Dept of Energy awards $32 million for 10 projects to improve automated vehicle efficiency
The Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E) has awarded $32 million in new program funding for 10 cutting-edge projects that will develop connected technologies leading to vehicle energy savings.
The Next-Generation Energy Technologies for Connected and Autonomous On-Road Vehicles (NEXTCAR) program aims to advance projects that improve the energy efficiency of cars and trucks by cutting individual vehicle energy usage by 20 percent beyond other planned vehicle efficiency technology.
“Today cars and trucks are increasingly being outfitted with new technology that provides information about the vehicle’s environment, mostly to make them safer and to help drivers with basic tasks,” said ARPA-E Director Ellen Williams. “As our vehicles become creators and consumers of more and more data, we have a transformative opportunity to put that new information to the additional use of saving energy in our road transportation system.”
Automated vehicles with connected technology use sensors, data and computers to help them react to the surrounding environment. For example, cars and trucks could be programmed to identify nearby vehicles, stop signs, intersections and the location of traffic jams. Currently, connected and automated vehicle (CAV) technology largely improves vehicle safety and makes driving more convenient.
NEXTCAR projects aim to leverage the technology to improve energy efficiency by offering improved cruise control and vehicle speed harmonization and other energy-saving options. Through integrating the vehicle systems with emerging CAV technology, cars and trucks will be able to anticipate driving conditions and interact with other vehicles merging from different directions.
