FOTs 2021 open at Tokyo waterfront area
―with information from V2N, toward the future society with automated driving―
November 16, 2021
New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO)
Translation of Japanese NEDO news release posted on October 13, 2021
The FOTs as Field Operational Tests will be launched to get closer to a society with automated driving with 22 institutions, including automobile manufacturers, auto parts suppliers and universities from in and out of Japan, under the initiative of SIP-adus: Automated Driving for Universal Services as the second phase of Strategic Innovation Promotion Program, which is led by Cabinet office and operated by NEDO. All the institutions will test how to better exploit information provided from V2N: Vehicle-to-Network as long-range network, such as traffic signal information, weather information and other traffic information including traffic restrictions, for the automated driving systems, from November 2021 through March 2022 at Tokyo waterfront area. Another test, for which an open call for participants is available until October 15th, will also be started for verification of effectiveness of the automated driving safety assessment in virtual space.
1. Brief description about SIP-adus
SIP-adus*1 aspires to realize a society with higher quality of life for everyone, by making contributions to solving social issues such as reducing traffic accidents, relieving traffic congestions, ensuring mobility for vulnerable road users, and mitigating the driver shortage and costs in logistics and mobility services, through the process of putting automated driving into practical use and its dissemination. This is the reason why the program promotes research and development for common tasks that industry, academy and government should jointly work on.
2. Field Operational tests in Tokyo waterfront area
FOTs have been progressed since October 2019 with participation of automobile manufacturers, auto parts suppliers, universities and also start-ups from in and out of Japan, aiming to achieve connected automated driving technologies as higher stage of the domain, by utilizing traffic environment data provided from infrastructures, such as ITS radio roadside units and the high precision 3D maps among others on the roads in Tokyo waterfront area, and sensors for merging lane assistance along Metropolitan Expressway, which were installed for the tests.
The FOTs in FY2021 are planned to promote further establishment and exploitation of the traffic environment data distribution system, so will be carried out in the middle of the environment where varieties of traffic environment data can be distributed to vehicles by the public long-range networks as V2N*2, while utilizing the high precision 3D maps as well as traffic signal information and merging assistance information distributed from short-range networks as V2I*3 which had been installed so far.
- Distribute Traffic environment data from Public Long range Networks
As the new activities for better utilization of traffic environment data, the public long-range networks as V2N provide to vehicles information of traffic congestions and restrictions among others from probe vehicles*4 and another generated by third parties and related to weather, mock-emergency vehicles, and even in incorporating traffic signal information that had been distributed from dedicated short-range communication as V2I last year.
V2N communication systems distributes generated traffic environment data of medium and wide area to be led to driving plan making, ODD*5 definition, and alerting system on automated vehicles, of which the effectiveness over safety driving will be validated.
- Participants to the FOTs
The participants, 22 institutions*6 from inside and outside Japan are responsible over operation of their test vehicles and drivers, as well as data acquisition and report of the tests.
- FOTs period
Each of participants will start their tests when ready along with necessary infrastructures installed, from November 2021 until the end of March 2022.
3. Near future plan of SIP-adus
SIP-adus is developing a simulation model which has high consistency with the real world in various traffic environments, aiming for creating a virtual space for the safety assurance. The safety evaluation environment in virtual space*7, mainly simulating Tokyo Waterfront City area used for the FOTs, are created and will be tested to verify its effectiveness as another operational test from November.
[Notes]
- *1 SIP-adus
- Automated Driving for Universal Services as the second phase of Strategic Innovation Promotion Program
SIP-adus - *2 Long-range Networks as V2N
- Abbreviation of Vehicle-to-Network which is a communication model allowing vehicles to share connected information communicated from base stations
- *3 Short-range Networks as V2I
- Abbreviation of Vehicle-to-Infrastructure which is a communication model allowing vehicles to be provided traffic information from ITS radio roadside units.
- *4 Probe vehicles
- Information and data related to location, traffic and others sent from moving probe vehicles
- *5 ODD
- Abbreviation of Operational Design Domain, meaning operating conditions under which automated driving systems are designed to be functioned.
- *6 22 institutions
- Please check each of them from:
Participating organizations（62KB） - *7 Safety evaluation environment in virtual space
- for the details of the open call for participants:
About Application for Participating in the Tokyo Waterfront City Area Field Operational Test (through simulation) for Strategic Innovation Promotion Program (SIP) Phase Two - Automated Driving (Expansion of Systems and Services) (Building a safety evaluation environment in Virtual Space)
4. For more information, please contact:
About the news release
In charge of the article: Tanaka, Ito, or Yamashiro
Mobility team, Robot and Artificial Intelligence Technology Department, NEDO
TEL: 81+44-520-5241 E-mail: nedo-sip2-rinkai-fot@nedo.go.jp