We may all be excited about Google's autonomous car hitting the roads of California this year, but that's small-fry to British-based auto-firm Delphi. The company's autonomous car is set to travel 3,500 miles (5,600 km) across the US, starting near the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco on March 22.
"Delphi had great success testing its car in California and on the streets of Las Vegas,” says Jeff Owens, chief technology officer at Delphi. "Now it’s time to put our vehicle to the ultimate test by broadening the range of driving conditions. This drive will help us collect invaluable data in our quest to deliver the best automotive grade technologies on the market."
Delphi says the trip will allow it to further develop its active safety technologies, which allow the vehicle to instantaneously make complex decisions, such as how to stop and proceed at crossroads, timing how to merge onto highways and calculating safe maneuvers around cyclists. It will also allow the vehicle to be tested in scenarios that could not otherwise be recreated, such as facing changing weather conditions, varied terrain and road hazards.
Among the other technologies employed by the Delphi vehicle are radar, vision and Advanced Drive Assistance Systems and a powerful microprocessor to drive its features and software.
According to Delphi, the trip from San Francisco to New York will be the longest automated drive ever attempted in North America. You'll be able to follow its progress at on Twitter.
The video below shows the autonomous vehicle in action.
Source: Delphi
