Honda reveals Cooperative Mobility Ecosystem
Honda has unveiled its Cooperative Mobility Ecosystem concept at CES 2017 in Las Vegas.
The concept connects the power of artificial intelligence, robotics and big data to ‘transform the mobility experience of the future and improve customers’ quality of life’.
Featuring a number of prototype and concept technology demonstrations at CES, the Honda concept envisions a future where vehicles will communicate with each other and infrastructure to mitigate traffic congestion and eliminate traffic fatalities, while increasing the productivity of road users and delivering new types of in-vehicle entertainment experiences. Vehicles will create new value by providing services autonomously when not in use by their owners.
Honda has also announced technology collaborations with Visa, DreamWorks Animation and innovative start-ups through the Honda Developer Studio and Honda Xcelerator open innovation programs based out of Honda Silicon Valley Lab.
Supporting its ‘Cooperative Mobility Ecosystem’ theme, Honda unveiled the Honda NeuV, an electric automated concept car equipped with an artificial intelligence (AI) ‘emotion engine’ and automated personal assistant.
The global mobility company also revealed the Honda Moto Riding Assist, a concept motorcycle that applies Honda’s robotics technology to maintain balance.
‘Since our founding, Honda has focused on creating technologies that help people,’ said Yoshiyuki Matsumoto, president and CEO of Honda R&D Co Ltd. ‘Our goal is to showcase a future technology path that results in a redefined mobility experience.’
Among the technology on display was Honda’s Safe Swarm concept, which uses bio-mimicry – replicating the behaviour of a school of fish – to create a safer, more efficient and enjoyable driving experience. The Honda Safe Swarm demonstration immerses visitors in a world where vehicles sharing the road communicate with one another using dedicated short range communication (DSRC) to support the driver in negotiating complex driving situations. The Safe Swarm concept enables vehicles to operate cooperatively, enabling more efficient, low-stress and, ultimately, collision-free mobility.
‘The autonomous age has dawned, and Honda, like all automakers, is working to refine and advance this technology to achieve our goal for a collision-free society in the 2040 timeframe,’ said Frank Paluch, president, Honda R&D Americas. ‘Using vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communications and drawing upon big data and artificial intelligence, Honda will work with others to create an environment in which road conditions are predicted and managed, and collisions are avoided.’
