Nissan

Japanese automobile manufacturer Nissan Motor Company is set to build a self-driving car, which will hit the country’s highways by 2016.

The company also plans to launch a self-driving vehicle for urban areas by 2020, which can negotiate the roads on its own.

AFP cited Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn saying that a Nissan product will be available in Japan, which will carry autonomous drive.

Ghosn said: "When you have this kind of technology, you want also the Japanese market to enjoy it as soon as possible."

The company plans to partner with Nasa on the technology for a period of five years with initial launch expected in December 2016.

"When you have this kind of technology, you want also the Japanese market to enjoy it as soon as possible."

The research and development partnership between Nissan’s US Silicon Valley Research Center and Nasa’s Ames Research Center will also focus on human-machine interface and network-enabled applications, among others.

With regard to the new technology, Nissan also plans to collaborate with domestic companies Toyota and Honda.

Honda has already started automated and connected vehicle technology testing at the Concord Naval Weapons Station (CNWS) in the San Francisco Bay Area, US.

For development and testing, the Japanese company said it will use modified versions of Acura’s RLX sedan at the station.

The vehicle is integrated with new, prototype sensors and cameras, which will work hand-in-hand with the array of forward, reverse and corner sensors.

UK-based Delphi Automotive last week completed longest autonomous drive in North America, by covering 3,400 miles between San Francisco and New York through a self-driving vehicle.

Image: An all-electric Nissan Leaf fitted with autonomous drive equipment. Photo: courtesy of Dominic Hart from Nasa.