All Nippon Airways (ANA) and Toyota Industries have conducted Japan’s first trial operations of fully unmanned cargo handling within the restricted areas of an airport.
Based on the automatic driving Level 3 demonstration experiments of the autonomous towing tractor conducted since February 2019, they will implement Level 4 complete autonomous driving from July 1st to 19th. The running route connects spots 63 to 65 of Terminal 2 and the East Cargo Building, covering about 2 kilometers one way. In aiming for practical use by 2025 at Haneda Airport, they will identify issues in terms of technology and operation, and validate the economics.
The autonomous towing tractor being developed by Toyota Industries had its safety confirmed during a simulated field driving test conducted in April under the supervision of the Civil Aviation Bureau of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism, allowing for Level 4 test driving within the restricted area of Haneda Airport.
The autonomous towing tractor used in this experiment has been enhanced and made redundant in self-positioning estimation and obstacle detection systems to adapt to various environmental and condition changes within the airport. Moreover, the operation uses a developed “Fleet Management System” that centralizes information and equips remote monitoring functions to quickly respond to emergencies by understanding the surroundings of the vehicle.
