In a video and blog post on LinkedIn, a media pitch and in overdue federal filings, TuSimple Holdings talks up its patent portfolio in autonomous trucking. The mental property hoard is impressive, however the timing is strange. Could this be a marketing push to draw interest within the U.S. business for which it’s “exploring strategic alternatives”?
The San Diego-based company has amassed 591 patents in autonomous trucking, including 72 granted globally for the reason that starting of the yr. In a blog post on LinkedIn, the 8-year-old startup says it’s specializing in practical solutions to the complex challenges required to bring autonomous semi trucks to market.
A news release Thursday highlighting fourth-quarter financial results and the filing of its Securities and Exchange Commission 10-K for 2022, prominently mentions TuSimple’s core technology patents and mental property:
- ADS onboard software: perception, tracking and fusion; prediction and planning; and control modules.
- Core AI and data: data collection, deep learning and machine learning capabilities.
- ADS hardware solutions: sensors, actuators, communications and ADC.
- Offboard toolchain: map production, simulation and regeneration.
- AV operations: oversight, business operations, safety and integration.
In a video and blog post, this chart breaks down how those patents are allocated.
![](https://www.freightwaves.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/08/090823-TT84-TuSimple-patent-breakdown-1200x714.jpg)
‘Something we now have long promoted’
The corporate offered an interview with Paul Liu, global head of mental property, but reneged once I asked whether the IP portfolio can be a part of a possible sale of the U.S. business and related questions.
“TuSimple’s patent portfolio is something we now have long promoted,” a spokesperson said in an email. “We’ve a number of the most talented employees within the industry and their continued development of our autonomous driving system is something to be celebrated no matter whether TuSimple is exploring strategic alternatives for its US operations.”
![](https://www.freightwaves.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/08/090823-TT84-TuSimple-patent-for-launch-and-land-1200x650.jpg)
What concerning the other guys?
An apples-to-apples comparison of autonomous patents awarded and pending, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets can be hard to compile. Based on the variety of patents awarded and pending in autonomous trucking, here’s how a couple of leading firms responded:
Aurora Innovation has 1,510 awarded and pending patents comprising homegrown inventions and innovations obtained through strategic acquisitions. It accommodates older patents from Aurora’s give attention to light vehicle ride-hailing products. Newer filings reflect recent advancements.
Kodiak Robotics has 100 patents filed which might be under review. Torc Robotics doesn’t disclose patent information and Waymo didn’t reply to an emailed inquiry.
Cummins CEO Jennifer Rumsey discusses battery cell partnership
Wednesday’s announcement of a planned three way partnership by Cummins Inc., Daimler Truck and Paccar Inc. to make lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries within the U.S. broke some recent ground within the trucking industry’s approach to its supply chain.
Working with a lesser-known Chinese battery technology company has benefits. The know-how could help create a neighborhood supply chain that needs to be easier to administer. And it should reduce worries about whether China will lock down exports of rare earth materials like cobalt and nickel.
Jennifer Rumsey, Cummins chair and CEO, and I talked concerning the potential for the partnership. The Q&A is edited for clarity and length.
Truck Tech: Who got here up with the thought of a three way partnership?
Rumsey: Paccar, Daimler Truck and Cummins all saw this chance and had an interest in coming together on this particular chemistry, LFP, to create a plan and share that investment because together we expect we will create scale for a cell that shall be uniquely suited to business vehicles. Paccar and Daimler can use that cell and the packs that they create for his or her trucks and Cummins can sell to other customers in business vehicle and industrial applications.
Truck Tech: When do you expect your production site to be announced and where would you expect that to be?
Rumsey: It’s going to take a while for us to rent the team and construct the plant. Our plan is to begin production in 2027 and scale up between the 2027 and 2030 time-frame to that 21-gigawatt hour number.
Truck Tech: This will not be a small amount of electricity. My math shows 21GWh is sufficient to power 16 million homes for a yr.
Rumsey: We imagine it’s something like 80,000 medium-duty trucks. In fact it is dependent upon your exact range, design, but just an order of magnitude of what’s 21 gigawatt hours.
Truck Tech: How necessary is the onshoring of battery components given geopolitical considerations and the uncertainty at home?
Rumsey: The fact is a whole lot of the battery technology and manufacturing know-how today is outside the U.S. LFP specifically. Lots of that’s in China. We imagine we now have a robust technology partner that has the technology and manufacturing know-how and we’re going to bring that to the U.S. Create a plant here within the U.S. Create jobs within the U.S. and, over time, localize the provision chain to support this battery cell plant here within the U.S. That ensures our industry has the cell that may meet our needs as we electrify and in addition make sure that we now have security of supply over time.
Truck Tech: How much of an element are the incentives from the IRA and the CHIPS and Science Act in deciding to go forward with this?
Rumsey: Cummins has been pretty lively in advocating for regulation and incentives. We expect [they] are vital to essentially drive innovation and scale these technologies. Today, they’re costlier. Our customers must know that the solutions that they’re purchasing are going to permit them to proceed to achieve success. And that there’ll be an infrastructure to support them. The worth of regulation and these incentives, specifically the IRA, is [that] it helps to offset a number of the higher cost. It creates certainty for investment in these recent technologies.
Truck Tech: Some think incentives are tantamount to the beginnings of an industrial policy. Do you subscribe to this?
Rumsey: As you go into these recent technologies, we’d like policies and complementary measures that may also help to decarbonize from wells to wheels. Incentives help drive the economics of who’s going to pay for this and the way you drive innovation and scale up and convey cost down. Without [incentives], decarbonization will struggle.
Cummins Chair and CEO Jennifer Rumsey talked concerning the recent three way partnership to bring battery cell production to the U.S. (Photo: Cummins)
![](https://www.freightwaves.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/08/090823-TT84-Jennifer-Rumsey-1200x675.jpg)
Briefly noted …
Peterbilt marked the production of the 100,000th Model 389 long-hood Class 8 tractor at its plant in Denton, Texas.
TuSimple (above) filed its overdue financials for the fourth quarter and full yr of 2022, losing $138.4 million or 61 cents a share including layoff costs.
ZF has developed a brand new electric motor that eliminates the necessity for rare earth magnets utilized in traditional electric drive motors.
The Oman Investment Authority is betting on Michigan LFP battery startup Our Next Energy (ONE) with an undisclosed investment.
The Volvo Trucks Customer Center has accomplished structural upgrades to the ability’s customer experience track in Dublin, Virginia, tripling the dimensions of the 3-mile custom-designed course.
![](https://www.freightwaves.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/08/090823-TT84-Volvo-Track-1200x675.jpg)
That’s it for this week. Thanks for reading. Click here to receive Truck Tech by email on Fridays. And meet up with the latest episodes of Truck Tech on Wednesdays at 4 p.m. EDT on the FreightWaves YouTube channel. Next week’s guest shall be Salim Youssefzadeh, CEO of truck-as-a-service and infrastructure startup WattEV.
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