Culver City Volvo Cars
11201 Washington Blvd
Culver City, CA 90230
Today, we are close to creating truly autonomous cars that will revolutionize the way you travel and change society for the better. Here's our guide to what autonomous driving means and how it came about.
In a self-driving Volvo car you will be able to spend the time on your commute as you want. You will be free to read a book, work, watch a movie or even learn a new skill. With the average commute taking about 50 minutes, this will have a huge impact on our lives.
In autonomous mode a self-driving car is likely to use less fuel. It will know where it is and what's ahead, and be able to optimise the behaviour of the brakes, powertrain and transmission to make progress as smooth and efficient as possible.
Fully autonomous cars will be even better at avoiding potential collisions than today's Volvos. Almost all road accidents are caused by human error, so journeys will be safer for everyone.
In an autonomous car you'll be able to truly relax. Your car will be able to drive the most boring parts of your commute for you and long journeys will be effortless, so you will always arrive fresh at your destination.
In the future, you'll be able to let your car park itself, while you get on with other things. Autonomous cars will be able to find and park in a space, and even drop you off where you want to go first.
Insurance premiums for self-driving cars could be much lower in the future. Autonomous technology won't get tired or distracted, greatly reducing the chance of a costly collision.
Uber, the ride-sharing technology company, is expanding its self-driving pilot to San Francisco, California, using specially-converted self-driving Volvo XC90 premium SUV's.
The move marks the next phase in a deepening alliance between Volvo and Uber after the two companies signed an agreement in August 2016 to establish a jointly-owned project to build base vehicles that can be used to develop fully autonomous driverless cars. These cars were initially tested in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The latest cars to be used in San Francisco have been built by Volvo and sold to Uber, after which Uber's own self-driving hardware and software package has been added, most visibly in the roof-mounted control apparatus.
These cars will drive around the streets of San Francisco autonomously, but as part of the pilot program they will at all times have an Uber technician on board to supervise the car's operation.
"The promise of self-driving ride sharing is becoming a reality," said Mårten Levenstam, vice president product planning at Volvo Cars. "Volvo is proud to be at the forefront of the latest developments in the automotive world alongside our partners at Uber."
The alliance with Uber forms one part of Volvo's three part plan to develop autonomous driving (AD) technologies.
In January 2017 it will begin a project entitled Drive Me, which will be the world's largest autonomous driving test in which up to 100 AD cars will be given to members of the public to be driven on real roads around Gothenburg, Sweden. Their experiences will be used to co-develop Volvo's AD cars.
The second part is a joint venture with Autoliv, the leading automotive safety technology company, to set up a new jointly-owned company to design and manufacturer separately-branded AD and driver assistance software technology packages for sale to third party OEMs.
The new company will have its headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden, and an initial workforce taken from both companies of around 200, increasing to over 600 in the medium term. The company is expected to start operations in the beginning of 2017.
The third part is the ongoing relationship with Uber to build and co-develop base vehicles for AD cars. This deal reduces Volvo's developments costs, gives it a chance to develop cutting edge technology and could ultimately boost sales significantly.
The base vehicles are manufactured by Volvo and then purchased from Volvo by Uber. Volvo Cars and Uber are contributing a combined $300m USD to the project. Both Uber and Volvo will use the same base vehicle for the next stage of their own autonomous car strategies.
The cars to be used in San Francisco are developed on Volvo Cars' fully modular Scalable Product Architecture (SPA). SPA is one of the most advanced car architectures in the world and is currently used on Volvo Cars' top-of-the-line multiple award winning XC90 SUV, as well as the S90 premium sedan and V90 premium estate.
SPA has been developed as part of Volvo Cars' $11bn USD global industrial transformation programme, which started in 2010, and has been prepared from the outset for the latest autonomous drive technologies as well as next generation electrification and connectivity developments. It is these capabilities that attracted Uber to Volvo.
The Volvo Concept 26 is our vision of how autonomous technology could re-shape the car interior and transform the commute into an enjoyable luxury experience.
Unveiled at the 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show, Concept 26 is named after the length of time that drivers spend, on average, on their daily commute. Research by Volvo Cars suggests that, for many people, the journey to and from work and - long-haul motorway trips - are the times when they would be most willing to delegate driving to an autonomous car.
