The military is testing driverless car tech in Michigan

Driverless car tech isn't just for consumers or the trucking industry. The military can benefit, too.

The Michigan Department of Transportation and the Army’s Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) announced Thursday they have teamed to test driverless technology on the state's Interstate 69 freeway.

Specifically, TARDEC is testing dedicated short-range communications, essentially a version of Car-2-X communication, which will aid in the development of autonomous cars. With the tech, the vehicles wirelessly communicate via Wi-Fi with roadside sensors as well as each other.

Through the communication, vehicles can send and receive up-to-date information about speed, road and weather conditions. If this tech sounds familiar, it should. Mercedes-Benz was the first automaker to include Car-2-X in a production vehicle, the all-new E-Class. 

The first tests will include a convoy of four Army trucks traveling up and down a 21-mile stretch of I-69. Human drivers will be in full control of the vehicles at all times. However, the info gathered from the tests will help the military trucks learn to better manage roadway obstacles.

The Army does not have a public timetable for the widespread implementation of driverless vehicles. That said, Doug Halleaux, public affairs officer for TARDEC, told The Detroit News that over the next few years TARDEC aims to implement self-driving platooning trucks.

Like the platooning semi trucks demonstrated by Mercedes-Benz, the TARDEC vehicles will benefit from not only from improved safety but also efficiency.