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Computer scientist Maarten Sierhuis – a former NASA researcher who once designed human-robot interactions and developed collaborative intelligent systems for space exploration – now focuses his efforts on the artificial intelligence that's helping power the future of Nissan's autonomous vehicles.
Nissan's autonomous vehicle strategy is focused on providing drivers with new choices on the road toward a fully “self-driving” vehicle. The automaker believes this is at least a decade away.
In North America, Nissan offers a complete line of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles.
The company’s strategy is to build cars and trucks in the coming years that will allow the driver to choose whether to turn over command to automated driving systems at various points during a journey, or remain in control throughout.
Even when the driver is controlling the vehicle, the autonomous features must continue to monitor conditions and, in the event of imminent danger, assist the driver in avoiding an accident, say company officials.
Sierhuis – a robotics and artificial intelligence expect – and his team will apply anthropologic learnings to the design of the autonomous systems. That means studying how humans interact with the systems and ensuring that these systems are built so that there are good for people.
The first of the Nissan’s autonomous drive technologies was introduced this July. Known as ProPILOT, it allows cars to drive autonomously and safely in heavy, stop-and-go traffic on highways.
In 2018, Nissan expects to unveil a multiple-lane control application that can autonomously negotiate hazards and change lanes during highway driving. In 2020, it plans to launch intersection autonomy which will enable the vehicle to navigate city driving and intersections without driver intervention.
By that time, the Renault-Nissan Alliance plans to launch more than 10 models with significant autonomous driving functionalities in the U.S., Japan, Europe and China.
In 2014, Renault-Nissan “converged” both companies' engineering organizations to together as one team to reduce duplication in the development of next-generation technologies. The technology Renault and Nissan engineers develop together is then available for each company and all brands to use where it makes sense for consumers.
