Delphi Automotive PLC is about to attempt what might be the longest autonomous vehicle test in North America. The Delphi Drive, Delphi’s autonomous vehicle, will be taken on a test drive from the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco to New York City. With a total distance of about 3,500 miles, Delphi will be using the drive as both an exhibit of their autonomous technology and as a test of its abilities.
The Delphi Drive Audi sQ5 that will be taking on the long road trip.
The Delphi Drive is an Audi sQ5 that Delphi has added their autonomous system too. The car made a great impact back in January at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas where the car took passengers for fully-automated rides around the city. Delphi says that their system was designed to be integrated into any model without filling passenger or cargo space. Delphi has been working with other Audi models recently, but the Delphi Drive sQ5 has covered the most miles driving between Los Angeles and San Francisco in order to get ready for the cross-country drive.
One of Delphi’s main goals was to be as intrusive with their technology as possible, keeping the interior as stock as possible.
Delphi’s autonomous vehicle system includes several different pieces of technology. Some of this technology includes six LIDAR and radar sensors, an multitude of cameras, Advanced Drive Assistance Systems (ADAS), a high-end microprocessor to seamlessly drive multiple features and functions at once, a wireless vehicle communication technology extends the range of existing ADAS functionality, and other intelligent software to deal with challenges with real world driving such as traffic jams, parking and lane changes.
The cross-country trip will begin next Sunday, March 22nd. Delphi are planning to drive six to eight hours a day on different roadways and in different weather conditions in-order to gain as much information as they can to improve on their autonomous systems. The Delphi Drive will not be taking the trip alone and will be accompanied by a team of Delphi engineers with one in the “driver” seat at all times just in-case.
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