SEPTEMBER 2023 AFTERMARKET 29 www.aftermarketonline.net Chinese self-driving study claims huge environmental benefit A new study from China has concluded that self-driving could reduce emissions by more than 60%, potentially increasing to 76% if combined with vehicle electrification. The “Energy and environmental impacts of shared autonomous vehicles (SAVs) under different pricing strategies” paper was published by Nature, in partnership with the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT). Designed to help transport authorities gain a deeper understanding of future trends, the report’s lead author was Dr Shaopeng Zhong, of Dalian University of Technology. “The introduction of vehicle automation, shared mobility, and vehicle electrification will bring about changes in urban transportation, land use, energy and the environment,” it begins. “However, existing research on estimating the energy and environmental effects of shared autonomous electric vehicles generally ignores the interaction between land-use and transportation systems. The report goes on to describe SAVs as a double-edged sword, because “On the one hand, SAVs can save energy and reduce emissions by, for example, promoting transportation efficiency, increasing road capacity, mitigating congestion, reducing accident frequency, matching vehicle sizes to trip requirements and eco-driving. “On the other hand, SAVs can lower people’s marginal travel costs and make the locational decisions of residents and enterprises more free, leading to urban sprawl and increased travel time, distance, and frequency.” If, as La Dolce Vita filmmaker Federico Fellini put it, a different language is a different vision of life, then BSI’s Connected and Automated Mobility (CAM) vocabulary can make a vital contribution to the safe introduction of self-driving vehicles. Sponsored by the UK government’s Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV), the latest edition was launched in April 2023. It includes 103 key definitions and 60 commonly used abbreviations. We spoke to Nick Fleming, Associate Director at BSI and the vocabulary’s technical author, Dr Nick Reed, to find out more. “This is the fifth iteration of the Vocabulary we launched in 2020, and it has evolved significantly,” said Fleming. “By amending the title from CAV to CAM, along with the whole standards programme that BSI is developing with CCAV, we are recognising that connected and automated vehicles will exist within a broader transport ecosystem. “It’s not about looking at self-driving vehicles in isolation. The technologies will be core to a range of future mobility solutions – private vehicles, light passenger services and commercial freight. CAM is where the industry is headed and standards will take that wider viewpoint. “It's not easy to arrive at succinct definitions that everyone’s comfortable with. It requires a lot of consensus building. That’s fundamental to the BSI process. We know the Vocab has been accessed by companies and authorities the world over – that shows its relevance. “The industry has been on a bit of a journey, moving from autonomous to automated vehicles, and increasingly we’re now talking about selfdriving. Standards can help to ensure that the transition from advanced trials to commercial deployment happens safely, bringing all the societal benefits to life.” Dr Reed added: “There was a big expansion in the number of terms in version four, so we've rationalised and sharpened the definitions. One I particularly like is automated driving. It's very simple now. Automated driving is when the dynamic driving task is performed by the automated driving system. That's it. There are notes to help the reader understand exactly what we mean, but that's a really clear definition of what is, and, just as important, what isn't, automated driving. “Putting the Vocab together is interesting and challenging, with the technical advisory group including people from academia and the public and private sectors. One day we’ll reach an asymptote where much of the technology is standardised, but we're not there yet. You only need to look at the media coverage of Ford’s hands-free announcement to see that there’s a lot of work still to do.” Talking our language: BSI Vocabulary shifts from CAV to CAM
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