In connected car news today were the Tesla, Bollinger, B2 SUT, Mercedes-Benz AI, RoboSense, Clutch Payments, Veoneer, Zenuity, NVIDIA and Provino Tech.
Tesla Troubles & Perks
Tesla is in trouble for claiming that the Tesla 3 is the safest car ever rated by NHTSA. Without mentioning Tesla, NHTSA released “National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issues statement about New Car Assessment Program’s highest rating” noting that there is no such rating as “safest.”
“NCAP conducts a total of three crash tests on new vehicles: one frontal and two side crash tests, as well as a rollover resistance assessment – a driving maneuver test that assesses a vehicle’s susceptibility to tipping up and a measurement of how top-heavy a vehicle is. Results from these three crash tests and the rollover resistance assessments are weighted and combined into an overall safety rating. A 5-star rating is the highest safety rating a vehicle can achieve. NHTSA does not distinguish safety performance beyond that rating, thus there is no “safest” vehicle among those vehicles achieving 5-star ratings.”
It doesn’t stop the referral process, Tesla now offers “Launch Your Photo into Deep Space Orbit,” Tesla owners who refer someone to buy a Tesla S/X/3 can earn $100 in super charging credits. Four referrals can give the Tesla owners priority for software updates. Tesla S model in the path of Hurricane Michael are given extended battery range to escape the storm. Tesla will also enable free supercharging at all Supercharger stations in Geeorgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, as well as select cities in Alabama and Florida on the evacuation route.
Drivers are not paying attention to Tesla S warnings as seen in the YouTube Video below the driver noted
“We weren’t paying attention all. We were too focused on the chaos around us and didn’t even hear our car warning us of the obstacle ahead. As you can see, we rammed right into the parked car going about 45 mph. I haven’t heard words like come that from my wife’s mouth in the 20 some-odd years we’ve been married!”
The video was uploaded to YouTube by the Dashcam store that pays a bounty for great dashcam videos.
Bollinger B2 Electric Sport Utility Truck
Bollinger Motors unveiled a special preview of the company’s newest vehicle design: an all-electric, all-wheel drive B2 pickup truck. The new street-legal B2 Pickup truck is the newest product of Bollinger Motors, gleaned from the company’s extensive development of the B1 Sport Utility Truck. As Bollinger Motors moves through the final stages of the B1, the B2 Pickup became a natural addition to their upcoming vehicle suite of distinctively-designed EV truck.
Developed with the same DNA, both the B1 and new B2 sport dual motors, all-wheel drive, hydropneumatic suspension, in-wheel portal gear hubs, 120 kWh battery pack, large front trunk space, and patented pass-through doors for transporting long items.
The Bollinger Motors Pickup’s bed is 4′ 1″ wide by 5′ 9″ long. With the internal cab tailgate down, the Bollinger Motors Pickup can carry full 4′ x 8′ sheets of plywood. The rear glass also opens up like the B1, allowing storage to the top of the cab. The new B2 can fit up to 72 sheets of 4′ x 8′ plywood.
Bollinger Motors recently relocated its headquarters from New York to Michigan to take full advantage of the automotive manufacturing network based in and around Detroit.
Mercedes-Benz AI-Powered Cargo Scans, Plans, Records and Recommends
The Future Transportation team of Mercedes-Benz Vans developed a new AI-powered cargo sensor system to address the growing demands of e-commerce and last-mile delivery.
Mercedes-Benz Vans is developing next-generation in-vehicle cargo systems powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning. These new technologies automate cargo management, decrease package handling and improve delivery times, allowing logistics companies to deliver more packages with greater speed, transparency and efficiency.
The Cargo Recognition and Organization System, known as CoROS equips the new Mercedes-Benz Sprinter with an array of cameras that automatically scan and track packages as they enter and exit the vehicle. AI, CoROS identifies, scans, and records packages as they are brought into the vehicle and recommends the optimal loading position based on the package’s size and final destination. At each stop, the system automatically looks up the customer’s order and directs the driver to that customer’s packages via LEDs installed on shelves and throughout the cargo space. CoROS also reduces time spent by the driver searching for the right packages at each customer stop, enabling faster and more reliable deliveries.
