Nissan prepares its own robot again

• Nissan reveals its progress in the development of SAE Level 4 technology, allowing its prototype to navigate through complex traffic for the first time in Japan.

• The prototype is based on a Nissan Serena minivan, with nine radars, 14 cameras, and six laser mirror sensors, and uses its height to gain a more comprehensive understanding of surrounding traffic.

• Nissan is currently planning to launch its first commercial service to pay for passengers in 2027 after more testing, but the automaker has not yet detailed the full scale of its planned deployment.

Japan has been eager to take advantage of Robotaxi Technology because of a shortage of drivers amid an aging population, but despite development efforts in the past few years, the SAE Level 4 technology has not seen commercial promotion in the country.

This may change over the next few years as Nissan re-prepared a driverless minivan that could serve as the basis for a robot fleet.

The SAE Level 4 prototype, based on the Nissan Serena, saw its first demonstration drive without a driver behind the wheel, marking an important milestone in Nissan’s autonomous efforts.

“This is the first time in Japan, where test cars without a driver are sailing in complex urban environments,” the company noted.

The Nissan Serena Minivan has been equipped with no less than nine radars, 14 cameras and 6 LIDAR sensors, while the height partial choice of the van has a wider field of view than the sedan-based prototype.

Nissan has been working at the Nissan Advanced Technology Center in Silicon Valley for some time, including at the Nissan Advanced Technology Center in Silicon Valley, although it is the first driverless demonstration drive for its own SAE Class 4 minivan. The technology on board is Nissan’s own development, not the development of cooperative developers, and Nissan is one of the few automakers that have already invested in its own proprietary autonomous driving systems.

“In addition, the use of AI significantly enhances recognition, behavioral prediction and judgment, and control, providing smooth operation in a variety of complex situations,” Nissan added.

Nissan’s near-term goal is to open a mobility service in Japan. But it will take some time to get there, while Nissan reveals more demonstration tests, with about 20 cars set to take place in Yokohama this year and 2026.

The actual launch of Nissan Commercial Services is expected to take place in 2027, noting that remote monitoring will be part of any commercial fleet. And, apart from vehicle services, this part of the operation still takes some time to set up on a relatively limited scale, as we have seen in other Robotaxi fleets.

So Nissan is not in a hurry to catch up with hundreds or thousands of robots right away.

However, it was not alone when Japan planned the Robotaxi fleet.

Waymo also focuses on the Japanese market, or at least some parts of Tokyo, recently adopted the company’s first international “road trip” which included efforts to map in several selected communities.

However, we should point out that the U.S. robotics industry leader is far from a commercial launch in Japan. The same goes for Nissan.

Will robots become common in the United States after 2030? Even then, will it still be relatively high technology? Let us know what you think in the comments below.