Earlier this year, Uber announced that it was joining forces with Carnegie Mellon Univeristy to create its own autonomous taxis. Now, the first cars labelled “Uber Advanced Technologies Center” have been spotted driving around the roads of Pittsburgh in the US.
The Pittsburgh Business Times reports that the car was spotted driving around the Strip District on May 13th. “If the words “Uber Advanced Technologies Center” emblazoned on the side of the vehicle weren’t enough of a giveaway,” writes the newspaper, “the device rotating on the top of the vehicle signals this isn’t your average Ford.”
Indeed, the Ford Fusion in question, which you can see a picture of on the newspaper’s site, has a roof covered in sensors. There’s clearly a rotating Lidar scanner — as used on Google’s self-driving cars — as well as a host of other sensors, that could perhaps be radar or stereo cameras.
Uber has confirmed that this vehicle is “part of [the] early research efforts regarding mapping, safety and autonomy systems.” So if you live in the city, keep your eyes open — and let us know what you see them doing. [Pittsburgh Business Times via Engadget]