On December 4th, Tokyo Ryutsu Center (TRC) announced that the Heiwajima Autonomous Driving Council, which is based within the facility, launched two working groups (WGs) on November 21st as a new initiative aimed at the social implementation of autonomous driving technology.
The working group (WG) focuses on two themes: autonomous driving within the TRC building and circular last-mile delivery. The council defines circular last-mile delivery as "repeatedly delivering packages to designated locations on public roads," and the WG is said to be the first attempt of its kind in Japan.
<Participating Companies of the Heiwajima Autonomous Driving Council>
The TRC Building's Autonomous Driving Working Group is currently focusing on autonomous truck driving on expressways. By expanding the scope of study from expressways to limited public roads and then to berths within logistics facilities, the aim is to maximize the positive effects that the social implementation of autonomous trucks will bring to the logistics industry.
Specifically, this involves identifying communication challenges in order to enable autonomous trucks to operate in environments where GPS signals are difficult to obtain, such as within logistics facilities, and working on seamless operation within facilities and accident prevention, including facility and vehicle operations.
The Circular Last-Mile Delivery Working Group, based at TRC, has begun multifaceted studies and verifications, including technical and operational aspects, toward the construction of a circular delivery network using autonomous vehicles on public roads connecting Haneda Airport, the Shinagawa/Takanawa area, the Heiwajima area, and other locations.
Starting this fiscal year, we plan to identify driving challenges, streamline operations such as joint transportation and cargo handling, and conduct operational verification at autonomous driving level 2. With a view to social implementation from fiscal year 2027 onwards, we aim to create a model case for next-generation logistics.
