We’ve all been hearing a lot about the autonomous car, but now comes news of an autonomous big rig. Meet the Daimler Freightliner Inspiration Truck.
The Daimler Freightliner Inspiration Truck – the first autonomous commercial truck licensed by the state of Nevada -can drive itself without any human intervention and is due to provide a demonstration tomorrow along with the release of its specifications.
The technology behind the Inspiration Truck is said to be based on the Adaptive Cruise Control system that we see in many cars today. In this application, it has been combined with the front radar and stereo camera systems to help identify public roads and motorways, traffic signals and other motorists as a human driver would, only better.
The aim of the Inspiration Truck is to promote a more efficient and safe means of commercial transportation along motorways and, although the truck is fully autonomous, it still requires a driver/supervisor to take charge. The responsibility of the driver will be to ensure that the truck’s operational systems are in check and to provide assistance if the truck were to malfunction.
Although beta testing of this truck will only take place in the state of Nevada, the Freightliner Inspiration Truck points to the future of commercial trucking worldwide. A quick search on Twitter shows a surprising number of people already calling it the future of trucking.
