Global automotive and energy storage company Tesla Motors has showcased its new Autopilot technology at the grand finale of the International Driverless Cars Conference, which closed on Friday at the Torrens Parade Ground.
This two-day conference – the first of its kind to be held in the Southern Hemisphere – welcomed about 300 delegates from interstate and around the world who joined locals to discuss the future of this potential $90 billion industry and how South Australia can tap into it.
Transport and Infrastructure Minister Stephen Mullighan branded Australia’s first driverless cars conference a “fantastic success”, with several household name brands displaying the latest advances in these technologies.
“It is exciting to have world-leading international companies in Adelaide to discuss the enormous developments in autonomous vehicle technology in recent years and what is coming in the future,” Mr Mullighan said on Friday.
Tesla’s brand-new Autopilot technology enables vehicles to steer within a lane, change lanes with the simple tap of a turn signal and manage speed by using active, traffic-aware cruise control.
“Adelaide’s own Centre for Automotive Safety Research will be demonstrating the technology which supports autonomous emergency braking systems, already found in many vehicles on our roads,” Mr Mullighan said.
“Today’s demonstrations will also feature Bosch systems designed to prevent vehicle reversing collisions and demonstrations of the University of New South Wales’s vehicle driving simulator. Conference delegates will also have the opportunity to learn more about the first on-road driverless car demonstrations in the Southern Hemisphere on Saturday – part of the Australian Driverless Vehicle Initiative coordinated by the ARRB Group.”
