Jaguar Land Rover is developing a new smart city hub that will enable real-world testing of connected car technology with autonomous vehicles.
The development, a partnership with the Future Mobility Campus Ireland (FMCI), will be spread across 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) of public roads that will allow JLR and FMCI to collect valuable data so they can simulate real-world environments and traffic scenarios to test out new technologies.
As part of the test, Jaguar will deploy an example of its I-Pace electric SUV on the roads along with self-driving vehicles.
“This partnership with FMCI provides us with a real-world facility to trial our emerging autonomous, connected, electrified, and shared technology in a strategic location,” said John Cormican, general manager for Shannon Ireland Jaguar Land Rover. “Collaborating with top-tier software companies will allow us to develop our future systems more efficiently.”
Sensors and high-accuracy location systems will be deployed throughout the test site, as well as a data management and control center. There will also be smart junctions, connected roads, autonomous parking, and electric vehicle charging at the test site which will be situated next to FMCI’s Shannon software hub in Ireland.
A number of other companies, including Cisco, Seagate, Renovo, Red Hat, Valeo, and Mergon, will also be involved.
Russell Vickers, CEO of FMCI, added: “The smart city zone provides a first-class facility for global companies to work together and develop world-leading technology, from autonomous vehicles to connected infrastructure.
“The testbed provides an opportunity to test in the real world and help answer some of the questions posed by the future of mobility in a collaborative and efficient way.”