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posted by mrpg on Monday October 30 2017, @01:45PM   Printer-friendly
from the cool-story-bro dept.

Submitted via IRC for SoyCow1

Waymo is the name of the autonomous vehicle program being developed under Alphabet, the parent company of Google.

Waymo announced on Thursday that it is bringing its Chrysler Pacifica minivans to the Detroit area to test how the company's technology performs in the region's harsh winters.

"Our ultimate goal is for our fully self-driving cars to operate safely and smoothly in all kinds of environments," Waymo CEO John Krafcik writes.

Krafcik says that Waymo has been doing cold-weather tests since 2012. But so far Waymo has done most of its testing in sunny places like Mountain View, California; Phoenix, Arizona; and Austin, Texas. where snow is rare. Waymo believes it has largely mastered driving in sunny climates and is preparing to launch a commercial service in the sun-drenched Phoenix area.

[...] "This type of testing will give us the opportunity to assess the way our sensors perform in wet, cold conditions," Krafick writes. "And it will also build on the advanced driving skills we've developed over the last eight years by teaching our cars how to handle things like skidding on icy, unplowed roads."

Source: Waymo starts testing in Michigan to master snow and ice


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  • (Score: 2) by richtopia on Monday October 30 2017, @03:13PM

    by richtopia (3160) on Monday October 30 2017, @03:13PM (#589464) Homepage Journal

    The article states their fleet is Chrysler Pacificas. You don't build a fleet of custom vehicles without working closely with the OEM. From Waymo's announcement, here is the most informative paragraph as to their Michigan infrastructure:

    Michigan is a natural choice for Waymo’s winter testing. In May 2016, we opened our 53,000 sq ft. self-driving technology development center in Novi so we could more easily collaborate with our Michigan partners. Since then, Waymo’s local engineers have been working on many different parts of our technology, including outfitting our fleet of Chrysler Pacifica hybrid minivans with our Waymo-designed and built suite of sensors. With a facility close by and roots planted in Michigan, we’ll be able to easily test our self-driving cars in the Greater Detroit area to further improve our technology.

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