RoboSense Funded
RoboSense, autonomous driving LiDAR perception solution provider, announced the completion of China’s largest-ever single round of financing for a LiDAR company – a combined investment of over $45 million (RMB 300 million).RoboSense already has secured backing from auto manufacturing, financial brokerage, and artificial intelligence (AI) companies, including Haitong Securities, Fosun Group, Oriental Fortune Capital, Kinzon Capital, and Guangdong Investment Pte Ltd.
The funding will be used to increase RoboSense’s market share and the R&D of autonomous vehicle technologies, including its solid-state LiDAR, AI sensing algorithms, and other advanced technologies, as well as accelerating product development, long-term manufacturing and market penetration.
RoboSense also works with autonomous driving companies from all over the world. RoboSense provides leading LiDAR sensing technologies, with sensors, including RS-LiDAR-16, RS-LiDAR-32, and RS-LiDAR-M1pre, AI sensing algorithms (RS-Algorithms), LiDAR combination technology (P-series), LiDAR-Cam deep fusion technology (RS-LCDF) and more.
Clutch Subscribing Payments and Billing
Clutch Technologies announced Clutch Payments, the first end-to-end billing and payments solution for the automotive subscription market. Built on Stripe Connect, Clutch Payments employs the same secure, reliable payments infrastructure that underpins Stripe’s entire technology stack, tightly integrated with Clutch’s proprietary billing engine. Clutch’s customers will soon be able to take advantage of this seamless way to manage billing and payments for their subscription businesses.
It features:
- A turn-key software solution,for subscription providers that includes billing, payments, and administration.
- Superior rates for payment processing, including options to save via debit cards or ACH.
- The ability to offer customized, flexible subscription plans, including metering miles, charging for overages, and applying discounts.
- Options to divide payments and route portions to third parties such as insurers, financing companies, roadside assistance, and others.
Veoneer ADAS AD Zeus Computer with Zenuity
Veoneer, Inc. a pure-play company focused on Advanced Driving Assistance Systems (ADAS) and Automated Driving (AD), has developed the “Zeus” supercomputer – designed to meet the requirements for level 4 Autonomous Driving with Zenuity’s Autonomous Driving software stack, based on the NVIDIA DRIVE AGX Xavier running NVIDIA DRIVE OS.
The supercomputer Zeus is an ADAS/AD ECU, a “brain” that fuses data from cameras, radars and other sensors, interprets the situation and takes required action. Zeus has been designed to meet the requirements of level 4, High Automation, as defined by SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers), meaning the automated driving system manages all dynamic driving tasks and, under most circumstances, no human interaction is required.
Veoneer and Zenuity, the joint venture between Veoneer and Volvo Cars, have developed the Zeus board. Veoneer is responsible for hardware and basic software, and Zenuity for the Autonomous Driving feature software development and vehicle integration. Zeus is based on the scalable architecture of NVIDIA DRIVE AGX Xavier and runs the NVIDIA DRIVE OS operating system.
MAX 12-Switch Manager
Maxim Integrated Products, announced the MAX20092 12-switch matrix manager.
The MAX20092 provides flexible current management for matrix and pixel lighting. Twelve integrated switches control LEDs in string voltages up to 56V, saving design time and reducing complexity. Its integrated MOSFET on resistance (RDS_ON) of 70 mohm is the lowest in the industry – comfortably driving LED currents up to 1.5A. Maxim’s 12-switch LED matrix manager is offered in a small 5mm x 5mm TQFN package. Additionally, Maxim today introduced MAX20096 and MAX20097 dual-channel, synchronous buck high-brightness LED controllers to work with the MAX20092, helping designers improve transient response times in LED lighting. The MAX20096 and MAX20097 deliver ultra-fast transient response with near-fixed frequency with Maxim’s proprietary average current mode control scheme, minimizing EMI and enabling a reliable, high-performing design.
Provino Chip Design for Automotive Apps
Provino Technologies, Inc., a semiconductor IP company providing Network on Chip (NoC) solutions for next generation SoCs targeting machine learning/artificial intelligence, consumer and automotive applications, announced today that it has raised $8 million in Series A funding. Dell Technologies Capital led the round with participation from individual industry veterans. Provino’s iFabric platform implements key features such as PCI ordering and safety and security, which are paramount for AR/VR, autonomous driving, and artificial intelligence/machine learning. Therefore, Provino has garnered interest from leading semiconductor and system companies in the valley.
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