SHANGHAI, China—Goodyear will look to make autonomous trucks safer and more fuel efficient through a collaboration with Plus, a Silicon Valley-based provider of self-driving truck technology.
Goodyear said it will use its suite of services, including connected tires, to enhance transportation efficiency and safety, while reducing the carbon impact, for semis powered by Plus's Level 4 autonomous driving technology.
"Tires are the only thing on a vehicle that touches the ground and it's this critical position that can help us enable future mobility solutions like autonomous transportation," said Chris Helsel, senior vice president of global operations and chief technical officer for Goodyear. "With our leadership in products and innovation, Goodyear is supporting efficient fleet operations and is pleased to drive more possibilities for the logistics industry with Plus."
Plus was founded in 2016 by entrepreneurs and industry veterans who have experience in high tech and artificial intelligence.
Goodyear and Plus will explore how Plus's autonomous driving system can incorporate feedback from Goodyear's connected tires to improve fuel economy. The combination also can be used to improve performance in severe weather and extreme road conditions, Goodyear said.
Plus already is deploying its driver-in autonomous driving solution, PlusDrive, to customers, and is expected to start production of the FAW J7 L3 truck (First Automobile Works) powered by PlusDrive in the third quarter of 2021.
"We are constantly exploring new opportunities to generate more value for customers using our autonomous driving technology," said Shawn Kerrigan, chief operating officer and co-founder of Plus. "The collaboration between Plus and Goodyear enables us to leverage both companies' innovative fuel efficiency technologies, and harness these to further improve the performance of autonomous trucks."
