Gavi Oliver
Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and Volvo Buses have unveiled a full-size autonomous electric bus that stretches 12 metres long and can accommodate up to 80 passengers. The single-deck Volvo 7900 Electric bus is part of a scheme under the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to develop and run driverless bus trials for fixed route and scheduled services.
The vehicle is equipped with sensors and navigation features that are managed by an artificial intelligence (AI) system, according to an NTU statement released on Tuesday. It added that the AI system is integrated with cybersecurity and firewall measures to safeguard against potential attacks.
Country’s government has introduced initiatives to train 12,000 people in artificial intelligence skillsets, including industry professionals and secondary school students.
The electric bus sports 36 seats and boasts “zero emissions”, consuming 80 per cent less energy than an equivalent sized diesel bus, NTU said. The Singapore university in January last year had announced plans to jointly develop autonomous electric buses with Volvo .
The launch marked the first fully autonomous electric bus Volvo had introduced for a public transport system globally. In addition, the vehicle was the first of two that had gone through preliminary rounds of tests at NTU’s Centre of Excellence for Testing and Research of Autonomous Vehicles. Located on the NTU Smart Campus, the test centre replicates Singapore’s urban road conditions, such as traffic signals, multiple bus stops and pedestrian crossings, and tropical conditions such as driving through heavy rain and partially flooded roads.
The autonomous bus would eventually be put to the test on the roads of the university’s campus as well as outside NTU.
The second Volvo 7900 bus will be tested at a bus depot operated by Singapore’s public transport company SMRT, which will assess the vehicle’s ability to autonomously navigate into vehicle washing bays and park safely […]
Continue reading – Singapore university partners Volvo to pilot full-size autonomous electric bus
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