Concept 26 was developed to show how the cabin of a self-driving Volvo could allow this time to be spent in a meaningful way. It also demonstrates how autonomous technology will create a new type of luxury experience.
Robin Page, vice president of interior design at Volvo Cars, said: "It's all about people. Our research clearly shows that some people will want to use their commuting time creatively when they have full autonomous drive available, while others will want to just sit back and relax, watch online media or listen to music. Autonomous drive will make all of this possible. This is what Concept 26 has captured by reimagining the entire car experience."
Based on the same Scalable Product Architecture (SPA) platform that underpins the new XC90, the C26 has a radical interior that combines beautiful Scandinavian design with cutting-edge technology.
At the heart of it is a patented seat design that actively cradles the driver for maximum comfort, whether they are driving or doing other things. When the driver chooses to delegate driving to the car, the steering wheel can be retracted and the seat reclined to make the most of the available space. A foldable tray table provides extra work or leisure space, while a 25-inch media screen flips up from the passenger side of the dashboard to provide entertainment and information.
Concept 26 offers three modes to optimize the interior according to the driver's needs: Drive, Create and Relax.
Drive mode minimises distraction when the car is driven manually, providing a pure driving experience. Create mode allows the seat, table and display screens to be configured in different ways to support work or recreational activities. In Relax mode the seat adopts a supportive, reclined position, allowing the driver to sit back and enjoy the ride.
Concept 26 highlights the huge potential that autonomous technology
has to improve people's lives, as well as Volvo Cars' status as a
pioneer in this area. Dr Peter Mertens, Senior Vice President Research
and Development at Volvo Car Group, said: "We have gone to great lengths
to understand the challenges and opportunities that autonomous cars
will bring to people in coming years, and our flexible approach to
engineering and design, enabled by our new Scalable Product
Architecture, means that we can readily bring this from concept to
reality."
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SEMI-AUTONOMOUS DRIVING |
AUTONOMOUS DRIVING |
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How it works |
The car can drive itself (accelerate, brake & steer) to a limited extent, i.e., supports the driver with keeping the distance to the vehicle in front and keeping the car in the lane in speeds up to 30 mph (XC90). However the driver remains responsible for monitoring, supervision, and over all operation of the vehicle and is expected to actively participate in the driving. |
The car drives itself (accelerates, brakes & steers), and the driver is not responsible for monitoring, supervision, and over all operation of the vehicle. |
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Responsibility |
The driver is always legally responsible for driving the vehicle ("driver in the loop", "hands on the wheel, eyes on the road, mind on driving"). |
The driver will not be responsible for driving the vehicle when in autonomous mode ("driver out of the loop"). |
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The benefits to you |
The customer benefits a reconvenience, peace of mind and feeling of control. |
The customer benefit will be the freedom to engage in other activities (relax, create, entertainment, etc) in autonomous mode. |
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Legal status |
This is currently legal, since it does not change the basic assumption of (licensed) driver always being responsible. |
There is currently no legal framework (except for testing, in certain jurisdictions). |
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Roll-out |
These features have launched and will continue to launch in increments (certain speeds, certain scenarios, etc). |
This may launch in increments (certain speeds, scenarios, conditions, applications, markets). |
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By developing cars that allow you to take back control of your time we will create the desirable new cars of the future. We started building cars to give people the freedom to travel. Our autonomous technology will give them back the freedom of time.
Self-driving cars have the potential to transform the world we live in. If all cars were autonomous, society, the economy and the environment would all benefit. Here is how…
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HUMAN |
MACHINE |
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VISION |
Stereo vision system for: Front object detection Left, right or rear object detection Traffic sign recognition (manual) |
360-degree vision through: Six radar transmitters 12 ultrasonic sensors Multiple-beam laser scanner Four external cameras Traffic sign recognition (automatic) |
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NAVIGATION |
Sense of direction (variable) Map-reading ability |
Global Navigation Satellite System Detailed mapping In-built knowledge of current traffic regulations |
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OTHER FEATURES |
Volume knob finder Dial finger positioning |
Wheel speed sensors Accelerometers Rotation sensor (gyroscope) |
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BACK-UP SYSTEMS |
None |
Multiple |
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PROCESSING |
One extremely powerful, easily distracted generic processing unit |
Multiple bespoke processing units |
"We put the person at the centre, not the technology. It's about making sure the person is relaxed and enjoys the journey"
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