The world’s first road legal self-driving semi-truck might seem like something out of a science fiction movie, but last night the Daimler Truck called “Inspiration” hit the public roads in Nevada.
In technology demonstration the self-driving semi-truck debuted atop the Hoover Dam in Nevada. Inspiration isn’t for sale yet, but the self-driving semi-truck is licensed to drive on Nevada public roads.
“We are really showing that we’re at the cradle of innovation,” Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval said as he secured Nevada’s automated vehicle license to the truck last night during a press conference meant to show-off the new Daimler truck.
Daimler Trucks believes that self-driving semi-truck are the future because they are potentially safer and more fuel efficient.
“We believe that before passenger cars will be cruising around in suburbs, long before that, you will be seeing heavy trucks running on the interstate highways,” Dr. Wolfgang Bernhard of Daimler Trucks and Buses told the crowd pf media last night, because on highways there are no intersections, no red lights, no pedestrians, he added, making it a far less complex trip for a truck to make.
As you can see by the video below Daimler Trucks does not intend to completely ditch the truck “driver” of the new autonomous breed of long haul big rigs but instead the truck driver becomes more of a on-board logistics manager similar to the role of train engineer
For now Daimler first self-driving semi-truck Inspiration is more of a technology demonstration platform than a day to day delivery truck but you can bet that it won’t be long before more self-driving big rigs are on American roads.
When more America States allow autonomous trucks are inked together. “Then it starts to make sense for our customers,” Bernhard added last night in Nevada, “That will be the point when the tipping point is reached.”
