Google is preparing to launch a fleet of self-driving minivans by the end of this month.
Google's Self-Driving Minivans
Google has dropped its plan to build its own car, refocusing its efforts instead on making the software and hardware needed to power self-driving. According to Forbes, since being spun off from Alphabet Inc.'s X lab, Waymo has only existed as a stand-alone company for about a month. But despite that, in the coming years Waymo has the potential to become one of the most important players in the future of the auto industry.
The company announced at the North American Auto Show on Sunday, Jan. 8, that it will deploy on public roads its first fleet of self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivans later this month. According to The Verge, the self-driving minivans will be hitting the roads in Phoenix, Arizona and Mountain View, California. Waymo also presented to the public a first look at the self-driving Pacificas. Since the deal between Google and Fiat Chrysler was first announced back in May 2016, the self-driving minivans have been under wraps.
Self-Driving Tech Built In-House
All the technology that enables the minivans to completely drive themselves is produced by Waymo in-house. For the first time, the Google spin-off is building its own mapping technology, sensors, and cameras, rather than purchasing parts as it had done in the past.
This new production strategy will bring the cost down to very cheap levels and it will allow the company to exert more control over its self-driving hardware. Waymo CEO Jeff Krafcik said in a speech in Detroit that by building its own LIDAR sensors, for instance, the company is able to save 90 percent of its costs.
Krafcik said that Waymo developed two new types of LIDAR: long range and short range. This advanced technology will allow its vehicles to spot tiny objects far away, as well as to see objects and people very close to the car.
