Honda Showcases Self-driving ATV Concept

Honda aims to simplify the off-road working space with its new “Autonomous Work Vehicle” concept shown at the 2019 CES. Designed by Honda R&D Americas, the Autonomous Work Vehicle (AWV) has been in works for a couple of years. It appeared at the same show in 2018 under the name 3E-D18 when it progressed on to the beta testing stage.

Built on Honda’s solid ATV chassis, the AWV has a four-wheel drive system capable of accessing hard-to-reach spots. But instead of the human control areas that one finds on Honda’s regular ATVs, you get a rail mounting accessory that could come in handy tricky situations. The autonomy is guided by GPS and radar-based sensors to get the AWV to places it is needed at. It also gets functions such as ‘Follow Me’, ‘Pattern’ and ‘A to B’ to guide it through tight spots.

It has varied real-world applications where you could take it into the heart of the action with heavy equipment loaded on to it. Honda has worked with three different industries in America - a large-scale solar operations unit in North Carolina, a wildfire fighting division in Colorado and an agricultural and environmental college in California, to develop the AWV. At North Carolina, the AWV was attached with a mower and used to cut down the vegetation around solar panels. This made for a more controlled and consistent method of trimming out the weed while also maintaining a safer environment for harnessing the power, as earlier it was done via sheep grazing in the solar farms.

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With heavy equipment on board, firefighters in Colorado were able to douse flames and control the situation in an effective as well as a slightly less physically stressed manner thanks to the AWV. Earlier, they would have had to carry the entire gear on their backs to get to the affected areas, while now they only have to carry the bare basics to contain the situation until the main gear arrives on the AWV.

"Honda showed its vision of the Autonomous Work Vehicle as a concept at CES 2018, and we've been testing in real-world scenarios to demonstrate the value and capabilities of this unique machine," said Pete Wendt, senior planner in Advanced Product Planning, Honda R&D Americas. "Honda is looking for additional partners to evolve the technology and develop attachments or accessories that will expand the potential uses for the Autonomous Work Vehicle," he added.

If the AWV makes it to the production line, it will come in handy for defence operations as well and could do well serving various agencies in our country as well.