Aurrigo heads to Alnwick for Self-driving rural first for the UK
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An iconic Northumberland venue that has hosted Harry Potter and The Transformers films was again in the spotlight this weekend when it held a major UK first.
Aurrigo, a world leader in autonomous technology, started a four-day trial of its self-driving vehicles at Alnwick Castle and The Alnwick Gardens on Saturday, as part of a major new study led by the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV) and insight and strategy specialists BritainThinks.
Local residents enjoyed the opportunity to attend ‘The Great Self Driving Exploration’ on the 19th and 20th June, where they took a closer look at self-driving vehicles, asked questions and even enjoyed a ride.
These trials are the first time that self-driving vehicles have been tested in rural communities and saw the firm’s Auto-Pod carry up to two passengers on a shared 500 metre path that connects the Alnwick Gardens to Alnwick Castle.
Aurrigo’s Auto-Shuttle, which can hold up to six people for this trial, was also operating, taking people from the busstation to the castle in a 1.2km route that was shared with live traffic, including cars, bikes and pedestrians.
Both self-driving vehicles use a suite of sensors to understand their surroundings and are electric-powered.
“It’s great to be showcasing our technology in such a beautiful location and the feedback we have received will beimportant in the future development of self-driving vehicles,” explained Ricky Raines, Operations Manager at Aurrigo.
“We believe these types of first and last mile transport is key to supporting people with mobility issues and thisExploration event will be extremely useful in helping understand how individuals in rural locations feel about self-driving technology and any changes that can be made to enhance the user experience.”
Mark Brassell, Director of The Alnwick Garden, added his support: “Alnwick Castle and The Alnwick Garden are thrilled to be hosting The Great Self Driving Exploration, giving local people the opportunity to experience the latest innovations in self-driving vehicles.
“The event offered a fantastic opportunity for people to trial the vehicles themselves and learn more about the future of self-driving vehicles and their potential role in enhancing current transport provisions – delivering safer andmore accessible transport in the process.”
Aurrigo, which is currently completing other passenger trials in the UK used its appearance at Alnwick Castle to reveal its Auto-Deliver for the first time.
This static display gave people the chance to look around the self-driving ‘grocery delivery’ vehicle that could change the way we receive essential items to our doors.
The way it has been designed means organisations can complete multi-drops using the power of password/QR protected compartments, ideal for serving housing estates, University campuses or business parks.
Transport Minister Trudy Harrison commented: “Self-driving technology has the potential to reform the way we getfrom A to B, making our future journeys easier, more environmentally friendly and, crucially, safer.
“I’m committed to ensuring this innovation improves road safety and, as we work to safely introduce self-driving vehicles to our roads in the coming years, it’s key the public is closely involved in the journey. I hope thesedemonstrations provide an opportunity for the public to learn more about the technology and experience the cutting-edge innovation first-hand.”
Lucy Farrow, Associate Partner at BritainThinks, concluded: “The BritainThinks team are delighted to be delivering this innovative research project in partnership with CCAV, UCL and Aurrigo. It offers a unique opportunity tounderstand not just what people think of self- driving vehicles as they are now, but also their hopes and expectations for the future.
“This will provide crucial insight to government and industry to support the development of self-driving technology that benefits everyone across the UK.”
For further information, please visit www.aurrigo.com or follow @aurrigotech on twitter
Aurrigo reveals new air travel technology, vehicles at Grand Rapids airport
Aurrigo was selected from more than 20 applicants to receive the first round of grants.
Aurrigo, a U.K.-based company focused on automated vehicle development, has created a digital model of the Grand Rapids airport’s airside operations, including each roadway, intersection and type of vehicle. In partnership with airport planning staff, Aurrigo’s team of simulation engineers and project management specialists used real-time data on fleet capacity and flight schedules to create a full simulation of current airside operations.
The Aurrigo model also has the ability to plot possible future scenarios, such as the expected ongoing effects of labor shortages, the effect of severe weather events and flight delays, as well as to model tests of potential automated solutions to airside efficiency issues.
