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Ford has announced it is supplying two prototype vehicles to the UK Government-sponsored Autodrive initiative as part of three autonomous car trials taking place in four cities in the UK.
Ford is involved with the UK Autodrive project in Coventry and Milton Keynes. The Government has put £19 million up for the three projects to help fund the research.
The vehicles from Ford will be providing vehicle-to-vehicle communication capability in an attempt to help test a future public transport system.
Ford said the vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure connectivity like the ones tested during the Autodrive tests will contribute to the development of fully autonomous vehicles.
Ford and Jaguar Land Rover are part of a consortium of firms involved and investing in UK Autodrive.
The Milton Keynes and Coventry project will run alongside London's Greenwich Automated Transport Environment project and Bristol's Venturer trial.
The Coventry part of UK Autodrive will specifically employ the type of passenger cars business drivers will use in the future with increasing levels of autonomy, while Milton Keynes will be trialling autonomous pods (vehicles without a driver's steering wheel or pedals) which will operate in the city's pedestrianised areas.
Tim Armitage, UK Autodrive project director, said: "The UK Autodrive consortium brings together world-class expertise that will help the UK position itself as a leader in the development and adoption of autonomous driving technologies.
"As well as developing and testing the in-car, car-to-car and car-to-infrastructure technologies that will be required to drive cars autonomously on our roads in the future, the project will also place great emphasis on the role and perceptions of drivers, pedestrians and other road users."
The trials are likely to influence how autonomous vehicle technology is introduced into the UK when they end in three years' time and will help steer policy across issues such as insurance, culpability and even areas like updates to The Highway Code.
Ford also outlined its plans for the Ford Smart Mobility plan in Germany, which could influence technology included on models in the UK.
The American car maker has partnered with the Technology and Innovation Management Institute of RWTH Aachen University to launch the Personal Mobility Experience Innovation project.
The project aims to identify solutions to help meet consumers changing preferences and expectations for personal mobility, and to help address traffic congestion and environmental issues.
Ford and the university will study business models from other industries to learn how they could be applied to the automotive industry, including Apple and Amazon to identify how new approaches could deliver different car-ownership experiences and new approaches to car-sharing.
The research is based around four 'megatrends':
Ford is predicting that by 2030 there will be at least 41 cities with populations of more than 10 million people, compared to 28, placing pressure on existing road networks and creating a need for smarter cars and roads.
Research has suggested the global middle class will double in size to four billion people by 2030. Experts are predicting many of these people will aspire to own a car, suggesting car makers will need to address global gridlock.
An increasing number of vehicles will mean car makers will need to create more fuel efficient engines and alternative powertrains.
Ford said younger generations have different mobility habits, meaning car makers need to rethink how they can still be relevant.
"This is an exciting time because while we are confronting real challenges to mobility as the world becomes more crowded and urbanised, we are also in the midst of a technological sea change that will help us find solutions," said Pim van der Jagt, executive technical leader, Ford Research & Advanced Engineering.
"This project is about tapping into the best thinking from other industries and sectors to deliver new mobility solutions," said Van der Jagt.
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