# Google starts deploying its self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivans: first prototypes spotted



## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

https://electrek.co/2016/10/09/goog...r-pacifica-minivans-first-prototypes-spotted/

While Tesla's fleet recently reached 222 million miles driven on Autopilot in about a year, Google's fleet of self-driving cars just passed the 2-million miles mark last month after 7 years on the road. As we previously discussed, Tesla's Autopilot miles are not really equivalent to Google's self-driving miles, but it still gives us a good indication of the speed at which each company is deploying their semi-autonomous and autonomous programs.

Now Google is about to speed up its effort by deploying a lot more vehicles through its partnership with Fiat-Chrysler to build a fleet of self-driving Pacifica, Chrysler's new plug-in hybrid minivan. The first few prototypes were spotted in Mountain View over the weekend.

Google is currently equipping a fleet of 100 Pacifica minivans with a new suite of sensors to test its self-driving system. The 100 prototypes will represent a significant addition to Google's fleet which currently consists of only 24 Lexus Rx450h SUVs and 34 prototypes of its own design spread out in 4 cities: Mountain View, Kirkland, Phoenix, and Austin.

The first 6 minivans arrived at one of Google's facilities in Mountain View and the company already equipped two of them with sensor suites and installed mounting systems on others.

With these new prototypes, Google is clearly trying to make its system more "commercialization-friendly". The roof-mounted sensor suite is much smaller than the one on the Lexus Rx450h SUVs and the lidar sensor doesn't stick out as much as on the small Google prototype car.

In pictures by Mario Herger, CEO of Enterprise Garage (reprinted on electrek with permission), you can actually see sensors embedded inside the front fenders which are particularly interesting:








The new roof-mounted sensor suite is visibly a lot closer to the roof and features what appears to be radar antennas, lidar sensors and cameras.

The Pacifica is offered with a plug-in hybrid option equipped with a 16 kWh battery pack which allows for an all-electric range of 30 miles, according to the automaker. When announcing the partnership, Google confirmed that the hybrid option was of interest to the company because of its "robust electrical architecture".

As Google deploys the new vehicles, the company is expected to rack up a lot more miles and get closer to finally commercializing its self-driving system - something it has been criticized for by former employees for not being in a hurry to do.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

So, they're almost tripling their fleet. That will easily provide an additional 12,000,000 miles of testing in the next 4 years, probably much more.


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> So, they're almost tripling their fleet. That will easily provide an additional 12,000,000 miles of testing in the next 4 years, probably much more.


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> https://electrek.co/2016/10/09/goog...r-pacifica-minivans-first-prototypes-spotted/
> 
> While Tesla's fleet recently reached 222 million miles driven on Autopilot in about a year, Google's fleet of self-driving cars just passed the 2-million miles mark last month after 7 years on the road. As we previously discussed, Tesla's Autopilot miles are not really equivalent to Google's self-driving miles, but it still gives us a good indication of the speed at which each company is deploying their semi-autonomous and autonomous programs.
> 
> ...


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

The photographs _*ain't*_ the best. I would be interested in a better view of the sensor array, especially those in the fenders. Does anyone know or care if Google plans to road test them with someone in the driver's seat or are they going straight to totally driverless?


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## hewlett2packard (Sep 29, 2016)

as i've been writing since day one, less than 5 years they will proliferate throughout the nation. Corporate America, Big Money and Government will insist. There will be injuries, there will be fatalities all followed up on with settlement checks but the technology will march forward no matter what.

Those that squawk will be viewed as old, out of touch, unworthy of acknowledgment
and brushed aside. Time and Tide wait for no man


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## Gung-Ho (Jun 2, 2015)

Why are they dragging their heels. Clearly these machines are more than ready to transform the world. Enough testing. Trial and error. Let's put them on the streets for real yesterday for crying out loud.


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## Gung-Ho (Jun 2, 2015)

By the way. The sure do park nice in the garage.


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## UberSolo (Jul 21, 2016)

Gung-Ho said:


> By the way. The sure do park nice in the garage.


Yes! And we can assume they parked themselves!
Exciting times we live in.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> The photographs _*ain't*_ the best. I would be interested in a better view of the sensor array, especially those in the fenders. Does anyone know or care if Google plans to road test them with someone in the driver's seat or are they going straight to totally driverless?


Driver for sure while on the open road for now.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

"I'm in my 30s and make most my income from tech, seen the last 4 bubbles & crashes up close and know a Ponzi money grab when I see one. In 5 years they might just start testing them in snow and rain hahahahaha great assumption there."

They already test in the snow and rain.