Aurrigo’s driverless Auto-Shuttle goes on trial at Birmingham Airport
A new state-of-the-art driverless bus is being trialled at Birmingham Airport. Passengers travelling between the terminal and car park five will be able to take a free ride on the autonomous shuttle. The zero-emissions vehicle can carry up to ten passengers and uses sensors to understand its surroundings and comes to a halt if it senses any unexpected obstacles. Last year, Solihull Council became the first local authority in the country to buy its own Auto-Shuttle using a grant from the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP).
Aurrigo takes off with first autonomous shuttle trial at Birmingham airport.
A driverless shuttle, owned by Solihull Council and designed and built in Coventry, made its
debut in the grounds of a UK airport for the first time this week.
Aurrigo, which employs over 70 people at its Advanced Engineering Centre, will deploy its
10-seater Auto-Shuttle alongside live traffic on the roads of Birmingham Airport.
The company has mapped out a route that will initially transport staff from the Departures
entrance and Diamond House to Car Park 5, with the potential for the trial to be extended to
passengers later this month.
The zero-emissions autonomous shuttle uses a suite of sensors, including LiDAR, to
understand its surroundings and move safely around its environment.
For the purpose of testing, and in line with current legislation, a safety operator will be onboard
at all times, whilst the shuttle can also be manually driven with conventional controls
to give the ultimate in operational flexibility.
This latest project is an exciting Solihull Council-led initiative to test how Connected
Autonomous Vehicles (CAVs) might be integrated into the borough’s transport network in the
future and follows a successful trial at the National Exhibition Centre last year.
Miles Garner, Sales & Marketing Director at Aurrigo, explained: “We are delighted to be
working with Solihull Council again to deliver another milestone, with Birmingham Airport
becoming the first ever Airport to test our autonomous shuttles passenger side on their
roads.
“Aviation is a major opportunity for Aurrigo, with a genuine desire to find new technologies
that can improve the passenger experience. This could be through our driverless shuttles,
our Auto-Sim modelling software or it could be through our Auto-Dolly cargo/luggage dolly
that can replace the traditional tugs that are commonplace in airports all over the world.”
He continued: “We are currently working on projects at Changi Airport in Singapore and
Gerald R. Ford International in North America, putting the UK on the global map for
autonomous technology deployment.”
Nick Barton, Chief Executive of Birmingham Airport, added his support: “Autonomous
technology promises enormous benefits to airports and the service companies that support
them, with the potential to transform the way we work and improve efficiency and safety for
passengers, staff and other airport users.
“We are really excited to be working with Solihull Council on this trial, which will provide us
with invaluable insight into how we can start to safely incorporate CAVs into our vehicle fleet.
This trial of fully electric vehicles, and testing their capabilities on site, is making sure we are
working towards our net zero carbon target by 2033.”
Aurrigo has been creating headlines in the aviation sector after using its Auto-Sim
technology to help Changi Airport in Singapore with development work on a new terminal.
The company, which was founded by brothers David and Graham Keene nearly 30 years
ago, has also used its in-house software, technology and engineering expertise to develop
the Auto-Dolly, a new autonomous luggage and cargo system that has the potential to
deliver 60% carbon savings for airports.
It is anticipated that the digital twin modelling work could prove the business case for these
dollies to replace conventional diesel-powered luggage and cargo tractors and trailers by two
thirds.
Councillor Ian Courts, Leader of Solihull Council, concluded: “CAV technology has the
potential to revolutionise the way we get around our towns, cities and rural areas as well as
transport goods. I’m excited that we are the first Council in the country to purchase our very
own zero-emission, road-legal, shared use Connected Autonomous Vehicle and we are
keen to put it to use.
“This project is all about looking at how we can practically and safely start to incorporate
autonomous vehicles into our future transport infrastructure. Already one of the bestconnected
destinations in the UK and Europe, Birmingham Airport is the perfect place to trial
our shuttle providing us with a busy but controlled environment in which to gain further realworld
operating experience.”
This project forms part of the wider West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) funded UK
Central investment programme, which is delivering a wide range of projects, from walking
and cycling improvement schemes through to town centre redevelopments and build on the
establishment of the Midlands Future Mobility testbed.
For more information, please visit www.aurrigo.com or follow @aurrigotech on twitter