Nissan is getting into the autonomous ride-hailing
game as the company has teamed up with DeNA to begin a field test of its Easy
Ride service in Japan.
Set to kick off on March 5th, the Easy Ride service
will be launched in the Minatomirai district of Yokohama and allow passengers
to travel on a 4.5 km long route that spans from Nissan’s
headquarters to the Yokohama World Porters shopping center.
In order to navigate the busy streets of Yokohama,
the autonomous Nissan Leaf has been equipped with six laser scanners, 14
cameras and a radar system. All of the information collected from the sensors
will be processed by a high-tech computer which enables the car to drive itself
while avoiding obstacles such as pedestrians and other motorists.
While most autonomous vehicles are simply concerned
with transporting passengers, the Easy Ride vehicles are unique as they have an
in-car tablet that enables riders to look for recommended places of interest
and nearby events. The system can even provide coupons to nearby restaurants
and retailers.
Nissan and DeNA will be using the trail run to learn
how riders like the experience and how often they use the provided coupons. The
company will also be asking them how much they would be willing to pay for the
using the Easy Ride service as the companies plan to launch a full robo-taxi
service in the early 2020s.
