Spoilers for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics: Hundreds of autonomous vehicles will be unveiled

Chething

Author?|Liumao

Editor?|Xiaohan

Recently, Beijing Shougang Park has become an automatic High-frequency words in the driving field.

Baidu’s first public demonstration of removing the driverless taxi safety officer was held here; Meituan’s driverless delivery vehicles shuttled on the public roads in the park; when you are thirsty, there will also be cars driving in front of you. Passing an unmanned retail vehicle filled with drinks...

In addition, companies such as BAIC, No.9 Robot, UBTECH, Zhimo Zhe, and Superstar Future also announced that they will deploy autonomous driving fleets in the Shougang Park. Products such as driverless scooters, intelligent inspection robots, and sweeping robots.

The entire park has become a paradise for autonomous vehicles. What is happening behind this?

The Shougang Park is an important microcosm of Beijing’s industrial process. It is also the location of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics Organizing Committee and the location of some venues.

In order to implement the concept of "Technology Winter Olympics", Shougang Park decided to introduce new technologies such as autonomous driving into the park, with a view to providing services to athletes and tourists from all over the world during the Winter Olympics.

So what autonomous driving products will be deployed in the Shougang Park? What specific services can be provided? At what stage have these deployments been carried out?

Che Dongxi recently spent a whole afternoon in the Shougang Park, and also communicated with the staff of the Shougang Park and various autonomous driving companies, and got a glimpse of the travel secrets from 2022 in advance.

Affiliated with the Olympics once or twice? The old steel factory turned into a "paradise" for unmanned vehicles

In 1919, Shougang (the predecessor of China Shougang Group) was born. Since then, every turn of fate of Shougang Park has been deeply marked by the times.

The original name of Shougang was Shijingshan Ironmaking Plant, which was a self-built ironmaking plant of Longyan Iron Mine Company, a joint venture between the government and businesses. During the Anti-Japanese War, the Japanese invading army called it the military-managed Shijingshan Iron Works. In 1945, Shougang was taken over by the Nationalist Government and its name was changed three times. The new name was Shijingshan Iron and Steel Works.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Shijingshan Iron and Steel Works began to expand and was reorganized into Shijingshan Iron and Steel Company in 1958. In 1966, Shijingshan Iron and Steel Company officially changed its name to Capital Iron and Steel Company.

Old site of Shougang Park (picture source Shougang Group official website)

In modern times, the Olympic Games have become the driving force for Shougang’s direct and indirect transformation.

According to Wang Hongmin, assistant director of the Industrial Development Department of Beijing Shougang Construction Investment Co., Ltd. (referred to as "Shougang Construction Investment"), Shougang Park (Shougang's old factory site) and the Olympic Games have been connected twice.

For the first time, Beijing, which won the right to host the 2008 Olympic Games, is determined to improve air quality. Therefore, in order to cooperate with the hosting of the 2008 Olympic Games, Shougang carried out an unprecedented relocation of its steel plant from Beijing to Caofeidian.

The relocation route of Shougang Steel Plant (picture source Shougang Group official website)

The second time is the connection between Shougang Park and the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

Shougang Park provides support for the Winter Olympics in terms of venues and services. The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Winter Games Organizing Committee has settled in Shougang Park (North District). In addition, the park has also built the Shougang Ski Jump, the official competition venue for the 2022 Winter Olympics, and established four national team training venues for short track speed skating, figure skating, curling, and ice hockey.

Wang Hongmin told Chexixi that following the concept of "Technology Winter Olympics", Shougang hopes to apply new technologies and products such as AI and autonomous driving to the park to serve the Olympics. In February 2019, Shougang Park received approval from the Beijing Economic and Information Technology Bureau to start building the Beijing Intelligent Connected Vehicle Demonstration Operation Zone (Shougang Park). It was also from this time that a number of self-driving cars began to settle in Shougang Park.

This is the background of 9 unmanned vehicles (including some intelligent robots) that we can see in Shougang Park during the 2022 Winter Olympics.

2. 9 types of unmanned vehicles are on the battlefield together? The Winter Olympics has become a training ground for future travel

From now on, there are less than 2 years left before the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics. time. By then, it is expected that there will be 9 models of unmanned vehicles (including some intelligent robots) totaling about 100 units in the Shougang Park to provide services to the public.

