Volvo’s New Semi Concept Hints the Future of Autonomous Trucks

Volvo unveiled a fully self-driving, electric semi concept called Vera on Wednesday. This driverless truck according to the company will help bridge the shortage of freight drivers in this booming e-commerce era. Vera is specifically designed to perform short repetitive tasks, carrying goods over short distances with precision, making it ideal to be used at ports and large logistics centers.

The cab-less truck is compact and is designed to fit existing trailers, featuring an array of sensors for self-driving requirements.

The truck is monitored through a central transport control center, keeping a close watch on vehicle’s position, battery life, loading, and several other parameters. The same control center can be used to tailor the speed and progress of the operations to ensure minimum waiting time and increased delivery precision. In addition, the automated solution means that operations can be performed round-the-clock, ensuring a continuous flow of goods. The electric powertrains further help in reducing the noise, fuel consumption, and exhaust emissions.

Volvo says that this autonomous semi-concept is still under development and needs more effort to secure the safety aspects.

The truck is currently designed to operate over short distances in repetitive flows, and later through experience, it can be tested for other applications as well. The company, however, has not yet announced the commercial availability of this autonomous truck. But, we can certainly expect this truck to be introduced in the near future.