DeepWay, a Baidu-backed company, has unveiled a smart new energy heavy-duty truck. Named Xingtu, the truck has a computing power of more than 500 TOPS and ultra-long-distance sensing capabilities of more than 1km.
Powered by Baidu’s AI technology stack and the Baidu Apollo autonomous driving platform, Xingtu is a prime example of the next generation of vehicles we will see in the smart driving era. The first generation of Xingtu is designed to enable L3 self-driving on high-speed freight routes and achieve L4 capabilities on these same routes between 2024 and 2026.
“Autonomous driving must use advanced driverless technology to create new products that offer the ultimate experience in order to achieve commercial success,” says Yunpeng Wang, vice president and general manager of autonomous driving technology at Baidu. “We aim to create value in real-life scenarios such as transporting people, delivery and life services. This new generation of vehicle is by no means just a modified truck – it’s a robot truck.”
The first generation of DeepWay’s Xingtu offers four core advantages: deep intelligence, deep performance, deep design and deep space.
- Deep Intelligence: Xingtu features DeepWay’s home-grown highway intelligence system (HIS) and a computing power of more than 500 TOPS. Equipped with 10 onboard cameras, 5mm wave radars and three infrared detectors, along with advanced algorithms, Xingtu can achieve end-to-end autonomous driving – from perception to planning – within 100ms, and ultra-long range detection of more than 1km.
- Deep Performance: Xingtu offers increased efficiency for freight drivers. Simulation tests with the China Automobile Research Institute showed a wind resistance coefficient as low at 0.35, which effectively reduces overall energy consumption. At a full load of 49 tons, Xingtu’s custom-developed 450kWh battery pack can travel up to 300km on a single charge, and charges in just one hour at a 1C current. In addition, DeepWay has also developed a quick-swap solution for the battery, which enables freight drivers to swap out their battery in six minutes. All of this together can reduce energy, maintenance and operation costs, as well as transportation time.
- Deep Design: Xingtu adopts a lightweight integrated battery and chassis design, which greatly reduces wind resistance. Coupled with E/E architecture that integrates across multiple domains, the vehicle is much easier to control, making it more stable and safer to operate.
- Deep Space: Xingtu’s new generation of smart cabin adopts the concept of separate driving, working and living spaces, giving more room to the drivers. Equipped with an intelligent voice assistant, a large touch screen infotainment system and ultra-comfortable seats and beds, freight drivers will experience a much more comfortable working and living environment while on the road.
The Apollo technology underlying DeepWay’s Xingtu has been developed by Baidu since 2013 and has nearly 8.7 million test miles. This new energy heavy-duty truck adds intelligent freight to Baidu’s existing autonomous driving solutions including passenger cars, Apollo Go robotaxis and minibuses, expanding the applications of intelligent driving to industry and business. In the near term, DeepWay will focus on R&D and manufacturing of smart new energy heavy-duty trucks and promote the commercialization of L4 autonomous driving technology in the China truck freight industry in the coming years.
