MAN Truck & Bus has announced the successful automation of a fully electric city bus with technology partner ADASTEC.
The vehicle, a Lion’s City 12 E, has been equipped with an Automated Driving System (ADS), and will soon undergo testing in Munich city traffic as part of the MINGA research project.
Utilising five LiDAR sensors, six RADARs, eight cameras and GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System); the vehicle is now technically capable of automated driving, and has been undergoing a series of tests on MAN premises.
Tests thus far have included a number of specific driving manoeuvres – such as approaching bus stops, and are progressing with the overall goal of fine-tuning the system, collecting important operational data and further optimising the automated driving functions.
Germany’s Federal Minister of Transport Patrick Schnieder:Autonomous driving is a key to the mobility of the future. Above all, it stands for greater efficiency and greater inclusion for citizens in road traffic.
Projects such as MAN’s fully electric, automated city bus in Munich are therefore groundbreaking for public transportation in Germany. We expressly support such initiatives. Pioneering work is being done here that will have an impact far beyond the region and the city of Munich.
Following testing on MAN premises; the vehicle is set to operate on public roads in Munich this coming autumn. Initially running without passengers, these trials will serve as a final test phase under real world conditions. The vehicle will, according to Dr. Michael Roth, Head of Bus Strategy and Product Strategy Bus at MAN, steer, accelerate, brake, and signal independently, with a safety driver on board to monitor systems at all times.
Part of the MINGA project; all findings will be directly incorporated into the further development of future vehicle generations, with MAN, which has been working toward driverless buses for several years, partnering with ADASTEC for the duration of the trials themselves.
