Carmakers, Google and Apple aren't the only ones looking to build a driverless car. Now, Sony wants in on the action.
Sony is teaming up with a Japanese robotics startup, ZMP, in which it is investing 100 million yen, to build a self-driving vehicle. Sony plans to tap its image sensor technology for its foray into the new emerging competitive market. One report notes most driverless vehicles may need nearly a dozen cameras built into driving systems for assessing and monitoring a car's surroundings.
The news comes on the heels of rumors that Apple also throwing its collective research and development hat into the driverless car movement. The initial report came about a week ago following sightings of an Apple van in the Bay Area equipped with a LIDAR system.
One tech publication claimed it received an "unsolicited email" from a person who purports to work for Apple who says Apple is developing its own vehicle and employees of electric car maker Tesla are "jumping ship" to work at Apple. As Tech Times reported earlier this week Apple has the R&D capabilities and the money, and very likely design expertise. It's already deep into developing an in-car entertainment system, CarPlay.
Ford recently opened a new driverless research facility in Silicon Valley. "Silicon Valley is a marketplace of ideas and it's important to be here and be a part of that," said Ford CEO Mark Field in late January. "The research center is another proof point of that."
While U.S. tech giants and carmakers are delving deeper into the driverless car development, tech players and carmakers in the U.K. have had a bit of a head start. The British government has already cleared initial trials for driverless cars after six months of developing a rough framework for testing. Yet a recent survey reveals half of UK drivers aren't too keen on the car technology.
Google is likely the most well-known company involved in driverless car development in the U.S., and is expected to begin testing such a car on roadways this year. Back in May 2014 it presented a new prototype of its car, which does not feature a steering wheel or pedals. Google founder Sergey Brin stated in 2012 that he believed Google self-driving car would be available by 2017. Google has extended that expectation to 2020 at this point.
Google is supposedly also looking to develop its own car rideshare service, which would be a bit counterproductive to its investment in rideshare company Uber. Meanwhile, as Tech Times has reported, Uber is actually looking at developing its own line of driverless cars.
