Successful completion of the ABSOLUT research project
The closing conference of the ABSOLUT project was held at the Leipzig exhibition center on November 28th. Sponsors and project contributors came together to review and discuss the results of their joint work. The event began with words of welcome from Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe (LVB), the City of Leipzig, the German Aerospace Center (DLR) as project sponsor and the Verband deutscher Verkehrsunternehmen (VDV). For the subsequent technical session, partners from the project consortium were on hand at various information points to explain their specific contributions to the project and to answer any detailed questions. The actual protagonists of the project [...]
ABSOLUT enters the test phase with passengers
A press event was organized on the grounds of the Leipzig BMW Group plant on October 12th to mark the start of the project’s test phase with passengers. For the journalists, this was a perfect opportunity to discuss the latest developments with project contributors and even to take a ride on the ABSOLUT shuttle bus themselves. After the completion of fitting-out work on the test vehicle, granting of the necessary approvals for test operation and appropriate further development of the driving automation, the exclusive pilot test with staff from ABSOLUT partner companies such as BMW Group Leipzig and Leipziger [...]
Saxon innovation project ABSOLUT enters the next test phase
At a press conference held on 28th February, the ABSOLUT and e-Crafter project teams gave the attending journalists an insight into what the consortium has achieved to date. “ABSOLUT has reached a technological milestone which is set to resonate far beyond the scope of the project itself and will enable Germany to take another step forward on the important future topic of automated driving,” said Christian Liebich, Division Manager at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. Ines Fröhlich, State Secretary at the Saxon State Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labor and Transport, expressed similar delight and is [...]
All prerequisites met for progress to the application phase for automatic driving functions
DEKRA engineers have conducted two inspections to assess the vehicle’s lane-keeping functionality and the procedures for safety driver to take over safe vehicle control, and have subsequently given their approval for further testing of the lane-keeping capabilities within the grounds of the Exhibition Center – at the maximum speed of 20 km/h which is prescribed there – and along the route between the Exhibition Center and the Leipzig BMW group plant at speeds from 40 to max. 50 km/h. At the same time, our insurance provider has updated the terms of the cover given and raised the current speed limitation [...]
First automated journey along the whole route
The first automated journey along the whole route (Exhibition Center to BMW plant) has been completed successfully at speeds up to 50 km/h.
Approval testing for the basic AD functions
DEKRA engineers have conducted approval testing for the basic AD functions at the test center in Freital and at the Exhibition Center in Leipzig, and approval has been granted for operation at speeds up to 50 km/h.
Breidenbach & Frost Conference “Autonomous Driving in Public Transport”
During the Breidenbach & Frost Conference "Autonomes Fahren im ÖV" on September 23th/24th 2021 the ABSOLUT-Team provided detailed insights to the current state of the project. A presentation at the conference location, practical demonstrations at the test field as well as a introduction of our recently finalized test vehicle eCrafter were shown.
Converted VW e-Crafter handed over to ABSOLUT
The converted VW e-Crafter, including the X-by-Wire system, has been handed over to the ABSOLUT consortium, which now plans to proceed with automation at the Jahnsdorf Airfield.
Test permission granted
The ABSOLUT project has successfully obtained permission to commence field testing from the central traffic authority of the Free State of Saxony (State Office for Road Construction and Transport - LASuV).
5th VDV Congress on Future Autonomous Driving within Public Transport 18 – 19 May 2021 – Digital
5th VDV Congress on Future Autonomous Driving within Public Transport The ABSOLUT presentation provided insights concerning the strategic approach, technical realization and current state of the project as well as the potentials and perspectives derivable from its results. With more than 100 followers in our session we were able to share the project's ideas to a huge/remarkable number of participants. Program PDF