Embark Trucks, Inc. (Embark), a provider of autonomous technology for the trucking industry, and Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (Knight-Swift), a North American diversified freight transportation company, have announced Embark’s handover of one of its trucks as part of the Truck Transfer Program (TTP).
According to Embark, the TTP marks the first public initiative where a carrier will directly own and operate a truck with specific features of its automated driving software, which will enable the company to monitor its system by operating in a carrier customer’s duty cycle.
This also marks the first time a carrier will be putting drivers in an Embark-powered truck. In this instance, the deployment of the technology will allow Knight-Swift to collect data about the system’s safety and operational performance.
What’s more, the truck is expected to begin integrating into Knight-Swift’s daily operations to move loads for large shippers in the US.
Embark has said it focused on improving its Embark Universal Interface and Embark Driver software to support commercial fleets in meeting uptime targets and requirements.
It names upgrades in calibration and maintainability of the system and quick troubleshooting as some of its key changes to support the trucking industry.
Alex Rodrigues, CEO of Embark, said: “Handing over the first Embark-powered truck to the Knight-Swift team tops off a year in which Embark has made critical strides to close the gap between testing our autonomous technology and scaling it across customer fleets.
“The Truck Transfer Program will be a model for the industry as we move from the R&D and pilot phase toward commercialisation.”
A solution, named Embark Guardian, which combines cloud-based fleet management software and personnel, will be used to monitor system health while the vehicle is on the road.
