Nissan Motor Co. said Friday that it will test a transportation service using self-driving vehicles in Yokohama, south of Tokyo, for two months beginning Nov. 27. The company aims to launch an autonomous mobility service without drivers in 2027 or later.
Daihatsu Motor Co. put a new electric wheelchair for the elderly on sale on Monday.
The e-Sneaker has already been used on a trial basis at the ongoing World Exposition in the western Japan city of Osaka. The wheelchair runs at a maximum speed of 6 kilometers per hour and travels 12 kilometers on a single charge. No driver’s license is required to operate the vehicle.
An electric mobility scooter was demonstrated at the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo in Osaka on Tuesday 29th July. The Waku Mobi is about 1.7 meters long and about 60 centimeters wide and has a top speed of 20 kph. Reporters were shown the vehicle being remotely controlled in a designated outdoor space at the Expo. It moved slowly for about 50 meters, then navigated an uneven surface and made a smooth turn using its automated control function. The demonstration was part of an exhibition themed on a future in which robots and humans coexist. The vehicle was developed by glafit inc., a startup based in Wakayama.
A Japanese startup will introduce an all-terrain electric wheelchair in 2026 that allows users to climb and descend stairs, and board trains and buses without assistance, with plans to develop a model that can navigate escalators. The wheelchair developed by Lifehub Inc., which normally drives on four wheels on flat surfaces, has caterpillar tracks to negotiate stairs, slopes and uneven ground.
Toyota Motor Corp. and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp will build and operate the system, which will use artificial intelligence and optical communication technology to collect huge amounts of data and provide highly accurate driving assistance. They plan to invest around 500 billion yen by 2030.
By Barrier Free Japan with extracts from Jiji October 26 2023 TOKYO – The Japan Mobility Show opened at theContinue Reading
The Japanese government Friday adopted a bill to revise the road traffic law to realize mobility services with Level 4 autonomy, which does not require a driver in the vehicle.
Barrier Free Japan