Wayve will work with parcel delivery firm DPD on a fleet data collection pilot exploring how computer vision and machine learning can be applied to existing fleet and delivery operations.
The London-based company, which is developing deep learning for autonomous urban mobility, hopes the project will increase the safety of smart urban delivery solutions.
“Real-world driving data is fundamental to building the core capabilities of Wayve’s technology and we have built industry-leading expertise in the collection and utilisation of fleet-scale data,” said Alex Kendall, Wayve CEO.
“Working with DPD is an incredible opportunity to accelerate the collection of peta-byte scale datasets that expand our coverage in more areas of the UK and helps us improve the safety and driving intelligence of our technology.”
For the pilot program, data-collection devices have been deployed on 50 DPD vans in Greater London, which will enable Wayve to collect driving data from vans during their normal driving operations.
Wayve’s camera-first system, which works off of 4G connectivity, provides a 360-degree surround view of the vehicle with zero impact to the vehicle operator. DPD is leveraging Wayve’s expertise in capturing, processing and managing driving data in a compliant and secure way.
“DPD’s delivery fleet drove over 156 million miles in 2018, covering 96% of the U.K. road network on average, at least once a month. Working with Wayve, we plan to use this data to improve insurance claim handling for vehicles on the road,” said Max Glaisher, senior product manager, innovation at DPD UK.
Wayve has been developing its AI-driven autonomous mobility technology for the past four years, including on-road testing in multiple cities in the UK. This pilot program will allow Wayve to collaborate closely with a last-mile delivery customer on fleet learning technology that will help large-scale operators enhance fleet safety.
The company has recently partnered with Ocado and Asda to explore autonomous grocery delivery services.
