Electric vehicles

IDTechEx has issued the first in-depth report on this called, "Robot Shuttles and Autonomous Buses 2020-2040". Robot shuttles are an important new, reconfigurable form of transportation for goods and people that may even function as mobile offices, workshops, restaurants and more.

Last mile delivery is the most expensive part of the delivery chain, often representing more than 50% of the overall cost. This is mainly because it is the least productive and automated step. As such, many are seeking to bring automation into the last mile.

Few of the giant car makers have shown urgency in transitioning away from the internal combustion engine. What's more, the automotive market is set to decline once again in 2019 whilst electrifying newcomers made huge gains in front of sleeping incumbents' noses. Although a large fraction of this is orders (not deliveries), if OEMs do not wake up now, they never will.

The trend of investment in and acquisition of mobile robotic companies seeking to automate the movement of goods within warehouses, fulfilment centres, and manufacturing facilities is still rising.

In the past decade, progress continues in the development and deployment of autonomous driving technologies. IDTechEx forecasts that autonomous car and mobitliy services will become a $2.5 trillion market by 2040.

Automation in the delivery/logistic and warehousing/fulfilment chain is a growing market. A particularly exciting subset of this is the use of mobile robots, drones, and autonomous vehicles for automation of movement-based tasks.

Autonomous driving technologies are disrupting the business models for the traditional auto industry. Latest research from IDTechEx forecasts that autonomous driving technologies will accelerate the arrival of peak car sales, in 2031.

It is happening rapidly now. The startups Sono Motors and Lightyear announced solar family cars available next year. They have solar bodies rather than the useless scrap of solar roof seen on other cars. That means many owners will never plug in. They do not have the acceleration of a Tesla, but Lightyear cheekily points out that its Lightyear One will go 740 km faster than any Tesla because the Tesla would have to stop and plug in.

From consumer electronics to electric vehicles and stationary storage, high power and fast charge capability are key performance metrics for Li-ion batteries. Pure battery electric vehicles can now offer range in excess of 300 miles per charge, but a full recharge can take hours. How can this be improved?

Lidar technologies and markets are rapidly evolving, and IDTechEx are tracking more than one hundred 3D lidar companies worldwide. This two-part article presents insights from the new IDTechEx report titled Lidar 2020-2030.