powertrain engineering
AVL TEAMS UP
WITH FORD OTOSAN
In a collaborative research and development project with Ford Otosan,
AVL is developing technologies for the future of road transportation.
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ON PLATOONING PROJECT
ADAS and automated driving may well be the technologies that define
the future of the automotive industry, and this isn’t simply reserved
for passenger cars. Work is already being undertaken to bring the benefits
of automation to both light and heavy-duty commercial vehicles in a
variety of areas. One such area is platooning.
A platoon is a convoy of two or more networked trucks that feature a
degree of automation enabling them to act together rather than individually
reacting to each other. The technology offers an array of benefits for
hauliers – and for the roads of the future.
Cost savings and increased productivity are obvious benefits – in level
2 and 3 assistance systems all the vehicles will require a driver. In level
4 platooning, however, a driver will only be required in the lead vehicle.
ADAS systems don’t experience fatigue, can be optimized for efficient
driving practices and aren’t subject to the same issues and errors that are
commonly made by human drivers. Factor in the increased fuel efficiencies
of the following vehicles of up to 7 per cent, as well as the time savings
and the safety implications, and the case for the adoption of this technology
gets stronger.