Since 2010, Canada's annual automotive production has been maintained at more than 2 million units, accounting for about 17.0% of the North American Free Trade Area (NAFTA). In the following five years (from 2011 to 2016), NAFTA's overall automotive production increased year by year, while Canada's share gradually declined. Only 1.92 million units will be produced in 2019, accounting for only 11.4% of NAFTA, which shows the Canadian vehicle production has been transferred to the United States and Mexico.  Start in the second quarter of 2020, the outbreak of Covid-19 affects the automotive industry. Auto production capacity is estimated to decrease by 20%. The output of Canada is estimated to be about 1.53 million units, and that of NAFTA is estimated to be 13.5 million units. Canada's automotive industry is facing transformation. In addition to reducing vehicle production lines and human resources, traditional car manufacturers also use the advantages of artificial intelligence and networking related units in the Great Lakes Region for research intensive research, and set up R & D centers.   Moreover, the top three suppliers of Tier 1 in Canada in 2019 are Megna, Linamar and Martinrea, which used to supply North American car factories. In recent years, they have actively expanded other regions, including Europe and Asia, to reduce their dependence on the North American market.

By adding new electrified vehicles to their model lineups or investing more in electrified powertrains, automakers are having to make large changes as more countries introduce stricter emissions regulations. For example, Britain recently announced a ban on the sale of new gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles beginning in 2030, causing some automakers to scramble. As a response, Japan's Honda Motor Co., as Autocar reports, will stop selling vehicles that only run on gasoline or diesel within the next few years. Only Electrified Vehicles By 2022 As the outlet reports, Honda is looking to phase out pure internal combustion engines from its European lineup before the end of 2022. Ian Howells, the automaker's senior vice president, confirmed the news. "It [Honda's line-up] will be a combination of full electric and hybrid," said Howells. "Obviously, if the legislation starts to move as we approach 2035, or transitions away from hybrid as well, then we'll move our technology away from that." Take a look at Honda's current electrified lineup and the automaker looks like it's on the back foot. The brand only has one electric vehicle with the e and doesn't have any full electric offerings in the U.S. In fact, Honda's been one of the few automakers to really fall behind the competition when it comes to electrified vehicles. Toyota, Hyundai, Volkswagen, General Motors, Kia, and Ford all have plans that involve a variety of electrified vehicles. That isn't the case with Honda, which still seems to be waiting to see if electrification is the way forward. Since Honda can't wait much longer, the automaker will reportedly take a few pathways to reduce its carbon footprint in the UK. Instead of just looking into electric vehicles, hybrids, and plug-in hybrids, Honda believes there are other uses for different tech. "There's a role to play for e-fuels, for biomass, for hydrogen, to some degree for conventional fuels, and also batteries," said Howells. ——Source:futurecar.com

Apple is continuing its development of technology that could end up in a potential Apple Car, including LiDAR barrier detection systems and touch-sensitive dashboards. The company's "Project Titan" initiative has long been a poorly kept secret, and is thought to be involved in designing systems and services for self-driving vehicles. Though concrete details are still scarce, it's clear that Apple is still developing vehicular technologies. LiDAR barrier detection systems and touch-sensitive dashboards. The company's "Project Titan" initiative has long been a poorly kept secret, and is thought to be involved in designing systems and services for self-driving vehicles. Though concrete details are still scarce, it's clear that Apple is still developing vehicular technologies. On Tuesday, for example, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office granted Apple a patent for a barrier detection system that could be critical for autonomous vehicles. The patent, titled "Barrier detection," details a system that can use LIDAR to detect obstacles in a path. "For example, lidar data may be used by an automated vehicle controller to detect objects in the environment of the vehicle and this information can be used for navigation and/or motion planning in a dynamic environment," the patent reads. The system could take that LIDAR data and apply it to a bird's-eye view map of an environment. From there, a machine learning could apply different classes to objects in the map based on their characteristics. "This object classification data can be used as a mask for down-stream object trackers and/or map localizers. Analysis of these birds-eye-view maps may enable improvements in accuracy and efficiency of object recognition and tracking, which may in turn improve performance of automated vehicle control systems," the patent contends. The patent's inventors are listed as Tarin Ziyaee and Tarek El-Gaaly. Of the two, Ziyaee has been previously credited as an inventor of an Apple patent related to depth perception for computer vision. Apple was also granted a patent for a specific type of light guide display technology that could be useful in a vehicular environment. The patent, "Light-based devices with light guide arrays," describes a light-based device that could display images or other light output to a user. Beyond that, it could also gather user input through touch. "A light-based device may be used in an electrical system to provide images and other light-based output to a user. If desired, the light-based device may include a sensor for gathering user input. For example, a capacitive touch sensor that overlaps the surface of a light-based device may be used to gather touch input from a user," the second patent reads. Apple notes that the light guide array for the device could be formed from a bundle of fibers, including plastic or other trasparent ones that are surrounded by a low index cladding material. Interestingly, the patent specifically notes that it's aimed at i...

