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Unmanned vehicles
2019: Investing in Uber's self-driving car division
On April 19, 2019, Uber announced that it had raised $1 billion in investments for its self-driving car technology division. As a result of the financial deal, which was attended by technology holding Softbank, automaker Toyota and automotive component manufacturer Denso, Uber Advanced Technologies, was valued at $7.25 billion. Read more here.
2018
Toyota invests $500 million in Uber to develop self-driving cars
On August 27, 2018, Toyota announced an investment of $500 million in Uber. The money will go to the joint development of unmanned vehicles. Read more here.
Testing a convoy of unmanned trucks
In January 2018 Toyota , she began testing Japan pilotless in a convoy, in which one driver can drive several cargo vehicles at once.
Participants in the experiment are automakers Hino Motors, Isuzu Motors, Volvo UD Trucks and Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus (a subsidiary of the German concern Daimler), as well as Toyota Tsusho, part of Toyota Motor. The latter manages the project by order of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan and some other stakeholders, Nikkei reports.
During the tests, which began in January 2018, they use three unmanned trucks about 12 meters long each. They travel at a speed of 80 km/h at a distance of 35 meters from each other along a certain road - along the expressway west of Tokyo.
All trucks are equipped with jointly operating adaptive cruise control systems and communication technology between cars. The latter includes millimeter-wave cameras and radars that measure the distance between each car, as well as to other objects at the lead truck. This development allows automotive electronics to quickly detect and respond to changes in the speed of trucks in the column , reducing or increasing the distance for maximum safe movement. Denser truck traffic reduces air resistance and reduces fuel consumption.
During testing, a person is driving each truck, but the project participants set a goal to create a convoy that can be driven by only one driver - the one who sits in the first of these heavy trucks. It is planned to fulfill this task by 2020, and to bring the technology to the commercial market by 2022.[1]
Using blockchain
In mid-March 2020, Toyota announced that it had created a blockchain unit to explore the possibilities of the new technology in more depth. Read more here.
Electric vehicles
After General Motors announced its plans to create a Chevrolet Volt electric car, Toyota Motor announced its intention to start developing an analogue. Later, the company began testing the Toyota Plug-in HV in Japan, the USA and Europe. Similar to the Chevrolet Volt, this model is based on a Li-ion battery. It is believed that an electric car has a less detrimental effect on the environment than cars on a hybrid engine.
Technologies for interaction with cars
2019: Toyota builds sensors into auto "wipers" to warn other drivers of bad weather
In early November 2019, it became known that Toyota and Weathernews joined forces to improve the accuracy of weather forecasts. To do this, they use data that they receive in real time from sensors built into the "wipers" of cars. Rain warnings will be passed on to other drivers. Read more here.
Hybrid technologies
Toyota Motor has been actively promoting hybrid technology to the automotive market since 1997 and is the first company to start mass production and sale of hybrid cars (Toyota Prius). Later, the company began to complete the hybrid power plant of the Camry model, and later the Lexus. The company called its own hybrid technology "Hybrid Synergy Drive," and for the Lexus line this name sounds like "Lexus Hybrid Drive." The Prius became the best-selling model in the United States. Toyota now has three lines of hybrid cars based on the Hybrid Synergy Drive system: Prius, Highlander and Camry. The popular Toyota Sienna minivan in the hybrid version is planned for release in 2010, and by 2030 the company plans to transfer the entire line of its products to Hybrid Synergy Drive.
By February 28, 2011, the company had sold 3.03 million hybrid vehicles.
Protection against theft
Main article: Toyota anti-theft technology
Safety
2019: Installing a device that will prevent gas from being confused with the brake
On August 11, 2019, it became known that Toyota had created a new security system that prevents gas and brake pedals from confusing. The Japanese automaker hopes that this feature will help avoid errors that are very common among older drivers that lead to accidents.
The new electronic assistant will prevent the car from accelerating when the gas pedal is pressed if a pedestrian or other obstacle is in the path of its movement. In addition, the system will gradually reduce the speed of the machine when the accelerator pedal is suddenly pressed, even if there are no obstacles in front.
Toyota will start selling new cars with confused pedal protection in 2019. Initially, the development will find application in hybrid vehicles.
Also, this device can be installed in any car. The manufacturer says that retrofitting the car will cost no more than 50 thousand yen (about $472).
The new option is designed primarily for age-related motorists. For Japan, road accidents caused by the elderly have become a big problem. According to the National Police Department of Japan, 460 people died on the roads in 2018 due to the fault of inattentive drivers of retirement age. At least 17 people were victims of drivers who confused the gas and brake pedals.
The issue caught the attention of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. He called for measures to reduce the number of accidents, including deaths due to confusing pedals.
The country has a law according to which drivers over 75 years old must be subject to regular medical examination for the presence of symptoms of dementia.[2]
2017: Building a system to monitor heart function in cars
In June 2017, Japanese auto giant Toyota Motor announced a joint project with the University of Michigan to develop a heart monitoring system for vehicles. According to the developers, the new technology will help reduce the number of victims of road accidents resulting from heart attacks. See more about the system here.
Chronicle
2024: Toyota, Mazda, Yamaha, Honda and Suzuki used special software to falsify car safety data
The largest Japanese automakers, Toyota, and Mazda Yamaha Honda Suzuki used specialized to software falsify crash tests and other car safety tests. This was announced on June 4, 2024 by the Ministry, transport Japan having published the preliminary results of a large-scale audit of the activities of local automakers.
According to the ministry, during the investigation, numerous facts of forgery of data necessary for vehicle certification were revealed. In total, violations were found during the testing of 38 models of cars and motorcycles. Authorities demanded an immediate halt to sales of six of them.
As noted in the report, Toyota presented incorrect crash test data for three current models - Corolla Fielder, Axio and Yaris Cross, as well as four discontinued models, including one under the Lexus brand. The company admitted errors in six types of tests in 2014, 2015 and 2020 and stopped producing these cars.
In turn, Mazda manipulated the test results of the Mazda2 hatchback, the Roadster RF sports car and three models of previous years. Sales of the first two were stopped on May 30, 2023. Yamaha has also suspended deliveries of one motorcycle model.
Honda representatives reported violations in checking the noise and engine power of about 20 models produced before October 2017. Suzuki completely hid the fact of detecting defects in the brake system during the tests.
The Ministry of Transport of Japan noted that the chairman of the board of directors of Toyota Akio Toyoda made a public apology for the actions of the company. Japan's Transport Minister Yeshimasa Hayashi called the automakers' behavior "regrettable" and vowed to investigate further.[3]
Notes
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