Bristol team behind the UK’s first full-fleet of autonomous buses

A UK first is being developed by a team of engineers based at Future Space in Bristol.

Fusion Processing - who are based at Future Space - are behind the ground-breaking technology that will see the world’s first fleet of autonomous buses take to the roads this month.

Known as CAVForth, the project has been made a success through support from Innovate UK, privately funded projects, and the support of Future Space and the University Enterprise Zone.

Future Space, based on the Filton campus of UWE Bristol, is a workspace for innovative businesses building the technology of the future. 

The team at Fusion Processing are world leaders in designing and building autonomous vehicle technology. Their innovations include the CAVstar control and censor system, which will be used to control the autonomous buses.

The fleet of buses, operated by Stagecoach, is the first registered bus service in the UK to use full-sized autonomous buses. 

Not content with just one technological feat under their belts, the Bristol-based team is also working on the world’s first hydrogen powered freight vehicle with Asda through their partner startup HVS.

£10.4 million funding has recently been announced from both government and industry to expand these projects.

This will kick-start a period of high-scale growth for the innovative engineers at Fusion Processing. 

Jim Hutchinson, the visionary Founder and CEO of Fusion Processing, said: “We saw that disruption was coming for the industry so we developed a startup that would shape the future of automotive technology. We were the first to look in detail at the difficult problems the industry faced in taking this leap - such as getting a vehicle to recognise vulnerable road users.

“Our technology can be used on any vehicle, but there is a good commercial need for autonomous systems in the travel and freight industries. We’re working with professional fleets that are looking at using these systems to improve safety and customer experience while also reducing vehicle emissions.

“Choosing Future Space in Bristol was right for us, it is a lovely environment. Being co-located with UWE Bristol and the Bristol Robotics Laboratory has given us access to knowledge and facilities such as rapid prototyping, and we have space to keep the buses for testing and development.”

Thanh Quan-Nicholls, Innovation Manager at Future Space, said: “It’s exciting to see the CAVForth project take to the roads. Fusion Processing is a highly innovative company demonstrating that world leading technologies are being developed through powerful partnerships across the UK.

“Thee trials are the beginning of a growth journey for Fusion Processing and Future Space are proud to provide a home for these extraordinary innovators.”

Operating between Fife and Edinburgh, the journey will carry up to 10,000 passengers every week.