The automotive industry is a key industry in Canada. In 2019, the export of automotive related products amounted to CAD $78.4 billion (about US $60 billion), accounting for 13.2% of Canada's total export volume. The Great Lakes region of Ontario, Canada, is close to Detroit in the United States. Because of lower energy and operating costs than the United States, and Canada is rich in mineral resources, it attracted five major foreign automotive manufacturers and component manufacturers to settle in, and local auto parts suppliers also flourished. In addition, British Columbia and Quebec, driven by government policies, have formed new settlements for hydrogen energy and electric vehicles. According to Statistics Canada, in 2010, Canada's automotive industry contributed about $13.4 billion to its GDP. The automotive OEM industry accounted for 46.4% of the total, 48.2% of the auto parts and components, and 5.4% of the body. The contribution of the automotive industry to GDP has increased year by year, reaching $16.6 billion (about US $13 billion) in 2019, of which nearly $8.9 billion of auto parts and components, accounting for 53.5%. However, the proportion of GDP of the vehicle OEM industry is decreasing year by year, from 46.4% in 2010 to 39.2% in 2019. Canada's automotive industry has transformed from vehicle OEM to technology R & D, and in 2017, it promoted the Autonomous Vehicle Innovation Network (AVIN). In addition, the Great Lakes Region of Ontario is densely populated with artificial intelligence (AI) and networking related academic research units. General Motors, Ford and other car manufacturers have transformed vehicle bases into R & D centers, and developed self-driving automotive companies such as Uber, Google and Apple to set up Internet of vehicles laboratories, forming a science and technology research and development corridor.

Groups advocating for shopper and vehicle security on Monday launched an outline for autonomous vehicle legislation that prioritizes security, fairness, accessibility and sustainability. The numerous coalition consists of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, Center for Disability Rights, Transportation for America, Consumer Reports and different stakeholders which can be urging federal lawmakers to make use of the framework as a information to make sure public security. In the outline for AV legislation, the coalition highlights a set of tenets for lawmakers to make use of as a “GPS,” or a method to “guarantee public safety,” in response to the doc. The tenets embrace: Requiring all ranges of automated autos to be “subject to comprehensive and strong federal standards” that handle recognized and foreseeable issues of safety. Making positive security and efficiency knowledge is made accessible to key stakeholders. Guaranteeing accessibility for all, particularly older adults and people with disabilities. Preserving shopper and employee rights. Ensuring native management by enabling the federal authorities to manage the efficiency of those autos however leaving regulation of their operation to the states. Directing the U.S. Department of Transportation to conduct a complete examine on how AVs will affect transportation programs and the setting. The tenets additionally direct the Transportation Department to make use of its authority to situation motor vehicle security requirements for all ranges of automated autos as a substitute of pursuing a voluntary or hands-off method. Other actions by the Transportation Department and NHTSA, in response to the tenets, ought to embrace issuing a federal security normal requiring all autos to be geared up with expertise that captures all obligatory knowledge on the efficiency of AVs on the highway in addition to requiring producers to supply knowledge on the protection and efficiency of check autos and programs, together with safety-critical occasions comparable to crashes. House lawmakers have said they’re set on prioritizing an AV invoice early within the 117th Congress after earlier makes an attempt at passing legislation stalled within the Senate. Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, a consortium of shopper, medical, public well being and security teams in addition to insurance coverage firms, has lengthy insisted “commonsense safeguards” have to be a part of any AV legislation thought-about by Congress. “Requiring that AVs meet minimum standards and that operations are subject to adequate oversight throughout development and deployment will save lives as well as costs for both the consumer and the manufacturer,” the group mentioned within the outline for AV legislation. “Moreover, on the path to AVs, proven solutions are currently available that can prevent or mitigate the exorbitant death and injury toll now while laying the foundation for AVs in the future.” ——Source:us.newschant.com...

