On media day at CES 2022, companies showed technologies to make the world a better place and for decarbonisation. Tech advances for autonomy for cars or tractors, electrification of work loaders were also demoed. Announcements were made by Intel’s Mobileye, Bosch, John Deere, Doosan Bobcat and the Indy Autonomous Challenge.
Intel Mobileye Processors for Ford, VW and REM
Amnon Shashua, CEO of Mobileye, joined a stream-only event by Intel following the announcement of Intel’s 12th generation processors for PCs. Mobileye introduced EyeQ Ultra, an AV-on-chip supercomputer for end-to-end autonomous driving with 176 TOPS (tera operations per second).
Mobileye also announced the next-generation EyeQ system-on-chip (SoC) for advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS): EyeQ6L and EyeQ6H.
Shashua talked about Mobileye’s accomplishments in the ADAS and autonomous vehicle space.
Mobileye had $1.4 Billion in revenue with 41 design wins. Mobileye announced partnerships with Honda for level 3 autonomy and the 8 Megapixel camera for BMW.
During a video chat, Ford’s president, Jim Farley, praised Mobileye for helping with Ford’s ADAS, Level 2 self-driving and REM mapping. Mobileye’s Road Experience Management technology automatically aggregates and generates AV maps in the cloud.
“The REM feature is important to Blue Cruise when there is not a clear lane line,” says Farley, “We are betting on Mobileye for our future.”
In a video, Shashua went on an autonomous ride with Volkswagens chairman of the board, Herbert Diess. The video shows how cloud-based data enhance autonomous driving. Without hands on the steering wheel on a rural road without lane lines, the car stays nicely in an imaginary lane.
“It’s continuously on. It’s working really well,” says Diess.
“The beauty of the cloud is that you have more processing of data,” says Shashua.
REM can be associated with traffic lights. In the future, it can prevent people from running traffic lights, adds Shashua.
In 2021 Mobileye had four billion kilometres of roads detected. They expect 10 billion kilometres of data in 2022 testing.
“We expect the full electronics for autonomous vehicles by 2025 to cost $1,000 making it affordable for the consumer of the future,” says Shashua.
Bosch Tech for a Better World
Many know about Bosch technology in refrigerators, e-bikes and vehicles. Soon, Bosch tech will help in smart cities, pediatric medicine and forests. Tanja Rueckert, chief digital officer, and Mike Mansuetti, president of Bosch NA, showed new Bosch innovations.
Ruekert noted that 100 per cent of all Bosch electronic product classes are now web-enabled, making for wireless updates and web-based services. Connectivity for e-bikes is the basis for a personalised e-bike experience like never before.
“We’re engaging in partnerships to propel our technology leadership in the mobility sector forward. For example, together with Microsoft, we’re strengthening our position in software development for all domains – from the car to the cloud. It’s also enabling us to speed up feature development to bring new software functions to vehicles faster,” says Ruekert.
Bosch has all the building blocks for automated driving. Bosch’s driver assistance systems are paving the way for all levels of automation. Over the past five years, Bosch made more than $10 billion in sales with driver assistance systems, says Mansuetti.
Bosch’s U.S.-based building technology subsidiary, Climatec. won a $35 million contract from the City of Ontario in California to boost its energy efficiency, safety, and connectivity.
“With the Smart Ontario project, we’ll be retrofitting the city’s infrastructure with smart, connected solutions such as building automation and LED streetlights. It should reduce local greenhouse gas emissions by over 10,000 tons annually,” says Ruckert.
Bosch is using Audio AI based on the same technology currently aboard the International Space Station. Working with Highmark Health in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Bosch is testing the use of audio AI as a diagnostic tool in pediatric medicine by listening to children’s breathing patterns.
“We are hoping it will be better than a stethoscope. This technology will enable us to monitor kids in a non-invasive manner. And alert the parents at a far earlier stage,” said Dr Joseph Aracri, DO, AHN, Chair of its Pediatric Institute.
Wildfires account for up to 20 per cent of annual global carbon emissions, as much as the entire transportation sector.
Dryad’s Silvanet Wildfire Sensor detects wildfire through a digital nose gas sensor.
