JLR to test self-driving cars that can ‘see’ around corners

Jaguar Land Rover is leading a £4.7 m project to develop self-driving cars that can “see” at blind junctions and through obstacles.

The project, AutopleX, will aim to use technology to provide information earlier to self-driving cars so they can communicate with road users and obstacles when there’s no direct view. It will allow them to safely merge lanes and negotiate roundabouts autonomously.

AutopleX will develop the technology through simulation and public road testing on motorways and urban roads in the West Midlands.

The project’s consortium includes Highways England, INRIX, Ricardo, Siemens, Transport for West Midlands and WMG at the University of Warwick.

AutopleX is the latest innovation from the car manufacturer, who is developing fully- and semi-automated vehicle technologies. Last month it was revealed that JLR will supply tens of thousands of electric vehicles to Google in a new deal with its self-driving car project, Waymo.

Chris Holmes, connected and autonomous vehicle research manager at JLR, said: “This project is crucial in order to bring self-driving cars to our customers in the near future.

“Together with our AutopleX partners, we will merge our connected and autonomous research to empower our self-driving vehicles to operate safely in the most challenging, real-world traffic situations. This project will ensure we deliver the most sophisticated and capable automated driving technology.”