Self-driving cars have everyone’s attention these days, which means increasing amounts of companies are in the race to produce the best one. So is Byton. This California based “intelligence electric vehicle maker” recently unveiled their new self-driving sedan, called K-Byte.
In collaboration with Aurora, an OEM autonomous driving technology first, Byton produced their first ever Level-4 autonomous vehicle with incorporated retractable sensors. This means that the vehicle needs no human assistance whatsoever!.
The K-Byte takes inspiration from the Byton Concept, also known as the M-Byte. The two ideas have a common framework as well as engineering and are similar to the core. The only exception is that the K-Byte is a sedan and the M-Byte is a crossover.
The core of the new vehicle consists of a 71 kWh battery- it also comes with a 95 kWh battery option- with fast charging, meaning it can charge the battery up to 80% within the first 30 minutes! The car’s internal consists of 200 kW hour configurable motors which can be used as either a single-axle drive (front or rear wheel) or as a four-wheel drive. Although the specifics on the K-Byte sedan are uncertain, we can guess the it will be slightly better than the M-type whose batteries give out 249 miles (400 km) and 323 miles (520 km) per charge.
It does make one wonder, what’s so different about the K-Byte then. Well, its integrated sensor arrays designed by Aurora include LiDAR sensors that provide a 360-degree view along with cameras. In addition, its side mirrors are basically small cameras connected to screens inside the car. Below the cameras are little ‘containers’ that contain side-view LiDAR systems a.k.a LiGuards. When not in use, the canisters and cameras retract into the car for safety.
To navigate the on-looking road, the top of the K-Byte consists of a bow-shaped array of cameras called LiBow. This ‘bow’ can also detect the rear end of the road. It easily integrates with the car’s roofline making the front and back road clearly visible.
While the M-Byte focused on the extravagant infotainment center and a dashboard-length screen display, the K-Byte will put greater emphasis on the design. We will find more about the K-Byte on its physical debut in Asia. However, the company did unveil its naming strategy. According to Byton, the name comes from “Bytes on Wheels”, with the vehicle names containing the name “Byte” too.
Let’s see how this Chinese company stands out from its competitors in the future!
All Images: © Byton
References: Byton, CES Asia, New Atlas