TNO, DAF and Einride partner to accelerate scale-up Level 4 autonomous transport

In this collaboration, TNO will work with DAF Trucks, a leading truck manufacturer based in the Netherlands, and Einride AB, a technology company based in Sweden which works on developing and scaling (SAE) Level 4 automated electric trucks.

Level 4 automation requires high degree of monitoring and redundancy

SAE J3016 defines Level 4 as a high level of automation, where the vehicle can independently perform the complete dynamic driving task, under a limited set of conditions. This requires that the vehicle is able to detect, isolate and manage faults, degradations and insufficiencies that may arise in the automated driving system, the vehicle platform or the interface between them.

TNO is investigating methodologies, functions and modules to conduct such monitoring and degraded operations of AI-heavy and End-2-End AI based automated driving systems.

Integrating Einride Automated Driving System and DAF Vehicle Platform

The integration of an automated driving system and a vehicle platform leads to challenges from the safety engineering perspective, to be able to ensure that the system can operate seamlessly while conforming to various standards and regulations.

In the present collaboration, TNO is working on a scalable, brand-agnostic interface connecting an automated driving system and a vehicle platform. TNO will also conduct integration testing for this interface and investigate the health and safety monitoring functions that are required to be incorporated into this interface.

Collaborate to scale up automation

In their respective press releases, DAF and Einride highlighted the importance of this collaboration:

As Jeroen van den Oetelaar, DAF Trucks' Chief Engineer and member of the board stated in their press release: 'This collaboration is a testament to DAF's commitment to innovation and future-proofing the logistics sector. By combining our premium truck platform with leading autonomous technology, we are actively shaping a more efficient, safer, and sustainable freight ecosystem.'

Henrik Green, Chief Technology Officer at Einride in their press release: 'This collaboration validates our vehicle-agnostic approach to autonomy and brings us one step closer to deploying safe, scalable Level 4 autonomy at commercial scale.'

For TNO, the collaboration is also an important step towards enabling automated vehicles that can improve the safety and efficiency of vehicles. Bastiaan Krosse, Research Manager Integrated Vehicle Safety at TNO: 'This collaboration is at the heart of TNO's work in mobility and logistics: supporting industry with innovative vehicle safety solutions and accelerating their safe introduction into the logistics system.'