ISSUE 11 MARCH 2019
THE VOICE OF THE NEW ZEALAND AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY
AUTO CHANNEL
1/4” Flex Screwdriver Set
Set of two flexible drivers together with 1/4" drive sockets and a selection of the most commonly used screwdriver bits. Supplied in TTX Tray suitable for Teng Tools tool boxes and roller cabinets.
• 555mm Flex Bits Driver • 555mm Flex 1/4” Handle • 1/4” Sockets - 4-13mm On special for $118.45 RRP: $170.10 inc gst
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THE BRAINS BEHIND DRIVERLESS CARS F
DRIVING INVOLVES PROCESSING A GREAT DEAL OF INFORMATION, AND SOON VEHICLES WILL BE DOING IT ALL BY THEMSELVES or driverless cars to react correctly and safely
impossible to program every single possible situation
in all situations, they need an electronic brain
that could occur on the road, and its solution, into
with immense computing power and the
the vehicles, so cars are being developed to make
artificial intelligence, or AI, to make the right
decisions.
choices.
Self-driving cars must take in a 360-degree view of the
Researchers have calculated that our optic nerves
environment, recognize key objects, verify the position
transmit approximately one million bits of information
of the vehicle itself, track sources of danger, and
to our brains every second. This calculation assumes
calculate and carry out its responses in milliseconds.
that our retinas have already compressed this incoming
That requires immense computing power. One
information before it makes it to our brain’s grey matter.
manufacturer that has taken on this task is ZF. ZF’s
Cars can already understand their environments in a
claims that its ProAI RoboThink is the most powerful
number of ways. Advanced driver assistance systems
automotive control unit on the market.
(ADAS), which rely on cameras and radar systems, have
It boasts a computing power of more than 150
made car travel significantly safer in recent years. Now
teraflops, that is 150 trillion operations per second,
manufacturers and suppliers are working on closing the
and it can be combined with up to four other units to
gap to completely autonomous driving. When cars can
perform 600 teraflops. In 1969, the Apollo 11 computer
drive themselves, human error — statistically the cause
was able to process 41.6 operations per second.
of most accidents — will no longer be an issue.
ZF says the ProAI platform’s scalability should be
Driverless cars need artificial intelligence. It is
particularly appealing to automotive manufacturers.
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NARVA.CO.NZ
OUR LIGHTS GO FOR LONGER SO YOU CAN TOO RECHARGEABLE UNDER BONNET LAMP Narva’s extensive range of inspection lighting just got bigger and brighter with the introduction of the Rechargeable Under Bonnet Lamp. Designed to withstand the toughest workshop environments, but lightweight for easy use • Use 1,2 or all 3 powerful 5W ‘COB’ L.E.Ds which can independently swivel by up to 40° ensuring superior light adjustment • 6000°K of bright white light at 350, 675 or 1000 lumens • Tough, lightweight aluminium construction • Long use time before recharging the lithium battery is required • 12/24 DC charging via the supplied dock or 12V USB
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