MONTREAL, QC — FPInnovations, the parent company of PIT Group, a research and engineering group focused on improving fleet maintenance and operations in the North American transportation industry, in collaboration with Motrec International Inc., Technoparc Montréal, ABB Inc., and Ericsson Canada Inc., is developing an electric autonomous shuttle, adapted to Canadian winter conditions.

This project will make it possible to tackle the various challenges and needs relating to electric and smart mobility and will contribute toward the development of the electric vehicle sector as well as toward supporting the Grappe industrielle des véhicules électriques et intelligents (Industrial Cluster for Electric and Smart Vehicles), FPI said in a prepared statement.

Backed by its experience in innovative, collaborative projects and through its expertise in electric mobility, FPInnovations has succeeded in rallying world leaders in technology and Québec manufacturers to obtain the necessary global and local expertise to design, develop, produce, and market this shuttle. Vision, object recognition, artificial intelligence and navigation systems, as well as vehicle-to-vehicle, vehicle-to-user and vehicle-to-infrastructure telecommunication systems will be integrated into the vehicle in addition to battery management and automatic recharging.

The first series of shuttles will be implemented at Technoparc Montréal before being integrated into the public transit network. Technoparc Montréal will be the first demonstration site.

This collaborative effort falls within the Québec strategy on research and innovation presented last month by Dominique Anglade, the Québec government’s Minister of Economy, Science and Innovation and Minister responsible for the Digital Strategy, who supports the innovation ecosystem in order to significantly contribute toward Québec’s economy.

The name and identity of the product will be chosen through a contest between high school, college, and university students, which will be launched when they return to classes this fall. Nadine Bernard, President and CEO of the Grappe industrielle des véhicules électriques et intelligents, will chair the contest selection committee.

“As a leader in the field of innovation, we are pleased to bring together stakeholders from various sectors around an innovative, international, made-in-Québec project and, in this way, contribute toward reducing the risks associated with innovation for each stakeholder, while contributing to Québec’s economy,” said Pierre Lapointe, president and CEO, FPInnovations