Panasonic to launch autonomous cart ride-share in 2021

Panasonic is to launch a ride-sharing service of autonomous electric carts in Japan in 2021 for small towns and other ‘confined’ areas. A report by The Mainichi says the company is now using four carts to transport more than 14,000 employees around its headquarters in Osaka Prefecture ahead of the commercial launch. The carts operate at 20 km/h per hour on a 2.4km loop around the premises, which is around 468,000 m2 in size. An spokesperson is quoted as saying during a press conference: "We are not tryin
November 6, 2019 Read time: 1 min

598 Panasonic is to launch a ride-sharing service of autonomous electric carts in Japan in 2021 for small towns and other ‘confined’ areas.

A report by %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external The Mainichi false https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20191017/p2g/00m/0bu/098000c false false%>says the company is now using four carts to transport more than 14,000 employees around its headquarters in Osaka Prefecture ahead of the commercial launch.

The carts operate at 20 km/h per hour on a 2.4km loop around the premises, which is around 468,000 m2 in size.

An spokesperson is quoted as saying during a press conference: "We are not trying to make high-speed autonomous cars because we are not an automaker. We would like to create slow and human-friendly mobility.”

Each cart comes with four seats, sensors, cameras and telecommunications equipment.

Panasonic is hoping the service will be introduced in theme parks or venues for large events such as the 2025 World Exposition in Osaka.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • ITS European congress papers deadline extended
    January 8, 2014
    The deadline for paper and special interest session proposal submissions for the ITS European Congress and Exhibition in Helsinki has been extended to midnight on 14 January. We have already received many valuable submissions and we thank you for your contributions. Papers and special interest session proposals should be submitted through the submission portal, which also provides the submission guidelines. For further details on the congress and exhibition, visit the Congress website.
    Read More
  • CCDD launches platform to reduce distracted driving in Canada
    January 22, 2018
    To help governments and stakeholders develop effective strategies to reduce distracted driving, the Canadian Coalition on Distracted Driving has launched a new web-based information hub at www.diad.tirf.ca/ehub. It is led by the Traffic Injury Research Foundation (TIRF) and its Drop It And Drive program, in partnership with The Co-operators.
    Read More
  • Connected cones make for safer sites
    May 31, 2013
    David Crawford welcomes new lives for old road safety products. Traffic cones and barrels have traditionally been on the bottom shelf of the road construction and maintenance industry, typically forming visible soft safety barriers for temporary works at a lower cost than concrete alternatives. On both sides of the Atlantic, however, they are fast gaining new roles as instrumented components in advanced construction safety arrays. The EC-sponsored €1 million (US$1.31 million) Safelane collaborative innovati
    Read More
  • Bird acquires California-based EV firm Scoot
    June 19, 2019
    Scooter-share firm Bird is to acquire Scoot, a San Francisco-based electric vehicle (EV) company. Scoot began deploying electric scooters in San Francisco in 2012 and has expanded in Santiago, Chile and Barcelona. Travis VanderZanden, founder and CEO of Bird says the partnership will work toward replacing “car trips with micro mobility options for all”. Scoot will continue to operate under the same name but as a subsidiary of Bird.
    Read More

Highlighted Content