Apple expands fleet of self-driving cars to 69 vehicles

According to a new report, Apple has expanded its California self-driving test fleet to 69 cars and 92 drivers. According to the California Department of Motor Vehicles, Apple has added another vehicle to its fleet of 69 cars with an autonomous vehicle permit registered with the California DMV. Also, after cutting its drivers in half last year, the tech giant currently has 92 driver permits – up from 76 in May.

Apple increases fleet of self-driving cars in California to 69 with 92 drivers

Apple has been working on expanding its autonomous vehicle test since it was granted a permit from the California DMV in April 2017. In November 2018, the tech giant was operating 72 vehicles, however, the number went down to 66 a few months later. In October 2020, Apple had 154 drivers but it has cut its numbers of drivers by half.

“According to the California DMV, Apple, unlike most of the other manufacturers with large autonomous fleets, has not yet applied for a driverless permit for its autonomous vehicles. There are, however, eight manufacturers who have driverless permits for one or more vehicles in their fleet.“

Here is how Apple’s self-driving testing in California has progressed over the last three years:

• 2020: 18,805 miles, 6.91 disengagements per 1,000 miles
• 2019: 7,544 miles, 8.35 disengagements per 1,000 miles
• 2018: 79,745 miles, 871.65 disengagements per 1,000 miles

Earlier this, a report from the DMV revealed that over the course of 2020, vehicles equipped with Apple’s self-driving technology traveled a total of 28.805 miles in California, up from 7,544 miles traveled in 2019. The total number of disengagements was 130, up from 64 last year, however, t

Apple’s self-driving cars experienced a disengagement every 144.6 miles which is a better metric than 2019 where there was a disengagement every 117.8 miles. Self-driving car disengagement reports break down the number of times a human driver had to take over control of an autonomous driving system. This also includes the system itself handing over controls, or when the human steps in to take control.

While the Cupertino tech giant’s autonomous driving technology is improving with each year, it is currently unknown whether it will be used in Apple Car or a third-party vehicle.

via macReports

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