A new patent claimed by Tesla has revealed some additional details on the upcoming Robotaxi’s Sanitization System – which will automatically sanitize enclosed spaces. It discusses how Tesla expects to use this system, including some hints on the upcoming Robotaxi app. Rimac also recently announced their upcoming robotaxi, which looks a lot like what we may see in Tesla’s Cybercab.
Most interesting is that this patent isn’t strictly based on some specific systems in the Robotaxi itself but is rather based upon an overall routine and process for sanitizing enclosed spaces that are shared among multiple people, particularly around vehicle interiors. This means it is likely applicable to all of Tesla’s vehicles.
You can view the entire patent here, although we went through it all so you wouldn’t have to.
Sanitization
The sanitization patent is focused on observing and analyzing the conditions of the closed space and then generating a sanitization routine based on the conditions, and then finally executing it. This essentially means that the system will scan a vehicle, determine what kind of cleaning is required, and then conduct that cleaning.
Analysis - Interior & Exterior
Let’s take a look at the analysis portion first. There are a few key detection parameters – ambient temperature, humidity, the presence of pathogens or unclean air, and the presence or absence of certain conditions in the enclosed environment. Using a multitude of sensor data, including some from the vehicle itself, the system will create a sanitization plan.
The robotaxi's interior
Not a Tesla App
The sanitization plan doesn’t just include the interior of the vehicle – but can also consider external parameters like weather and vehicle usage history. Rain, snow, and mud could be some pretty big factors for a Robotaxi cleanup, and taking these into account is essential.
How It’ll Clean
Once the plan is generated, the system will utilize various sanitization routines, based on the plan that was generated. This can include using the HVAC systems, using UV lighting, using steam generators, and a few other processes. The system can also take into account whether the sanitization process can be accomplished by the resources available – e.g. if there is a human or humanoid robot available to accomplish some of the tasks.
There are a few basic methods described in the patent on how Tesla expects to sanitize vehicles, including blowing warm air toward the steering wheel, doors and windows, and the central display to sanitize. It also has a method to expose various parts of the vehicle, including the seats and seatbelts, to a sanitizing UV light.
There are some interesting and unique methods – using active or passive elements to create heat and sanitizing surfaces like the central touchscreen. That’s not all – the patent also talks about tilting the vehicle’s central display to reflect the sanitizing UV light around the vehicle. Tesla has some unique ideas on how to implement its automated sanitization process.
If there’s additional sanitization needed, the system can cooperate with external service robots (possibly Tesla’s Optimus), to sanitize the interior and exterior of the vehicle. It can also direct the Full Self Driving system to adjust the vehicle’s orientation, exposing certain parts of the interior to sunlight.
When and Where to Sanitize
Tesla expects this sanitization routine to begin running immediately after a passenger exits the vehicle, reducing downtime as much as possible between potential passengers. If the sanitization system identifies that deeper cleaning is needed, the system will redirect the vehicle in need of cleaning to a cleaning location, while another vehicle will be directed to the next potential passenger.
There are some Robotaxi-unique features, such as a disinfecting spray system and special disinfecting UV light that are not present in any of Tesla’s current vehicles. Whether these current vehicles will receive a refit or a refresh to include these features remains up in the air at this time, however, the patent did notably use the Model Y as the figure vehicle.
Some other features, such as using humidity, temperature, seatbelt retractors, seat adjustment motors, and motorized vents – are already in every Tesla vehicle.
Killing Germs
One of the most unique things about this patent is Tesla has looked at various airborne pathogens – such as SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), amongst others, and identified what temperatures and humidities will kill these off. It will use this information to change the ambient environment in the vehicle to one unsuitable for pathogens to survive, helping to prevent illnesses from transferring from one passenger to the next.
We’re going to see some unique things at Tesla’s Robotaxi unveiling on 8/8, and some more details of how this system functions will probably come up then. Sanitization of Robotaxis is absolutely one of the key steps that will help to build Tesla’s ambitious Robotaxi fleet – and we’re hoping to see more on how they expect to charge Robotaxis in the upcoming weeks.
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Tesla has finally released their 2024 Impact Report, and it's filled with impressive new data on the company’s environmental and safety progress. However, the biggest news is the clear and concrete roadmap it provides for the next generation of Tesla products.
For the first time, the report provides specific timelines for Tesla to begin volume production of the purpose-built Cybercab and the ramp-up of the Semi factory. This year’s report shifts from documenting past achievements to defining Tesla’s next phase, with a focus on autonomy and industrial transport.
Upcoming Vehicles
The most significant new items in the report are timelines for Tesla’s anticipated future vehicles.
Next, Tesla is ramping up production of the Semi, following the completion of limited production runs used for testing. This development is closely tied to the ongoing construction of the new Semi Factory, which is nearing completion. Tesla expects this to be one of its largest markets going forward and one of the most impactful. Industrial trucks doing the last 200 miles of delivery account for 16.4% of US vehicle emissions, despite making up only 1.1% of vehicles on the road.
In terms of the Affordable Model, Tesla has mentioned that they intend to launch more affordable products in 2025 and address a key segment of the market. They did not elaborate on this further and seem to have missed the previously provided self-imposed deadline for the first half of 2025.
