IoT Tech Expo: How the IoT is shaping the future of rail

iot tech expo future of rail uwb egnss-r satellite connectivity trains

During a session at this year’s IoT Tech Expo North America, the audience heard from Joffrey Lauthier, VP of Transit and Rail at WSP, about how IoT technologies are shaping the future of rail.

Positioning vehicles accurately and ensuring their safety is a critical aspect of transportation systems. To achieve this, a variety of sensors and technologies are used.

One technology that has been widely used for positioning vehicles for decades is one we’re all familiar...

18 May 2023 | Applications

DoJ charges former Apple engineer with stealing autonomous car secrets

A former Apple engineer has been charged by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) for stealing trade secrets relating to autonomous cars.

The indictment was unsealed by a federal court in California, revealing the case as part of a broader crackdown on efforts by hostile nation-states to illicitly acquire sensitive US technology for their own purposes.

The accused individual, Weibao Wang, was hired by Apple in 2016 as a software engineer for their autonomous driving project...

17 May 2023 | Connected Vehicles

Cruise robotaxis now run 24/7 in San Francisco

Cruise has announced that it’s now operating 24/7 in San Francisco, marking a significant milestone in its journey.

However, the wider public is currently only able to use the service in around one-third of the city between 10pm and 5:30am. Cruise CEO Kyle Vogt has promised that this will soon change as Cruise moves closer to launching a fully-fledged robotaxi service open to the public around the clock.

Vogt said the systems that power the robotaxi network in San...

27 April 2023 | Connected Vehicles

DiDi is di-veloping its own robotaxis

Chinese ride-hailing company DiDi Global is collaborating with Chinese carmakers to develop robotaxis.

DiDi is developing the robotaxis with multiple car manufacturers, including electric vehicle makers, and is aiming to begin putting them into service by 2025.

The company plans for the new vehicles to be domestically produced, with controllable supply chains and key components that are produced nationally.

A robotaxi concept was showcased by DiDi called Neuron...

14 April 2023 | Connected Vehicles

Waymo’s vehicles are confused by San Francisco’s fog

The latest challenge that autonomous vehicles are struggling with is driving in fog.

Five of Waymo's fully driverless vehicles had to pull over by the side of a residential street in San Francisco on Tuesday when they encountered the city’s notoriously dense fog.

The incident caused significant traffic issues, as motorists were unable to pass the parked vehicles.

In a blog post a couple of years ago, Waymo highlighted the difficulties that fog...

13 April 2023 | AI

Apple has over 200 people testing self-driving cars

Apple appears to be gradually accelerating its self-driving car program and now has over 200 people testing its vehicles.

Data from the California DMV (via macReports) indicates that Apple has 201 people testing autonomous driving features on public roads. Apple currently has a fleet of 67 vehicles.

The overall size of Apple’s self-driving fleet hasn’t changed much since 2021 but its number of testers is gradually increasing. Apple added 51 testers in 2022 and an...

23 March 2023 | AI

San Francisco officials want the CPUC to slow robotaxi authorisations

San Francisco officials have sent letters to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) expressing their concerns over the pace of robotaxi deployments.

Driverless vehicle giants Cruise and Waymo have significant expansion plans for their respective operations in San Francisco. However, their existing deployments have been causing some problems for the city.

Some of the reported issues have included driverless vehicles stopping in the middle of the road for no...

31 January 2023 | Connected Vehicles

Waymo launches 24/7 autonomous ride-hailing service in San Francisco

Alphabet subsidiary Waymo has launched San Francisco’s first 24/7 fully-autonomous ride-hailing service.

Earlier this month, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) granted Waymo a permit to participate in the state’s pilot initiative to provide “driverless” autonomous vehicle (AV) passenger service to the public.

“We are seeing momentum build in this space and are working to assure the safe expansion of the driverless pilot program,” said CPUC...

21 November 2022 | AI

Bristol Temple Meads named UK’s first Station Innovation Zone

Bristol Temple Meads railway station has been named the UK’s first Station Innovation Zone.

Isambard Brunel’s station has been an icon of railway architecture since it was built for the Great Western Railway in 1840. Around 10 million passengers continue to use the station every year, a testament to Brunel’s lasting impact on the city of Bristol.

To continue serving passengers for centuries to come, Temple Meads will have to adopt new technologies that improve the...

17 October 2022 | Applications

Cruise is expanding its robotaxi trials to Arizona and Texas

California-based autonomous driving firm Cruise has announced that it’s expanding pilots of its robotaxis to Arizona and Texas.

https://twitter.com/kvogt/status/1569419156063408128

Cruise, which is owned by General Motors, launched driverless rides in San Francisco back in February. The announcement this week marks the first expansion of Cruise’s service.

Our team is going from zero footprint in Austin (no test vehicles or maps) to driverless...

13 September 2022 | Connected Vehicles