Evocargo, a tenant of Kalibr Technopark, has officially presented an unmanned EVO-1 truck with the ability to refuel with hydrogen.

"Today, during the launch of the Central Ring Road-3, an unmanned EVO-1 truck, completely developed in Russia, drove along a section of the smart road. The car runs on electricity and can be fueled with hydrogen. The Evocargo company, which created the truck, announced that it had begun the first deliveries of drones by pre-order. Next year customers will receive several EVO-1 for work in closed areas, "- was said in the message.

According to the company, the technology also allows the launch of long-distance transportation. The creators of EVO-1 equipped it with a hybrid power system: from electric batteries and hydrogen fuel cells. So, on one battery charge, a truck can travel 250 kilometers, and if it is fully fueled with hydrogen, this will give an additional 650-750 kilometers. At the same time, it is noted that for the operation of such a machine, charging and filling stations are needed along the routes.

It is also reported that Evocargo will sell EVO-1 light trucks to the first customers on pre-order, but from 2021 the next produced drones will be used by itself for the service of freight transportation with payment by subscription or per kilometer.

"Transporting goods using drones as a service is beneficial to customers who, as a rule, do not have specialists ready to service and operate an autonomous truck. This is one of the main obstacles to the development of the market for unmanned vehicles according to the traditional model, which implies that the company buys the car and operates it independently, turning to the manufacturer only for technical support and service. By creating an ecosystem around logistics services based on unmanned technologies, we are solving this problem for customers, "said Andrey Bolshakov, the head and founder of Evocargo,  whose words are quoted in the message.

According to the development company, EVO-1 technologies can reduce the cost of transportation by 60% due to the fact that the truck was originally created as an unmanned vehicle, and not altered from the usual one: it does not have a driver's cabin and seat, as well as a steering system. Another factor that lowers the cost of the Evocargo truck is the partial transfer of the functions of orientation and assessment of the traffic situation from the car to the smart road. The drone receives the necessary data from the intelligent transport system (ITS), which monitors the movement of all vehicles, and notifies the on-board systems of cars about emergency situations. The operator at the Control Center can monitor the movement of autonomous vehicles in real time, and can take over control if necessary.

"ITS takes over the coordination of the movement of unmanned vehicles. The principle of such close interaction of the smart road with highly autonomous vehicles makes these transportations safer and accelerates their development. As such technologies spread, it will be possible to organize large-scale, safer, faster and more transparent cargo transportation. The construction of smart highways will increase the capacity and profitability of the new Silk Road, which also runs along the Central Ring Road, "commented Marsel Nigmetzyanov, General Director of Kazan-Telematics".

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