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Driverless taxis arrive in China: how do they work?
It seems that having driverless taxis or also called robotaxis is a reality, after several years of testing. Specifically, the first models are performing in China, thus positioning themselves at the forefront of this revolutionary means of transportation.
Artificial technology seems to penetrate more and more into the activities that human beings carry out or enjoy, now offering the possibility of a trip without a driver. Of course, always based on the corresponding security measures and having gone through the official certifications.
The first autonomous taxis arrive in China
One of the first tech companies to get caught up in autonomous travel technology is Baidu. They are the same ones that own the most popular search engine in China, after Google was previously censored.
Recently, in the fall, they obtained the final permit to put their driverless transport units into circulation in exchange for a payment. On the other hand, the United States is positioned as the main competition, since it also offers this type of service.
Another of the companies is Pony.ai, who have been approved for a taxi license in the Guangzhou region to start offering the transportation service. This is a boost for the startup, which has the support of a large company like Toyota in terms of financing.
Until now, they have managed to carry out more than 700,000 trips in their transport terminals, but now, thanks to the license, they will be able to put 100 more units into operation.
Specifically, there will be one hundred robotaxis that will have their official taxi license to operate in a space of 800 square kilometers in Nansha, Guangzhou.
In addition, Pony.ai has the advantage of having the support of a Chinese public administration, allowing robotaxis to be evaluated in real traffic situations.
How did they get permission?
In the case of Pony.ai, in order for their permission to be validated, they had to go through a long testing process that lasted two years.
During that period, Chinese inspectors evaluated the performance of self-driving taxis to determine whether they were confident enough to hit the streets.
To do this, the company's vehicles traveled more than a million kilometers, where 200,000 were in the Guangzhou area.
The latter, where they finally acquired permission to launch their transport units. But, as long as their terminals do not actively participate in any type of traffic accident.
How would driverless taxis work?
Previously, it was unthinkable to consider a vehicle to drive itself, but with technological advances, it seems more like something that has been a long time coming.
In essence, its operation is designed to consider passenger safety at all times, as could be seen in the tests carried out for the Baidu company.
During the demonstration, under no circumstances did the accelerator, brake or steering wheel have to be used, since the same vehicle does everything.
Everything, from a big data system, which collects a large amount of information to make real-time decisions on driving. It even takes into account the interaction with people inside the car.
For example, the robotaxi will only start once all the doors are properly closed and the passengers have their seat belts fastened.
At that point, an integrated GPS navigation system is activated, which is also supported by 5G connection technology.
In this way, it obtains data and information in real time about the environment where it operates, where motion detector cameras are integrated.
Will the driver's seat be free?
Although they are considered driverless taxis, the presence of a person who acts as a regulator is still necessary in case of any malfunction. That is, you will have the ability to take control of the vehicle whenever you deem it necessary.
However, it is expected that the presence of this person will be eliminated in the shortest possible time, provided that the robotaxis work correctly.
In the same way, the cars are equipped with sensors that will serve as support to act in situations of malfunction. Thus, they will stop at the nearest place so that they can be helped.
How will the service be?
It is logical that the service is of high quality, also enjoying intuitive operation and plenty of simplicity. In essence, it will only be necessary to make the request for the determined trip so that an available unit reacts and mobilizes to respond to the call.
Likewise, the algorithm used will be in charge of prioritizing those driverless taxis that are closest to the applicant so that they arrive faster. In this way, emphasis will be placed on an efficient service that saves costs and time.
The application, on the other hand, will allow the modification of the route in the middle of the trip, as well as having the appropriate means of payment for the user.
China at the forefront of driverless taxis in the world
With regard to private transport services, China continues to be the main benchmark in the world, with a clear advantage over the competition.
And it is that, in the United States, specifically in San Francisco, they have enabled Waymo (Google) and Cruise (General Motors) but with a security driver. This, because the vehicles are still being tested.
Likewise, Uber expressed the desire to incorporate a vehicle without a driver to make deliveries of its delivery service, Uber Eats, in Santa Monica.
On the other hand, in Japan, Nissan has recently launched tests of its autonomous taxi service in the Yokohama region. Meanwhile, in Germany, Volkswagen with its ID.Buzz van has started running test drives and trips in Munich.
Last but not least, Tesla has announced the desire and motivation to have a self-driving car by 2024. In this regard, Elon Musk commented that it is expected that it will not have pedals or steering wheels, thus being a robotaxi.
What does the future hold for robotaxis?
With the constant advancement of technology, it is practically a fact that these vehicles end up adapting to the way people live. Always, offering a quality and optimal service, in which they prioritize saving costs and waiting times.
On the other hand, it will also be a reality check for those people who are dedicated to offering transport services, whether public or private.
And it is that, in case they finish being implemented in the world, autonomous taxis will completely sideline real drivers.
It will mean, then, the elimination of a large number of jobs, since technology will once again seek cost savings for large companies.
However, it will be necessary to see if it turns out to be implemented in the best way, and if it has the necessary security parameters to generate trust in users.
