[AutonomousVehicles] New Autonomous Vehicle From VW and Argo AI

[Cornelius Butler]

Hi Everyone,
VW is working on a new autonomous vehicle. Article link and text is below.

Article Link:
https://www.autoblog.com/2021/09/07/vw-id-buzz-argo-ai-automomous-vans/

Article Text:

VW will deploy Argo AI-powered autonomous ID.Buzz vans
This also gives us a look at the latest iteration of the Buzz

RONAN GLON
Sep 7th 2021 at 9:54AM

Volkswagen announced it will begin testing self-driving, ID.Buzz-based
electric shuttles in 2025. Powered by Argo AI, a Pittsburgh-based company
the firm holds a stake in, the vans will begin carrying users in Hamburg.

Argo AI founder and CEO Bryan Salesky and Volkswagen boss Herbert Diess
jointly explained the project is as clear-cut as it sounds. The car side of
the equation comes from Volkswagen, while the self-driving system is
provided by Argo AI. Starting with the upcoming production version of the
ID.Buzz concept makes sense. It's a big van, so it offers plenty of space
for people, gear, and the parts required for autonomous driving. It's also
electric: It's built on the MEB platform that's found under the ID.4, among
other battery-powered Volkswagen Group models.
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Cameras, radars, and a lidar unit mounted on the roof panel drive the van.
Salesky said his company's lidar has the ability to detect objects up to
1,300 feet away, even if they're dark (like a flat-black car). Much of the
hardware is bolted to the van's body, so it'll be easy to identify it as
autonomous even from a distance.

The prototype displayed in Munich gives us a hint at how the Buzz has
changed in its transition from a concept to a production car. While it's
draped in camouflage, we can tell its front end has been redesigned — it
notably gains real headlights instead of the design study's LED units — and
it inevitably grew door mirrors and exterior door handles. Changes made to
the back include bigger lights, though the overall proportions haven't been
significantly altered.

Volkswagen will unveil the production version of the ID.Buzz (whose name
hasn't been announced yet) in 2022, and sales in the United States will
start in 2023. As for the autonomous model, it will start shuttling
passengers in Hamburg, Germany, in 2025, and it will go through a number of
tests on roads and on test tracks until then.
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