Dryad’s sensors are mounted on trees to monitor the microclimate and detect flames early – then wirelessly notify emergency services before a camera or satellite-based system can.
“These sensors are going to help save lives, homes, and tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere,” says Mansuetti.
“From components to systems, and from software to services – when it comes to tomorrow’s mobility, all roads lead to Bosch,” concluded Ruckert.
The inaugural Bosch Tech Compass survey debuted at CES. It found that a majority (72%) of people surveyed worldwide believe that technological progress is making the world a better place.
John Deere Introduces Autonomous Tractor
John Deere executives showed how its products will help farmers do more with less. The company revealed the 40,000-pound autonomous tractor. The autonomous tractor features Deere’s 8R
tractor, TruSet-enabled chisel plough, GPS guidance system, six pairs of stereo cameras connected to a deep neural network.
“Technology has continued to be and will be the answer to help farmers meet their needs. Autonomy is not a convenience on the farm—it is a necessity. It allows farmers to focus on the other tasks on the farm,” says Deanna Kovar, Vice President, Production & Precision Ag Production Systems, John Deere who grew up working on a family diary farm.
Like a giant robot, the John Deere autonomous tractor performs its job without human intervention. Farmers can monitor the tractor remotely.
Machines don’t get tired or call in sick. They get the job when it needs to be done. It will create more efficiency for farmers who will need to be in a tractor all day. Autonomy improves the quality of life of farmers. They will no longer have to work for 18-hours a day in the fields, says Kovar.
“It’s working today and ready for production. It will be available later this year for farmers and transform their lives,” says Kovar.
All farmers need to do is transport the autonomous machine to the field and the machine starts working.Farmers are free to leave. Data is accessed through an app. An anomaly detection system the tractor stops if there is an problem and farmers are notified. Data is collected and stored in the John Deere operations center to help farmers make better smart operations decisions in the future. Data creates a digital footprint of the farm.
“In the future, John Deere autonomous tractors will do other jobs,” says Kovar.
Electrifying Heavy Lifting
Scott Park, Doosan Bobcat, CEO, started the news conference by saying, “Our mission is to empower people to accomplish more. I’m excited to be here today to talk about how the Doosan Bobcat will transform how we work, build and live. We are transforming what machines and humans are capable of doing.”
He introduced the first all-electric compact track loader, the Bobcat T7X, a battery-electric loader that outperforms diesel counterparts with no CO2 emissions.
The Bobcat T7X features a 62KW Lithium-ion battery that will last for four hours or a full day of intermittent work. Developed with Green Machine Inc. the loader reduces power when the load is lighter.
There are different driving modes: eco mode, advanced mode and beast mode. The electric drive system uses only one quart of eco-friendly coolant compared to 57 gallons of diesel. It has fewer parts and works ten times quieter than diesel. Bobat is developing electric attachments–an auger to dig holes, an angle broom to sweep clean and a grapple to grab and hold materials.
Doosan Bobcat Partnered with Moog Inc., for control features. John Scannell, Chairman and CEO of Moog, a developer of motion control applications industry and space missions notes that they developed the system in only six months. He added that the Bobcat T7X has “connectivity for future enhancements”
BobCat will offer daily live remote demonstrations using 5G ultra-wide-band connected excavators. The company is also showing the first of kind OLED touchscreen on the windshield of the tractor to share information.
Autonomous Competition Heats Up at Vegas Speedway
While autonomous tech suppliers are competing for market share autonomous race cars are speeding up the commercialization of autonomous driving.
Indy Autonomous Challenge is sponsoring the first high-speed, head-to-head, passing autonomous race car competition. As part of CES, the race will be on Friday, January 7, 2022, at 12:00 pm PST at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Winners of the last challenge, TUM Autonomous Motorsport, Technische Universität München (Germany) the only student-led team, is launching their own autonomy platform company, driveblocks.
“Cars were passing at 100 mph, at the speedway, yesterday. Our goal is to push the limits for autonomy by tapping the best minds in the autonomous industry. If we are going to advance autonomous driving–we need more collaboration. It is not going to be a single algorithm world. We have to start testing at high speeds. The race is a tremendous platform,” comments Paul Mitchell, president and CEO, Energy Systems Network, the organisers of the race.