In the past five years, autonomous vehicles (self-driving cars) have been booming in various countries. In addition to the investment of resources and technology by car manufacturers, the government also cooperates in the development. But is it really safe? According to the American SAE International ‘’Levels of Driving Automation’’ Standard for Self-Driving, the most common Tesla is classified into Level 3, which means that the vehicle can complete most of the driving operations, but the driver still needs to keep his attention and take over at any time in case of emergency. In order to achieve full driving of the vehicle and be able to cope with various road conditions, it can only be achieved at Level 5. There are still many problems to be solved before the autonomous cars go on the road. During the test, the car accidents are frequently spread, and the safety is questioned, that makes the public trust in self-driving reduced. In terms of safety performance, self-driving cars have a complete automation system, which can detect the driving environment through various sensors and the existing ADAS system design, and cooperate with 5G Internet of vehicles (IoV) technology, so that the vehicle can drive completely without control. At present, Taiwan mainly focuses on developing Autonomous bus, driving at bus lanes to reduce the rush with ordinary cars, and test the performance safety at night, so as to make up for the gap of public transport at night and serve as a tourist connection in the future. Although the technology of autonomous car is not mature yet, with the rapid progress of science and technology, enterprises and the government cooperate with each other to promote self driving safety on the road. In the future, the vehicle system and relevant laws and regulations would be more perfect, and the traffic safety would be higher.

Boris Johnson due to outline move to bolster electric vehicle market LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson plans to announce this week a ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030, five years earlier than previously planned, the Financial Times reported on Saturday. Britain had originally planned to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel-powered cars from 2040, as part of efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and in February Johnson brought this forward to 2035. Citing unidentified industry and government figures, the FT said Johnson now intended to move the date forward again to 2030 in a speech on environmental policy he is expected to give this week. The BBC reported a similar plan earlier on Saturday, without giving any sources. A Downing Street spokeswoman declined to comment on the reports or the content of Johnson's upcoming speech. The FT said the new timetable was not expected to apply to some hybrid cars which use a mixture of electric and fossil fuel propulsion and could still be sold until 2035. An end to the sale of new petrol and diesel cars would mark a huge shift in Britain's automotive market. Industry figures show that petrol and diesel powered cars accounted for 90% of new car sales so far this year, while just 1.4% of sales were for pure electric vehicles, which are typically more expensive. Hybrid vehicles of various types made up the remaining sales. ——Source:thestar.com

The race is on to meet demand for autonomous trucks Since 2013, venture capital investment in trucking and logistics-related technologies have soared from just over US$100 million to what, in 2020, seems to set surpass US$2 billion. The innovation associated with autonomy – and the fabled self-driving truck, above all – has attracted the most interest. Their proponents point to perks around delivery times, costs, and the counteracting of a truck driver shortage. With 65% of consumable goods in the US trucked to market, a report by McKinsey & Company said autonomous trucks would change the cost structure and utilization of trucking. This is compounded by ever-greater pressure from e-commerce. Automation at every point in the supply chain is proving vital to cope with demand— autonomous trucks are estimated to save 45% in operating costs (between US$85 billion and US$125 billion) for the US for-hire trucking industry. The fledgling industry is attracting the keen interest and convergence of a strange combination of cutting-edge start-ups and age-old, well-oiled stalwarts. Back in ’17, Elon Musk rolled out Tesla’s fully electric semi-truck, capable of 500 miles between charges and 80,000 pounds in carrying capacity. Every step of the way, its Autopilot technology has been developed, nudged, and rivaled by a smorgasbord of competitors, one of which – Nikola – has claimed Tesla’s creation infringes its own patents. Last year, Daimler bought autonomous vehicle firm Torc Robotics, acquiring “advanced, road-ready technology” for level 4 autonomous driving, while last year, Plus.AI conducted the first real-world commercial freight delivery by a self-driving truck, carrying 40,000 pounds of Land O’Lakes butter in a three-day trip across the United States. What will change? For starters, as the race for autonomous trucking passes the finishing line, and all starters are joined by more and more competitors, daily operating times will increase. This necessitates the surrounding supply chain to shift, expand, and mold to new reality of operation. Such a shift will be incremental, and won’t be seamless. Companies working in logistics and dealing with goods across the supply chain will need to put a renewed onus on flexibility and around-the-clock operations, which is no mean feat. Ultimately, capturing economic gains from autonomy requires mastering an (almost) entirely new set of processes and systems, designed to keep vehicles rolling in a manner that not only assures safety – for any inefficiency will be exposed and scrutinized – but also provides a positive return on investment. Over time, we would expect to see a more balanced utilization of routes, as well as a reduction in mixed traffic and commuter congestion. If the technology is nailed, then peak hours of travel can be circumnavigated to provide greater assurance on cargo arrival times, partnered with improved safety of fellow road-users. Then there are the drivers. Though decreasing in popularity...

