August 30, 2018
THE WITNESS
15
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Dlamini new voice for Volkswagen SA VOLKSWAGEN has appointed Andile Dlamini as head of group communications. He is no stranger to KZN, where he has run the Comrades and hosted many a rally during is 10 years as Volkswagen’s product PR manager, followed
by a stint as personal assistant to the chairman and MD. Matt Gennrich, who officially retired from Volkswagen after 38 years of service in March, has been overseeing the transition on a contractual basis. “My tenure as head of group com-
EAST COAST The big-eyed cartoon car is actually a sophisticated sociological experiment by Jaguar Land Rover to get pedestrians and cyclists to trust robot cars. PHOTO: MOTORPRESS
Robots making eye contact JAGUAR Land Rover has fitted ‘virtual eyes’ to self driving vehicles to understand how humans will trust self-driving vehicles, as research studies suggest that as many as 63% of pedestrians worry about how safe it will be to cross the road in the future. The friendly-faced ‘eye pods’ have a vital job: helping work out how much information future self-driving cars should share with users or pedestrians to ensure that people trust the technology. Previous studies suggest six in 10 pedestrians or cyclists don’t yet trust selfdriving vehicles. The intelligent pods run autonomously on a fabricated street scene in Coventry, while the behaviour of pedestrians is analysed as they wait
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to cross the road. The ‘eyes’ have been devised by a team of advanced engineers, working in Jaguar Land Rover’s Future Mobility division. The pods seem to ‘look’ directly at other road users. Engineers record trust levels in the person before and after the pod makes ‘eye contact’ to find out whether it generates sufficient confidence that it would stop for them. The trials are part of a wider study exploring how future connected and autonomous vehicles can replicate human behaviour and reactions when driving. As part of the study, more than 500 test subjects have been studied interacting with the selfdriving pods, designed by UK Autodrive partner Aurrigo. — WR.
munications has been a challenging and exciting one and I have had fantastic support from all sides of the automotive industry but I am looking forward to my retirement. “I wish Andile the best of luck in his new role,” said Gennrich. — WR.
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NEW LOOK ISETTA SWISS company Microlino has now partnered with Italian electric car maker Tazzari to build the 7 200 preordered Microlinos — a modern interpretation of the BMW Isetta. Launched by brothers Oliver and Merlin Ouboter at the 2016 Geneva Auto Show, they aim to build 10 000 units for sales in European and Chinese cities with lanes for small electric cars, but Microlini also plans to granting licences to manufacturers in other countries, stating: “This licensing system ensures local jobs, avoids high import duties and reduces CO2 emissions as a result of shorter transportation routes.” Two battery sizes are to order, an 8kW/h with about a 110 km, and a 14,4kW/h with a range of 214 km. On a flat surface, top speed is 88 km/h. Recharging takes two to four hours.
Wheeled events • THE Festival of Motoring is taking place at the Kyalami Circuit in Midrand from today to Sunday. • The Harrismith 400, the fifth and penultimate round of the South African Cross Country Series (SACCS) and the sixth round of the KZN Re-
gional Off-road Championship, will be hosted at the Eeram Farm Complex outside Harrismith on September 14 and 15. • Nottingham Road Hotel hosts a Best of British car show, September 23 to 25.
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