In fact, according to the pace of deployment, by the first half of next year, these 9 unmanned vehicles (including self-driving robots) will be able to move from technical testing to quasi-operational status.

1. Self-driving taxis provide passenger services

Baidu and Chaoxing’s future self-driving taxis will provide passenger services in the park. Before the end of this year, Baidu will launch two self-driving taxis. The other two self-driving taxis from Chaoxing Future are expected to land in the park in the first half of next year.

Baidu once conducted a fully autonomous taxi demonstration in Shougang

Now, some autonomous driving docking stations have been set up in the park, and these stations will be open to all autonomous taxis in the park. Driving a taxi to use. Different self-driving taxis can be called from the same station.

And if you pay closer attention, you can also find that there is a "not yet activated" notice posted on the stop. In response to this, Wang Hongmin told Chexixi that the self-driving vehicles in the park are still in the debugging stage before official operation, so the temporary parking sites are labeled with the words "not yet activated".

Self-driving stop

2. Unmanned minibus: a bus without a driver

In addition to self-driving taxis, Shougang Park will also cooperate with Baidu Join forces to launch driverless minibuses. These autonomous minibuses will travel on fixed routes. In terms of product form, Baidu's self-driving minibus has two generations. The first generation model has a steering wheel, but in the second generation, the steering wheel is removed. Both models are deployed in the Shougang Park and are expected to reach a scale of 3 to 5 vehicles in the first half of next year.

Baidu self-driving minibus pick-up and drop-off points

3. Tour groups may wish to choose BAIC’s self-driving fleet service

If it is a tour group or business trip After visiting, BAIC's self-driving fleet service seems to be a better choice. Not only can more people ride, but the driving route is also more free compared to unmanned minibuses. According to reports, BAIC’s self-driving fleet consists of four vehicles, each of which can accommodate 11 people. Because only the first car in the queue is driven by a human driver, it looks a bit like a trackless train or a light rail.

4. Scooters that can "automatically" return to distribution points

In the first half of next year, Shougang Park plans to deploy 60 to 70 scooters from Segway-Ninebot. Three-wheeled scooters provide the public with services similar to private bicycles.

According to reports, unlike the previous two-wheeled scooters of Company Nine, the scooters launched in Shougang Park have three wheels. The reason for this design is to enable the scooter to travel without the help of human power.

Wang Hongmin told Chedong that these scooters landed in Shougang Park can rely on the back-end dispatching system, and the scooters can return to the distribution point on their own after remote dispatch. In this way, "each distribution point in the park can have a relatively even distribution of vehicles."

5. Shopping anytime, anywhere: unmanned delivery vehicles and unmanned retail Car

What should you do if you feel hungry or thirsty while visiting the park? At this time, Neolithic’s unmanned retail vehicles and Meituan’s unmanned delivery vehicles can come in handy.

Currently, Neolithic’s unmanned retail vehicles mainly provide services around the Winter Olympics Organizing Committee venues, the Third Blast Furnace, and the Xiuchi Exhibition Hall. If you need to go shopping, you can ask the autonomous vehicle to stop by standing in front of it or waving at it from a short distance. During the 2022 Winter Olympics, Shougang’s characteristic cultural and creative products can also be purchased from unmanned retail vehicles.

Meituan’s unmanned delivery vehicle Magic Bag cooperates with Meituan’s flash sale unmanned micro warehouse to form the MAI SHOP in Shougang Park. The unmanned delivery vehicle is equivalent to helping MAI SHOP complete “ Takeout Delivery Jobs”.

During the Winter Olympics, Meituan plans to set up about 15 sites in Shougang Park. Users can place orders by scanning the QR code on the site. After the order is successfully placed, Meituan's self-driving cars will notify you via text messages and voice calls when they depart and arrive at the site.

Meituan’s MAI?SHOP “Unmanned Supermarket”

6. Unmanned vehicles and intelligent robots assist park management

Wo Xiaobai from Zhixingzhe And the intelligent inspection robot ATRIS (security inspector) from UBTECH will help Shougang Park with park management.