Most common safety features on a commercial vehicle today provide warning capabilities, through functionality such as forward collision warning, lane departure warning, and blind spot monitoring. These systems provide audible and/or visual alerts in the vehicle cab to alert the driver about an impending incident. The next evolution of safety systems involves system intervention, where the safety system will react if the driver does not. One example is automatic emergency braking. With this functionality, the system will apply brakes automatically in the event an object is detected and the driver does not actively engage the brake. Kary Schaefer, general manager of product strategy and marketing for Daimler Trucks North America, discussed the evolution of commercial vehicle safety technologies during a General Session of the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) Safety and Security Conference. The 39th annual conference, held June 23-25, has been offered to attendees virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The session, titled "Safety Truck of the Future," provided attendees information on current safety systems available for commercial trucks, how those safety systems have evolved, and what fleets can expect regarding truck safety systems in the future. “Research shows that the vast majority of motor vehicle accidents are tied to human error, and safety systems that are available on the market today save lives and can reduce damage,” Schaefer said. She advised that specing safety systems on commercial vehicles can mitigate the instances and cost of crashes, help to increase vehicle uptime by reducing damage and repair times, and can improve driver comfort and safety. Continued sensor and camera integration in safety systems The next evolution of vehicle safety systems, which has allowed the commercial vehicle to intervene on behalf of the driver when an object is detected, includes object recognition through camera and sensor technology that works together, known as “fused technology.” “Fused technology uses information from the radar and camera to detect, to classify and determine what objects are in the truck's path,” Schaefer advised. “When the camera and the radar work together in fusion, or in conjunction, object recognition is greatly increased. And this increase in object recognition can improve the braking, performance and object detection on moving or stationary vehicles, as well as moving pedestrians.” Schaefer expects camera technology to advance to the point where driver-facing cameras will be integrated into the safety systems, in addition to surrounded view cameras and backup cameras integrated into commercial vehicle safety systems as well. Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), developed from active safety systems, have provided safety technology focused on offering an improved driver experience and comfort. Common ADAS features available on commercial vehicles today include: Active steering, a safety and fatigue-reducing featur...

Project Endeavour has reached a key milestone as the first live trials of its autonomous vehicle fleet begin this week on roads in Oxford. The development brings the deployment of commercial autonomous vehicles in the UK one step closer. Project Endeavour – a Government-backed R&D project – will run until Autumn 2021 with live tests in three major UK cities. The trials will demonstrate autonomous driving in a variety of urban and city environments and will develop engagement models with local authorities and communities to help them prepare for the future launch of autonomous vehicle services. The consortium, part-funded by the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV) and delivered in partnership with Innovate UK, is using a combination of advanced simulations and on-road demonstrations to help accelerate and scale the deployment and adoption of autonomous vehicles. A fleet of six Ford Mondeo vehicles, enabled by Oxbotica to be capable of Level 4 autonomous driving, will complete a nine-mile round trip from Oxford Parkway station to Oxford’s main train station. Trials will be run at all times of day and night, allowing Oxbotica’s autonomous vehicles to experience a range of traffic scenarios from morning commutes to school runs, in a range of weather conditions. Launched in September 2019, the project has brought together Oxbotica, a global leader in autonomous software, urban innovators DG Cities and Immense, a leading transport simulation company. Ahead of the public trials, three new consortium partners have been added to Project Endeavour: the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL), the British Standards Institution (BSI) and Oxfordshire County Council. The trio of new partners will focus on the development of a new safety assurance assessment scheme against PAS 1881 standard for public autonomous trials, helping inspire trust and define a consistent approach to safety that will enable future deployments to happen efficiently without slowing down the rate of innovation. Camilla Fowler, Head of Automation at TRL, said: “Trials of Level 4 vehicles are an important milestone, keeping the UK at the head of the field in bringing the benefits of this technology into mainstream use. These exciting trials, and what we learn about assuring safety and encouraging interoperability will open up new opportunities for many more research demonstrations across the UK, which are the forerunners to the full-scale public trials so eagerly awaited.” Matt Page, Managing Director UK and Ireland, Assurance at BSI, said: “We’re delighted to be a part of this collaborative project, where we’ll be applying our expertise in certification to research an assessment methodology for the safe trialling of connected and autonomous vehicles on public roads. This technology presents a huge opportunity for the automotive sector and we’re committed to working together with industry to help accelerate innovation whilst ensuring safety.” Laura Peacock, Innovation Hub M...