At this point, we’re unsure whether Tesla will actually launch a distinct and more affordable model or whether it will introduce cut-down versions of the Model Y, as rumored.
Safety
The report supports Tesla’s future plans with some impressive new data points that demonstrate the impact their technology is having.
First, Autopilot (and FSD) has achieved a safety record nearly 10 times higher than the US national average in terms of miles per incident. The data shows one accident for every 6.77 million miles driven with Autopilot (or FSD) engaged, compared to the national average of one accident per 0.70 million miles.
The report also highlighted the Cybertruck’s recent 5-Star overall safety rating from the NHTSA, marking it one of the safest vehicles on the market, especially for a truck. The best part is that Cybertruck holds the lowest overall probability of injury and the lowest rollover risk of any pickup truck ever tested by the agency. Skeptics have always complained about lacking crumple zones, but the results prove otherwise, with Tesla building crumple zones as part of the gigacast.
Sustainability
In terms of sustainability, Tesla’s growing fleet helped to increase the amount of reduced and avoided emissions by 60% year over year, to 32 million metric tons of CO2e. While that’s a small number when you compare it to a full country, it is still a significant impact, especially in cities where pollutants have already decreased due to the ownership of EVs.
Tesla also mentioned that 99% of their recalls reported in 2024 were resolved using OTA updates, saving owners a trip to the Service Center or a trip by the Tesla Mobile Rangers, all in the name of sustainability and reduced costs.
Impactful Report
Tesla’s 2024 Impact Report is actually one of the most forward-looking publications to date. It puts a clear roadmap of Tesla’s future goals, while also tying them into the sustainability and safety goals achieved last year.
We can’t wait till 2025’s report - because it’ll be even better with this year’s deployment of Robotaxi. You can read all 200+ pages of the impact report here.
Tesla has officially begun internal testing of its awaited virtual queueing system for Superchargers. The news was shared by Tesla’s Director of Charging, Max de Zegher on X.
The Tesla Charging team has begun pressure testing the new feature and is planning for public pilots as their next step. While most users won’t experience heavy congestion at Superchargers, for those who do, it could be a real pain point. Virtual queues are designed to make it easier to charge at congested Superchargers by having a digital queue, rather than relying on owners to remain in line with their vehicles.
Virtual Queues
When we originally delved into Tesla’s plans to introduce a virtual queue system, it seemed obvious that the virtual queue would replace the current “Wild West” first-come, first-served system of vehicles trying to get pulled into a stall. This process will likely have two key integrations.
First up is integration directly into the vehicle software for Tesla vehicles. This means that when you’re navigating to a Supercharger that’s busy and virtual queuing is enabled, you will be automatically placed into the virtual queue upon arrival.
Then, your position in line is displayed on-screen and provides an estimated wait time, allowing you to relax, eat, or take a bathroom break without worrying about your place in line. Finally, once a stall becomes available and it’s your turn, you will receive a notification on your vehicle’s screen, as well as on the Tesla app, directing you to the open stall that will presumably only allow your vehicle to charge. We imagine that there will be a grace period for owners to pull up with their car. If that doesn’t happen within a certain period, the next car will likely be offered the charger.
The second integration is in the Tesla app for non-Tesla drivers. As Tesla continues to install Magic Docks and open Superchargers to non-Tesla EVs, more and more traffic comes to the world’s most reliable fast charging network. That means that Tesla also needs to manage expectations and queue times for non-Tesla vehicles, likely through a similar process, but done over the Tesla app instead.
The Devil’s in the Details
A simple “first-in, first-out” queue sounds great, but Max noted that it is easy to exploit things with bad actors. What prevents a driver from joining a queue remotely to reserve a spot, ignoring a notification, or trying to hop into an unreserved spot?
Well, Tesla should be able to manage these fairly easily, but they still require technical effort to implement. That means GPS geofencing for those attempting to join a queue, a short countdown timer for those late to take their spot, and a lockout for those who try to skip the queue are all needed.
What’s Next?
As Tesla has just started internal testing of this feature, it likely means that public-facing user interfaces and flows aren’t quite ready yet, but the underlying functionality is. It also means that Tesla is working to refine the little details to make the process as smooth and as easily accessible as possible.
While no pilot locations have been announced yet, it seems likely that Tesla will launch the pilot at some of the most notoriously busy Supercharger sites to gather testing data in the near future, once internal testing is complete. That means holiday travel routes or major highways, likely in California first, before rolling out elsewhere.
Virtual Queuing is a fantastic tech-first solution for the Supercharger network that helps transform that experience into a more calm and orderly process. Additionally, establishing a fair system that allows both Tesla and non-Tesla EVs to access will likely improve the overall experience. Along with the pilot program for dynamic Supercharger pricing that incentivizes people to use less-congested Superchargers, these changes should improve the Supercharger experience.
While Max mentioned it was designed for “those rare cases with a wait”, that tends to be the experience in larger cities further North, especially in New York, Michigan, or within Canada, where the few smaller Supercharger sites in big cities tend to be heavily congested. These queues will make the experience smoother for everyone involved, so we’re looking forward to seeing this come to fruition.
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