Among them, Wo Xiaobai will be responsible for part of the cleaning work in the park. UBTECH's intelligent inspection robot ATRIS (security patrol) mainly replaces security personnel for inspections.

It is understood that the intelligent inspection robot ATRIS (security patrol) can autonomously patrol at fixed points according to planned routes; through active identification of strangers, it can detect suspicious persons and proactively alert them. If you visit Shougang Park next time, you can pay attention and you may encounter an intelligent inspection robot on patrol.

The above-mentioned nine unmanned vehicles (including some intelligent robots) are expected to be operational in the first half of next year. In addition to these 9 unmanned vehicles (including some intelligent robots), Shougang Park is also cooperating with JD.com on unmanned express delivery. According to the plan, in the first quarter of 2021, 2 to 3 JD unmanned vehicles will land in the park for testing.

3. On-site visit to Shougang Park? Unmanned delivery is just around the corner

In fact, there is no need to wait for the Winter Olympics. There are already some unmanned vehicles in Shougang Park that you can experience. Che Dongxi visited the park twice and completed two purchases using Meituan’s unmanned delivery vehicle and Neolithic’s unmanned retail vehicle. The following is Che Dongxi’s shopping experience.

The first is Meituan’s unmanned delivery. To use Meituan's unmanned delivery, you need to scan the QR code at the set site to place an order. What’s more interesting is that Meituan’s sites are all named after fruits because it believes that doing so will make it easier for users to remember.

Next to the No. 3 Blast Furnace, a famous scenic spot in Shougang Park, is the Peach Station. After scanning the QR code on WeChat, I found that the delivery started at 10 yuan. The choices available at that time were limited, and the last thing I bought was a bottle of Rio and a box of instant noodles.

Meituan’s unmanned delivery station

From the experience of Chedongxi, the process of ordering and paying is no different from using Meituan to order takeout on weekdays. The only thing that needs to be paid attention to is Just remember to write in the remarks that it is a peach station. Not long after the purchase was successful, Che Dongxi received a text message from Meituan, reminding me that delivery had begun and that the pickup code for this order was 960893.

About 20 minutes later, a yellow unmanned delivery vehicle arrived. But it didn't park directly next to Pitao Station. The driver looked at it and thought for a moment that the signal was bad. Later it was discovered that this was not the case, because after the car stopped, the car owner received a call notifying him to pick up the goods.

The way to pick up the goods is very "foolish". Enter the pick-up code and the container door will open automatically. After picking up the goods, close the container door, and Meituan's unmanned delivery vehicle will go to the next destination (or possibly return) on its own.

After completing your shopping, watch the unmanned delivery vehicle leave

Neolithic’s unmanned retail vehicle is different from Meituan’s unmanned delivery vehicle. It is equivalent to a mobile kiosk in itself.

When someone stands in front of the Neolithic unmanned vehicle, it will recognize and automatically park. After that, you just need to select the product you want on the small screen on the car body, place the order and scan the QR code to pay.

In the cold wind, Che Dong bought a bottle of Fanta. However, I did not expect that this unmanned retail vehicle also has a "temperature regulating function", and the drink in my hand was not as cold as expected.

Neolithic unmanned retail vehicles

Conclusion: Unmanned vehicle parks are quietly emerging? The implementation of autonomous driving is accelerating

A wave of "autonomous driving parks" is quietly emerging in China "upsurge. According to media reports, in December this year, the Longlingshan Autonomous Driving Theme Park in Wuhan also announced its opening.

Multiple types of autonomous vehicles are the first to be launched and operated in some semi-open and open parks, which may become a keyword for autonomous driving in 2021.

Of course, at this stage, whether it is self-driving taxis driving on public roads or a variety of unmanned vehicles working in the park, the technology and operations still need to be polished. Even within the park, it is not perfect yet.

But on the other hand, judging from the actual results of the Chexixi Discovery Park in Beijing Shougang Park, autonomous driving technology was first implemented in the park, which is feasible and can also meet some of people's actual needs. For the field of autonomous driving, this should be considered a positive signal anyway.

This article comes from the author of Autohome Chejiahao and does not represent the views and positions of Autohome.