The auto includes an automated system which monitors the driving environment. “Ford will be actively driving that change”. So, Ford chose to remove the driver altogether. Ford’s vice president of research said that it was important to signal that the automaker intends to win in this space, even with key elements still unknown.
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“We abandoned the stepping-stone approach of driver-assist technologies and decided we were going to take the full leap”, said Raj Nair, Ford’s chief technical officer. The multi million pound plant which included an £8.9M investment from the governments regional growth fund will produce the 2.0-litre diesel engine which will come off the line towards the end of next year.
Fields trumpeted how Ford brought cars to the masses and how autonomous vehicles can bring better safety to roads and mobility to those now excluded, such as the elderly, disabled and those too young to drive. The vehicles will be created with specific design for commercial mobility services and built in high volumes.
The self-driving features and software technologies that are equipped inside Tesla vehicles are likely to be a far cry from that of Ford’s plans.
Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford also said it plans to double the staff at its Palo Alto research center by the end of next year to almost 300 people. Already Silicon Valley and the auto industry have been in a dating frenzy looking for long-term partners to help develop the technology behind a self-driving vehicle. They outright bought SAIPS, an Israeli business specialized in artificial intelligence.
Ford and Chinese search engine company Baidu will each invest $75 million in Velodyne, a company that makes laser sensors that help guide self-driving cars. It also invested in Berkeley, California-based Civil Maps for its three-dimensional mapping capabilities. Ford also inked partnerships with Civil Maps-that develops 3D maps-as well as Nirenberg Neuroscience LLC, who claims to have found the “code” by which the eyes communicate with the brain; in theory, this could give Ford’s vehicle more human reactions.
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Ford shares fell 9 cents to $12.34 on Tuesday.
