford will do this with the help of Miami-Dade County, whose mayor, Carlos A. Giménez, is on the “forefront of thinking about the future of transportation,” according to Sherif Marakby, Ford Vice President, Autonomous Vehicles and Electrification, via a post on Medium.com.
MDA selects Schiebel's CAMCOPTER S-100 UAS to fulfill contract with international customer
MDA, which is a Maxar Technologies company, has commissioned a fleet of Schiebel’s CAMCOPTER S-100 UAS to fulfill a contract with an international customer.
According to Schiebel, MDA chose the CAMCOPTER S-100 UAS because of its “impressive track record of providing critical support in sea- and land-based intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) missions.”
The S-100 is a vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) UAS with a relatively small logistical footprint. This small logistical footprint allows for flexible and rapid deployment.
Schiebel says that “by day and night, the UAS functions as a platform capable of carrying a wide range of high-end payloads.”
Randolph Electric Membership Corporation donates $10,000 in support of NC Public Safety Drone Academy
In support of Montgomery Community College’s (MCC) NC Public Safety Drone Academy, Randolph Electric Membership Corporation (Randolph EMC) donated $10,000 to the community college located in Troy, North Carolina.
The funds will be used to buy software and develop an educational course for REMC’s Utility Based Drone Program. The funds will also be used to allow Randolph EMC line technicians to undergo training with UAS, so that they can obtain their certification to operate the technology.
Royal Canadian Navy acquires AeroVironment's Puma II AE UAS
AeroVironment, Inc. and MDA, a Maxar Technologies company, have announced that the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) has acquired the AeroVironment Puma II AE, which is a maritime mini UAS. MDA partnered with AeroVironment to satisfy the requirement of the Department of National Defence of Canada for the Maritime Miniature Unmanned Aircraft System (MMUAS).
The UAS will be fielded aboard RCN Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels (MCDV), and will include the Mantis i45 sensor and a 360-degree antenna system, which will enhance the Puma II AE's ability to support maritime operations.
Self-driving shuttle developer May Mobility receives financial backing from BMW and Toyota
May Mobility, which claims to be the “first autonomous vehicle company to replace existing transportation systems with its fleets of self-driving micro-shuttles,” has announced that it raised $11.5 million in seed funding during a seed round in which BMW i Ventures and Toyota AI Ventures were the co-leaders for.
May Mobility, which plans to launch commercial operations this year, says that this funding will allow the company to launch new deployments across the country.
Nissan and DeNA to begin a field test of "robo-vehicle mobility service" in Japan in March
On March 5, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and DeNA Co., Ltd. will begin a field test of their “robo-vehicle mobility service,” Easy Ride, which is envisioned as a mobility service “for anyone who wants to travel freely to their destination of choice in a robo-vehicle.”
The field test will take place in the Minatomirai district of Yokohama, in Japan's Kanagawa Prefecture. During testing, participants will travel along a set route in vehicles equipped with autonomous driving technology. The route is about 4.5 kilometers between Nissan's global headquarters and the Yokohama World Porters shopping center.
Locust USA and U.S. Army to collaborate on development of technology for UAVs
Through its wholly-owned subsidiary UAV Turbines, Inc. (UAVT), Locust USA, Inc has entered into a $19 million Technology Investment Agreement (TIA) with the U.S. Army to collaborate on the development of an “efficient and reliable/durable small turboprop gas turbine engine” for propulsion in the UAV space.
The development goals surround engine capabilities beneficial to both military and commercial markets. This initiative is part of the Army’s “Reliable Advanced Small Power Systems (RASPS) Technology Demonstration” program. The goal of the program is to design, manufacture and test a “200 shp class advanced technology engine to technical readiness level (TRL) 6.”