Cummins Partners With Autonomous Tech Firm

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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowColumbus-based Cummins Inc. (NYSE: CMI) is partnering with a California company that specializes in autonomous technology to develop a natural gas-powered truck.
Based in Silicon Valley, Plus says its self-driving truck technology is already undergoing pilot testing by large fleet trucking companies.
Even though the operating technology is autonomous, the company’s say they are creating the first driver-in, supervised autonomous truck powered by compressed natural gas.
Cummins says the CNG engines have been certified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as having near-zero-emissions.
They say bringing the two systems together will make the trucks more fuel-efficient because of Plus’ AI-enabled fuel optimization algorithms.
“Cummins engines can power nearly every type of vehicle and application globally, so the integration of our natural gas powertrains for autonomous driving applications is a logical next step to provide customers with solutions that align with their specific business requirements,” said J. Michael Taylor, general manager, Global Powertrain Integration, Cummins.
The companies say they will bring the system to market in 2022, helping trucking companies to meet emission reduction goals.
In 2019, Plus announced it had completed a coast-to-coast freight run using autonomous technology. The truck traveled from California to Pennsylvania in three days’ time. The path took the vehicle through Indiana on I-70.
The company says a safety driver was always on board.
Plus says it will begin mass production of its PlusDrive system this summer.