Platoon (automobile)

Drivers would probably need a special license endorsement on account of the new skills required and the added responsibility when driving in the lead.

It is most often recommended as a means of traffic congestion relief, on the grounds that it would drastically reduce following distances and headway, thus allowing a given stretch of road to carry more cars.

[8] The origin of research on AHS was done by a team from Ohio State University led by Robert E. Fenton, based on funding from the U.S. Federal Highway Administration.

Steering, braking and speed were controlled through the onboard electronics, which filled the trunk, back seat and most of the front of the passenger side of the car.

[9] The Federal Highway Administration in 2013 funded two research projects in heavy truck platooning (without steering automation).

[12][13] In January 2011, SARTRE made the first successful demonstration of its platooning technology at the Volvo Proving Ground near Gothenburg, Sweden, in which a lead truck was followed by a car.

In January 2012, SARTRE made a second demonstration in Barcelona, Spain, in which a lead truck was followed by three cars driven entirely autonomously at speeds of up to 90 km/h (56 mph) with a gap between of at most 6 m (20 ft).

[16] In February, 2021, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) successfully achieved traveling of trucks on part of the Shin-Tomei Expressway in a platoon in which no drivers were present in either the second or the following trucks, with staff in only the passenger seat for security purposes.

[17] In November 2019, Hyundai Motor Group successfully conducted its first platooning of trucks on a highway for the first time in Korea.

Major automotive and technology companies, such as Toyota, Volvo, Baidu, or Alphabet[20], are actively filing patents for various aspects of platooning, including V2V communication protocols, control systems and safety mechanisms.