Skip to main content

University of Michigan, Toyota partner on connected car research

On the heels of last week’s announcement that Toyota is putting more boots on the ground in Ann Arbor to study fully autonomous driving and advanced mobility, Toyota is to partner with the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) at the Ann Arbor Connected Vehicle Test Environment (AACVTE) in an operational real-world deployment of connected vehicles and infrastructure. AACVTE is a real-world implementation of connected vehicle safety technologies being used by everyday driver
April 15, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
On the heels of last week’s announcement that 1686 Toyota is putting more boots on the ground in Ann Arbor to study fully autonomous driving and advanced mobility,

Toyota is to partner with the 5647 University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) at the Ann Arbor Connected Vehicle Test Environment (AACVTE) in an operational real-world deployment of connected vehicles and infrastructure.

AACVTE is a real-world implementation of connected vehicle safety technologies being used by everyday drivers in Ann Arbor and around Southeast Michigan. AACVTE will build on existing model deployment in Ann Arbor, including an upgraded and expanded test environment, making it the standard for a nation-wide implementation.

This research will increase UMTRI and 324 US Department of Transportation (US DOT) real-world exploration of connected vehicle technology. The current limitation of connected vehicle testing outside of a closed circuit test tracks is the lack of connected vehicles.

As part of its partnership agreement with UMTRI, Toyota will invite team members and their families to participate in the AACVTE initiative. The Toyota participants will allow their vehicles to be equipped with devices to support accelerated research and deployment of advanced vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V)/vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) systems in the region.  The goal is to deploy 5,000 vehicles with vehicle awareness devices throughout the Ann Arbor area.  The Ann Arbor deployment is one stepping stone toward achieving the US DOT’s vision for national deployment of V2V/V2I vehicles.

Related Content

  • South Australia opens applications for fund to boost connected, autonomous car technology
    November 16, 2016
    The South Australian Government is inviting applications for a three-year US$7.5 million (AU$10 million) Future Mobility Lab Fund to boost local testing, research and development of connected and autonomous vehicle technologies. From today, companies, industry bodies, research institutions and other organisations are able to submit creative proposals which will accelerate the development and implementation of connected and autonomous vehicle technology, focused on three themes:. Autonomous vehicle te
  • Self-driving vehicles ‘may not improve road safety’
    January 28, 2015
    Self-driving vehicles are expected to improve road safety, improve the mobility of those who currently cannot use conventional vehicles and reduce emissions. However, a new report by researchers at the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) reviews some of the safety aspects attributed to autonomous vehicles and indicates that safety is likely to be an issue as long as self-driving cars share the road with conventional vehicles. Report authors Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoe
  • Infrastructure and the autonomous vehicle
    December 12, 2014
    Harold Worrall ponders the effect of autonomous vehicles on transportation infrastructure. For the last century the transportation industry has been focused on the supply of infrastructure to support the ever growing fleet of vehicles and the greater number of miles covered by each vehicle. Our focus has been planning, funding, designing, building and maintaining roadways. Politicians, engineers, planners, financial managers … all of us have had this focus. We have experienced demand growth since the first
  • UK Autodrive consortium to develop driverless cars
    December 9, 2014
    An Arup-led consortium, UK Autodrive, has won the UK Government’s US$15.6 million ‘Introducing Driverless Cars’ competition. Other members of the consortium are Milton Keynes Council, Coventry Council, Jaguar Land Rover, Ford Motor Company, Tata Motors European Technical Centre, RDM Group, MIRA, Oxbotica, AXA, international law firm Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co, the Transport Systems Catapult, the University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, and the Open University. The aim of the project is to establis