Developed by a gala start-up, it is expected to arrive in 2018. It has capacity for up to six passengers and reaches 80 km / h.

Electric and autonomous are two adjectives that are associated with many of the novelties that the automotive market brings. And it is not necessarily great manufacturers that sign these works. One of the last ones is an autonomous ‘taxi-robbery’ from Navya, a French start-up that has conceived an autonomous movement for the transport of passengers.

Navya has the support of several investors, including the French Valeo. The project is advanced and the company expects to sell its ‘Autonom Cab’ (official name) in just over a year. Its price will be 250,000 euros (290,000 dollars at the current exchange rate). Navya intends to anticipate large rivals working on similar projects.

The French ‘robo-taxi’ can circulate up to 80 km / h, although you still have to learn to live with ‘normal’ vehicles. Navya has another model in its catalog: a minibus (shuttle) that had a first rugged route. When he had been on the road for almost an hour, he hit a trailer, thankfully, without any personal injuries. Police authorities in Las Vegas said the minibus was not to blame and that the accident was due to a human error by the truck driver.

The Autonom Cab does not have a steering wheel or pedals. It can transport up to six passengers. It will be used both for private trips and for shared use. To apply, Navya has developed an application with which they can also open and close the only door that the vehicle has. To move it uses 10 Lidar sensors, six cameras and four radars. On the outside it has a luminous band with which it communicates with pedestrians and other drivers.

Navya taxi will start shooting in Paris in a few weeks as a test. Among the clients that have been interested in the project, Keolis, the most important private transport group in France. Another entity that will use these vehicles is the Royal Automobile Club of Australia. Both have ordered 30 units. The company expects to announce new agreements at the next CES Las Vegas.

Aspect of the radars and sensors of the Navya Autonom Cab

Christophe Sapet, CEO of Navya, sees transport companies such as Hertz or Avis (renting) as potential customers. It is also in the mind of the French start-up to generate contacts with technology companies such as Apple or manufacturers such as Renault or the Volkswagen Group to be acquired by them in the future. The example to follow is NuTonomy, which has just been bought by Delphi for 450 million dollars.

But at the moment, Navya is focused on polishing its first units and testing that everything works perfectly. He has invested in a factory that is headquartered in Michigan and from which 450 MPVs are expected to be released by the end of next year.

Expansion BY DENÍS IGLESIAS – @denisillamas – 13/11/2017 (Translation Soft)