UD Trucks’ “Fujin & Raijin. Vision 2030.” roadmap delivers
innovation for Smart Logistics through automation and electromobility
UD Trucks announced the launch of “Fujin & Raijin. Vision 2030.”— an
Innovation Roadmap which aims to deliver a variety of solutions for Smart
Logistics, including fully-electric and autonomous trucks towards 2030. The
roadmap focuses on the key areas of automation and electromobility to address the
challenges of a rapidly-changing world. True to UD Trucks’ vision to provide
the trucks the world needs today, the innovation roadmap takes a step-by-step
approach together with customers to offer commercialized solutions for select
automation and electromobility applications from 2020, with a view toward
full-fledged commercialization by 2030.
UD Trucks announced the launch of “Fujin & Raijin. Vision 2030.”— an
Innovation Roadmap which aims to deliver a variety of solutions for Smart
Logistics, including fully-electric and autonomous trucks towards 2030. The
roadmap focuses on the key areas of automation and electromobility to address
the challenges of a rapidly-changing world. True to UD Trucks’ vision to
provide the trucks the world needs today, the innovation roadmap takes a
step-by-step approach together with customers to offer commercialized solutions
for select automation and electromobility applications from 2020, with a view
toward full-fledged commercialization by 2030.
By 2030, demand for parcel delivery is expected to grow 50% compared to 2014.
To meet this demand, the logistics industry faces significant challenges,
including a responsibility to reduce CO2 emissions, the growing scale of online
commerce, and driver shortages. UD Trucks believes that transformative
innovations in automation and electromobility are key to overcoming these
challenges and providing customers with the trucks that fit their needs.
“When delivering on our promise to provide the trucks and services the world
needs today, we have always done things a bit differently from others in our
industry. As we now look forward, we are convinced that the world needs Smart
Logistics,” said UD Trucks Chairman Joachim Rosenberg during the roadmap’s
announcement at the Embassy of Sweden in Tokyo on April 23.
UD Trucks takes inspiration for their innovation roadmap from the gods
of wind and thunder, as depicted in the famous gold-embossed Japanese folding
screen, “Fujin and Raijin.” UD Trucks’ progress in automation is inspired by
Fujin, the god of wind, who symbolizes the power of movement, while its work in
electromobility is inspired by Raijin, the god of thunder, who symbolizes the
power of energy. With “Fujin & Raijin. Vision 2030.” UD Trucks is committed
to developing smarter logistics solutions in these key areas, enabled by
advances in connectivity and digitalization.
Automation
Automation will reshape the logistics
industry, creating real-life benefits for both customers and society in terms
of productivity, safety, energy and fuel efficiency. UD Trucks is now focusing
on solutions for safe, low-speed automation in confined areas, including
in-plant and harbor logistics. It is also exploring on-road Highway Auto Pilot
and CACC (Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control) platooning technologies in the
near term, and more highly-automated on-road vehicles in the long term.
Electromobility
UD Trucks is committed to reducing
the environmental impact of its products. UD Trucks is now developing
technologies necessary to create silent, zero-emission vehicles that maximize
energy efficiency, payload capacity and mileage. As battery systems continue to
evolve, UD Trucks is testing a variety of solutions, including battery EV,
parallel HEV and Series HEV.
Connectivity and Digitalization
Connectivity through digitalization
is the enabler of both automation and electromobility. In Japan, UD Trucks has
around 45,000 vehicles connected through the UD Information Service, which uses
data collected from each vehicle to help improve uptime. By analyzing digital
data collected from customer driving behavior, UD Trucks also gains insight on
how to design even safer and more dependable trucks.
“Since the launch of the New Quon in
2017, UD Trucks has moved steadily forward on its mission to drive the future
of smart logistics. This new innovation roadmap represents a major leap forward
for both the company, the logistics industry, and our society,” said Douglas
Nakano, Senior Vice President of UD Trucks Technology. “We are committed to
ensuring that our customers around the world feel the full benefits of the
solutions and products we are developing, which will ultimately make life
better for everyone in our society.”
Over the course of 2018, UD Trucks
will conduct demonstrations of autonomous driving and electric drive
prototypes, targeting field tests and customer trials ahead of Tokyo Motor Show
2019. It aims to have vehicles in actual daily operation by the year 2020. All
activities will be conducted with a view toward full-fledged commercialization
of fully-electric and autonomous trucks by 2030.
Step-by-step together with customers,
UD Trucks delivers solutions for Smart Logistics.