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## OC Lady Uber Driver (Jun 26, 2016)

The most important info bits I took away from reading that article was 'all electric' and '30 mile range'. That kind of range wouldn't work in Southern California on probably 10-20% of all trips over 20 miles ( I say 20 because at once past the halfway point of a battery's power usage, you aren't making it home without a charge up). Battery tech must be improved. Who's working on that?


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## UberSolo (Jul 21, 2016)

OC Lady Uber Driver said:


> The most important info bits I took away from reading that article was 'all electric' and '30 mile range'. That kind of range wouldn't work in Southern California on probably 10-20% of all trips over 20 miles ( I say 20 because at once past the halfway point of a battery's power usage, you aren't making it home without a charge up). Battery tech must be improved. Who's working on that?


*See those things on the roof? They recharge batteries *









*what else u got? flat tires?
Run Flat Tires *


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## OC Lady Uber Driver (Jun 26, 2016)

UberSolo said:


> *See those things on the roof? They recharge batteries *


http://www.autonews.com/article/201...-toyota-prius-has-solar-roof-for-europe-japan
"The solar roof doesn't meet U.S. rollover crash test requirements." "Improves the efficiency by 10%".

BUT NONE OF WHAT YOU POSTED ADDRESSES THE BATTERY *LIFE* UberSolo


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## Boozoo (Oct 1, 2016)

Gung-Ho said:


> By the way. The sure do park nice in the garage.


Not sure if you are being sarcastic or serious, but I do note that in the last three images it's clear the car on the right has its passenger side rear quarter almost in the next parking space. Most humans can do better than that.


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## UberSolo (Jul 21, 2016)

OC Lady Uber Driver said:


> http://www.autonews.com/article/201...-toyota-prius-has-solar-roof-for-europe-japan
> "The solar roof doesn't meet U.S. rollover crash test requirements." "Improves the efficiency by 10%".
> 
> BUT NONE OF WHAT YOU POSTED ADDRESSES THE BATTERY *LIFE* UberSolo


*professor, solar panels atop vehicle recharge the batteries *


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## OC Lady Uber Driver (Jun 26, 2016)

UberSolo said:


> *professor, solar panels atop vehicle recharge the batteries *


If your trip is 50 miles but your battery only will take you 30 miles, solar panels atop a car will not make up for the 20 miles you don't have a charge for if the solar panels only improve the total battery power by 10%. 10% of 30 miles is 3 miles.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

Boozoo said:


> Not sure if you are being sarcastic or serious, but I do note that in the last three images it's clear the car on the right has its passenger side rear quarter almost in the next parking space. Most humans can do better than that.


Those were just delivered so they were probably human parked. They may not even have SDC software loaded yet.


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## WeirdBob (Jan 2, 2016)

RamzFanz said:


> *Localizing Ground-Penetrating Radar Innovative ground-penetrating radar that maps underground geological features provides autonomous vehicles with real-time localization in all-weather conditions.*
> 
> https://www.ll.mit.edu/publications/technotes/TechNote_LGPR.pdf


Looks pretty awesome. I would bet it eats data by the truckload, but this may be the only reliable way to navigate on wet or snowy streets. Hi res LiDAR (32 to 64 beams) is expensive and vulnerable to mechanical damage, and stereoscopic cameras and RADAR are useless more than a few feet away.

BTW, do you follow Automotive IQ? They have some excellent articles, and run several conferences featuring high level leaders in autonomous vehicle development.

Here is a good article from Monday featuring an interview with Dr Michael Schilling, Program Manager Advanced Engineering Projects.

http://www.automotive-iq.com/chassi...ing-talks-about-autonomous-driving-and-sensor


> *How far is the industry from fully autonomous driving?*
> 
> I think there is no simple answer to this general question. Many possible use cases for fully autonomous driving exist and some are near or already in series implementation. There are already fully autonomous vehicles in mining operations(1) and companies are already starting to test automated driving functions in the city(2). In the next few years, more fully autonomous vehicles that operate at low speed and for specialized tasks will be seen on public roads. But a series implementation of a fully autonomous car, which can handle city traffic and urban roads at an affordable price, is still many years away.
> 
> ...


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## Hey now (May 17, 2016)

Another Uber Driver said:


> The photographs _*ain't*_ the best. I would be interested in a better view of the sensor array, especially those in the fenders. Does anyone know or care if Google plans to road test them with someone in the driver's seat or are they going straight to totally driverless?


They've been testing these in Chandler, AZ for a while now. Every time ive seen them they've had two people in them. A driver and someone in the pax seat recording data.


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