General Motors has demonstrated eight safety applications for its latest intelligent and connected vehicle (ICV) technology for the first time in China at the National Intelligent and Connected Vehicle Pilot Zone in Shanghai.

GM has been supporting the development of connected vehicle technologies for over a decade in the US. Yesterday, it introduced six vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) safety applications, including Intersection Movement Assist, and Electronic Emergency Brake Light and Control Loss Warning enabled by V2V technology. It also introduced two newly developed vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) safety applications: Red Light Violation Warning and Reduced Speed Zone Warning.

“We expect to see ‘China speed’ in ICV development, which will enable this country to potentially outpace its peers,” said GM executive vice-president and GM China president Matt Tsien. “This will be achieved through two major elements – a government-initiated strategy and global collaboration. GM looks forward to contributing.”

China has nine megacities with populations above 10 million, which is more than any other country. The development of ICV technology and systems is expected to address their challenges, including pollution, traffic congestion and road accidents, as well as create additional investment opportunities, revenue and jobs in related businesses.

It is estimated that by 2030, about half of all vehicles sold will be highly autonomous and 15 percent will be fully autonomous. In dense urban areas, electric vehicle penetration could reach 50 percent.

ICV applications require a complete set of standards and a security network for interoperability. GM, Tsinghua University and Chang’an Auto have been leading the development of China’s V2X application layer standard with the support of SAE-China and C-ITS. The first version will be published by the end of this year.

The interoperability testing of V2V applications from GM and Chang’an Auto have already been carried out with different devices using the future China standard.

GM is also one of the authors of the China Intelligent and Connected Vehicle Road Map, which was released last week at the 2016 SAE-China Congress & Exhibition in Shanghai. It provides a guideline for the research and development activities of manufacturers and future policy development by the government.

“We now have ICV technologies along with the capability to bring them to the market – and do it quickly,” Tsien said. “However, no one company or one organisation has all the answers. It will require the industry to continue perfecting the technology together with government support to maximize technology accessibility and the creation of standard guidelines.”

GM announced earlier that Super Cruise, a highway driving automation technology that will enable hands-free driving even in stop-and-go traffic, will be introduced in China shortly after it becomes available next year in the Cadillac CT6 in the US.

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