When designing a driverless car, it goes without saying that you’d ask yourself, “Hey, what would a bunch of fish do?”
OK, maybe not, but it turns out that fish behavior has a lot to teach engineers about safely moving in large packs without colliding. Schools of fish maximize the space around them when swimming without slamming into each other; this is the idea behind Nissan’s EPORO robotic vehicle.
Like a fish, the EPORO communicates with other vehicles to fit as many cars around obstacles and through narrow passages as possible and remain safe. The EPORO uses ultra-wideband radio signals and laser measurement technology to communicate with other vehicles.
By doing so, it emulates a fish’s ability to change direction without colliding, travel side-by-side at exactly the same speed and tailgate without colliding. Nissan is demonstrating the technology at this week’s CEATEC Japan conference in Chiba, Japan.
Does this mean we’ll all be reading a newspaper while zipping around in driverless fish-cars? Well, probably not (plus, look at how hideous those cars are). However, the EPORO technology could make its way into future versions of Nissan’s Safety Shield anti-collision system.
