Nissan’s new Serena ProPILOT technology

ProPILOT :

ProPILOT is a revolutionary autonomous drive technology designed for highway use in single-lane traffic. Nissan is the first Japanese automaker to introduce a combination of steering, accelerator and braking that can be operated in full automatic mode, easing driver workload in heavy highway traffic and long commutes.

Employing advanced image-processing technology, the car's ProPILOT system understands road and traffic situations and executes precise steering enabling the vehicle to perform naturally. ProPILOT technology is extremely user-friendly, thanks to a switch on the steering wheel that allows the driver to easily activate and deactivate the system. ProPILOT's easy-to-understand and fit-to-drive interface includes a personal display showing the operating status.

System Configuration:

The accelerator, brakes and steering are controlled based on information obtained through a mono camera equipped with advanced-image processing software. The ProPILOT camera can quickly recognize in three-dimensional depth both preceding vehicles and lane markers.

Functions:

Once activated, ProPILOT automatically controls the distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle, using a speed preset by the driver (between approximately 30 km/h and 100 km/h). The system also keeps the car in the middle of the highway lane by reading lane markers and controlling steering, even through curves.

 

If a car in front stops:

The ProPILOT system automatically applies the brakes to bring the vehicle to a full stop. After coming to a full stop, the vehicle will remain in place even if the driver's foot is off the brake pedal. When ready to resume driving, ProPILOT is activated when the driver touches the switch again or lightly presses the accelerator.

Volkswagen wants to sell three million electric cars by 2025

Speaking at the launch of VW’s ‘Strategy 2025’ in Wolfsburg this morning, Müller also revealed that the wider VW Group would make a “big reduction” in the number of model variants it produces - currently around 340 - as well as slashing the number of individual modular architectures from 12 to just four.

As Autocar predicted at the start of the year, this platform cull could cause future large Audis based on Porsche’s MSB platform and Audi’s unusual, longitudinally engined, MLB architecture to be dropped altogether. VW’s stand-alone NSF platform - which underpins the Up - could also be killed off.

In future, there will be just four platforms: small, medium, premium and sports car.

BMW unveils transparent Mini concept car

German automobile major BMW unveiled its transparent concept car 'Mini Vision Next 100' in London on Thursday. The car's most notable feature is the option of changing the exterior colour or pattern anytime as per a user's desire. The electric car also features a steering wheel which can slide across between passengers.

Nikola Motor Company unveils its electric truck

Here is unveiling of Nikola Motor Company’s electric long-haul rig concept. The Nikola One, as it’s called, has “6×6 all-wheel drive,” with 800-volt AC motors and regenerative braking at all wheels. And a whopping 2000 horsepower, compared to the 400-500 hp that most trucks have.

It also has a tank that holds 150 gallons of compressed natural gas, which powers a turbine that charges the 320 kWh lithium-ion battery pack. The idea is that drivers would not have to stop to charge; the CNG plus regenerative braking would be able to power the truck for 1200 miles of driving. It’s similar to how the Chevy Volt works, where the gasoline tank recharges the batteries. The Volt and the Nikola One are both electric vehicles in that electric power from the batteries turns the wheels, but the batteries are most often charged by an on-board generator or turbine.

That’s not the only similarity to another company that Nikola Motor Company has. You may have noticed that it uses the first name of inventor Nikola Tesla; the last name has already been used. NMC makes no bones about its admiration for Tesla Motors, but where Tesla started with a wee roadster and worked toward the midsize sedan, NMC is coming at the problem from the opposite—and much larger—side of the equation. It hinted at more vehicles for other markets to come in the future on its website, but NMC is likely hoping to get the Nikola One onto the road before tackling passenger vehicles.

For those who aren’t quite ready to plunk down $1500 for a reservation on a $350,000 electric tractor-trailer, NMC also announced a dune-buggy-esque 4×4 off-road vehicle called the Nikola Zero. For a $750 reservation ($42,000 MSRP), you can get in line for 520 hp of all-electric, waterproof driving. The Zero plugs in like most EVs do to recharge the 440-volt lithium-ion batteries rather than using CNG and a turbine, though it does have solar panels on the roof to power the 12V battery.

Cheers To Finger Power!

Mind you, this is not a “Green” concept and neither does it claim to be “Eco Friendly”. It’s just a helpful solution for a tricky situation. The situation being: you running out of juice on your mobile phone. So what do you do? Remove the battery from the back of the phone; give it a few good turns around your index finger and its gathered enough power to last you a conversation or a safe trip to your charger and electric point.

Designers: Song Teaho & Hyejin Lee