Virtual reality to get role in autonomous vehicle development in Japan

A demonstration of a Toyota Design System automated driving simulator in Tokyo, Japan, in December last year. — Bloomberg

The Japanese government plans to create a performance simulator in which the roads around the Odaiba district of Tokyo are replicated in virtual reality, part of its measures to support the development of autonomous vehicles in fiscal 2020.

By verifying the performance of sensors indispensable in autonomous driving through the use of virtual reality, the amount of road testing conducted with real vehicles can be drastically reduced, with the aim of speeding up the development process for domestic manufacturers.