Apolong

The Apolong (Chinese: 阿波龙), sometimes referred to as the Baidu Apollo project is a driverless vehicle developed by Baidu, Kinglong and a consortium of more than 40 companies.[1]

Apollo (Apolong 阿波龙)
Overview
ManufacturerBaidu, Kinglong
Production2017–present
Body and chassis
ClassDriverless vehicle

The Level 4 microcirculation Apolong bus commenced mass production in 2017.[2][3]It is manufactured by a consortium consisting of Baidu, Kinglong and SB Drive (a subsidiary of Softbank).[4][5][6] The driverless bus does not have a steering wheel, accelerator or brake, travels at speeds of 20 to 40 kmph and is able to sense and predict movement of pedestrians and vehicles in its vicinity.[7] It uses Apollo 3.0, Baidu's open source driverless operating platform.[8]

The name Apollo is an English version of the Chinese name for the bus "Apolong".[9][10]

History

In 2013, Baidu commenced development of autonomous driverless vehicles, through the baidu research institute. This project gradually expanded to including 10,000 developers working on an open platform, and more than 50 partners across the world, including Intel, BMW, Benz, Kinglong and XTE.[11] On 5 July 2017, Bloomberg reported that Baidu had negotiated 50 partners to sign in for the development and purchase of the new unmanned buses.[12]

In 2017, China Daily reported that four Apolong buses were planned for test rides on two bus routes in Shenzhen.[13] In August 2017, an early version of the autonomous vehicle was unveiled at GoMentum, USA.[14] In July 2018, at Baidu Createfest 2018 held in Beijing, Baidu and King Long unveiled the latest version of Apolong. They announced plans of using these buses in specific regions of Wuhan, Xiamen, Shenzhen, Beijing, Wuhan and Pingtan.[15] In July 2018, China org reported that test drives had been carried out in Chongqing and Fujian.[16] In July 2018, Xinhua and New Atlas reported that the buses had commenced mass production as the 100th Apolong bus was rolled out.[17] The bus was first opened to an international audience in November 2018 at the Shanghai World Expo, where 1600 participants from 72 countries were ushered to the venue in Apolong buses.[18][19]

Specifications

Apolong buses can seat 14 people, are guided through cloud technology, have a wheel span of 4.3 meters, are SAE level 4 capable, and can seat 8 people and 6 standees.[20] It uses the Kunlun microchip developed by Baidu.[21]

Production locations

As of November 2018, Apolong buses are assembled in Kinglong's manufacturing premises in Xiamen, Fujian.[22]

References
  1. "Baidu announces volume production of China's first fully autonomous bus". China Daily. 4 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  2. "China's first Level 4 self-driving shuttle enters volume production". New Atlas. 4 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  3. "Baidu just made its 100th bus ahead of its commercial launch". Tech Crunch. 5 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  4. "Baidu apollo self driving cars". Business Insider. 2 July 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  5. "baidu starts mass production of autonomous buses". DW. 5 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  6. "Baidu's Robin Li Reveals Unmanned Bus, AI Chip, Digital Assistant Upgrade at Tech Summit". Yicai Global. 4 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  7. "Baidu's self-driving bus begins mass production". China Org. 5 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  8. "Baidu partners with Intel's Mobileye to enhance Apollo self-driving platform". Venture Beat. 3 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  9. "Baidu Apollo". Autonomous stuff. 11 February 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  10. "New autonomous bus made by Baidu". BBC. 6 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  11. "Baidu Reaches New Milestone in Autonomous Driving with Volume Production of China's First Commercially Deployed Fully Autonomous Bus". Globe newswire. 3 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  12. "Baidu signs 50 plus partners for Apollo driverless car project". Bloomberg. 5 July 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  13. "Shenzhen to test self-driving buses on two routes". China Daily. 21 September 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  14. "Baidu Testing Self-Driving Cars at GoMentum Station". Inside Unmanned Systems. 8 August 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  15. "Baidu announces volume production of China's first fully autonomous bus". Xinhua Net. 4 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  16. "China's Baidu plans to start manufacture of autonomous vehicles next year". South China Morning Post. 18 November 2016. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  17. "China's first Level 4 self-driving shuttle enters volume production". New Atlas. 4 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  18. "In China showed the unmanned bus on electricity". The Silver Times. 2 November 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  19. "3 Key Announcements From Baidu's Developer Conference". www.fool.com. Fool (Investment Blog). Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  20. "Baidu Kinglong Apolong - specifications". wattev2buy.com. What ev autonomous vehicles. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  21. "China's car makers want to dominate next phase of autonomous driving". Bloomberg. 23 April 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  22. "Baidu's self-driving bus begins mass production". Xinhua Net. 4 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
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