CAVs

It can seem strange to talk about ‘operating’ an autonomous vehicle; after all, autonomous vehicles operate themselves. At the moment, though, UK law requires a safety driver or operator to be present for any autonomous vehicle trial. The operator can be inside the vehicle or monitoring it from elsewhere, but they must be ready to take control of the vehicle at any point if necessary.

Paul Proteasa and Peter Antal have been serving as safety operators aboard the Darwin Autonomous Shuttle, an autonomous public transport service supported by ESA, for several months now. We spoke to them about what it’s like to operate the shuttle, and how it differs from their past experience with driving buses.

Last week, we talked a bit about our namesake, Charles Darwin, and his theory of evolution. In this post we’re going to look at a different type of evolution: the evolution of transport.

In December 2021, Darwin opened a Spanish office at the Technology Park of Andalusia, also known as Málaga TechPark. We’re delighted to have a presence at a powerfully innovative technology park in such a beautiful location.

In the same month, we had the honour of meeting Francisco de la Torre, the mayor of Málaga. Our co-founder, Daniela, visited Andalusia to speak to the mayor about establishing an autonomous passenger service in Málaga.

Communications R&D company Darwin Innovation Group and Telefónica Tech, Telefónica’s digital business unit, have signed a strategic agreement to develop a security solution for connected autonomous vehicles (CAVs) equipped with technology that combines satellite and terrestrial channels to achieve greater coverage.

A fully autonomous passenger shuttle service begins trials on UK roads today, Science Minister George Freeman has announced.

The new service is being trialled by Darwin Innovation Group, with support from ESA and the UK Space Agency. An autonomous shuttle will transport passengers around Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire, which is home to some of the UK’s most innovative companies and research organisations.