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47 car, reasons about its surroundings, connects to an HD map, and drives,” says Huang. However, there will be a bit of a wait for Xavier. Samples of it will be available to car makers, Tier One suppliers, start-ups and research institutes by the end of 2017, which means it will not be in production systems until 2020 at the earliest. Swiss research lab Rinspeed has developed a concept car that explores how the design of a vehicle changes with autonomous technology. It has combined technology from multiple suppliers to explore the various design options. The most notable element of the Oasis is a large, curved 5k resolution screen across the front of the vehicle for passengers. The systems around the vehicle are controlled by voice recognition or gestures. It uses radar and optical sensors based on NXP technology to capture a 360º view of its surroundings. The sensor signals are combined with data from vehicle-to-vehicle (V2) comms received via an intelligent antenna system from Vites integrated into the roof. The control of the vehicle is based around a real-time operating system called QNX that provides a certified secure and protected software platform for self-driving vehicles.  Mass transit French developer Navya has updated its ARMA self-driving shuttle (see UST issue 7, April/May 2016) to add the ability to move around unexpected objects and read road signs. The new system was demonstrated at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, and uses stereoscopic camera and machine vision algorithms to read the road signs. The first demonstration of the technology in the UK took place at Heathrow. This saw the shuttle navigate through a car park in a 600 m lap. The team led the shuttle around the course to upload the map, taking about six hours. The shuttle was then able to drive the route on its own, using its stereoscopic camera and two Lidar sensors to detect obstructions. Trucks Scania is currently designing the world’s first full-scale autonomous truck platooning systems using its own technology. The trucks will travel on public roads transporting containers between port terminals in Singapore. The lead truck will be driven, while the other three will follow autonomously. Scania is also fully automating the processes for precise docking and undocking of cargo.  “Autonomous vehicles and platooning are cornerstones of future sustainable transport systems,” says Claes Erixon of Scania. The multi-year project with the Ministry of Transport and the Port of Singapore Authority also involves Toyota. Singapore has already tested autonomous cars, taxis, utility vehicles and buses, and is now adding trials of truck platooning concepts. “Trucking as we know it today is a highly labour-intensive industry, and we face a shortage of truck drivers,” says Pang Kin Keong, of the government Committee on Autonomous Road Transport in Singapore. “In this regard, truck platooning technology presents us with an Unmanned Systems Technology | February/March 2017 The team led the shuttle around the course to upload the map, taking about six hours. The shuttle was then able to drive the route on its own Navya is extending the capability of its ARMA autonomous shuttle to read road signs (Courtesy of Navya)