IVECO, the commercial vehicle brand of Iveco Group, and Plus have successfully completed the initial phase of their autonomous trucking pilot, which focused on engineering integration and closed-course testing.
The companies say this milestone showcases the technical feasibility and capabilities of the PlusDrive-powered IVECO S-WAY truck and its readiness for the next phase of the pilot: conducting public road testing. IVECO and Plus will now produce a semi-autonomous product as a first step and to prepare for ultimately manufacturing fully autonomous vehicles.
Initial public road testing in vehicles supervised by a safety driver will cover a number of countries in Europe, including Austria, Germany, Italy and Switzerland. The diversity in terrain, road gradient, weather and driving scenarios will all help to continuously expand the capabilities and features of Plus’s autonomous driving technology, the company says.
“By leveraging IVECO’s deep expertise in commercial vehicles and Plus’s leadership in autonomous driving technology, we are advancing our capability to develop and later commercialize the next generation of innovation-driven, safety-enhanced, sustainable transport solutions,” says Iveco Group’s Marco Liccardo.
