Toyota Announces the Accident Reduction Effects of Intelligent Clearance Sonar, a Safety Support Technology for Parking

Pedal misapplication and vehicle reversing accidents in parking spaces have been significantly reduced

Toyota Motor Corporation conducted a survey of accidents occurring in parking lots involving three models (the Alphard, the Vellfire, and the Prius) which have been equipped with the Intelligent Clearance Sonar (ICS) system. The survey was conducted during the 18-month period from January 2015 to June 2016 on the ICS?a system which helps to prevent or mitigate collision damage in parking spaces. According to the survey of data concerning approximately 2,500 accidents from insurance companies that cover the policies for about 60,000 of these above mentioned vehicles, pedal misapplication accidents fell by approximately 70%, and accidents related to reversing have been reduced by approximately 40%.

Subject vehicle series

Alphard, Vellfire, Prius

Survey subjects

Approximately 63,000 vehicles, of which 26,000 were equipped with ICS (42%)

Accidents caused by pedal misapplication were identified based on customer reports.

ICS uses clearance sonar to detect obstacles during sudden start caused by pedal misapplication, which helps to mitigate damages caused by collision. The Alphard, Vellfire, and Prius which were launched in 2015 have been equipped with additional sensors and where the detection range has been increased. This expands the total detection range, and the software has also been improved2. This enables the ICS to help reduce collision damage caused by pedal misapplication, to support collision avoidance with adjacent vehicles and obstacles, as well as to mitigate damage when moving at low speed within a parking lot or pulling into a parking space even without pedal misapplication.

To contribute to the elimination of traffic fatalities and injuries?which is the ultimate goal of a society that values mobility, Toyota is striving forward with the development of safer vehicles and technologies based on its Integrated Safety Management Concept3, and is continuously undertaking measures to integrate people, cars, and the traffic environment.
 

1 The differences between vehicles with and without ICS were investigated, and confirmation was made such that the difference is significant with more than 90% probability.

2 Vehicle series with the same type of ICS Allion, Alphard, Vellfire, Prius, Premio, Lexus RX

3 An approach to optimal driver support in all stages through integration rather than considering each onboard safety technology and system individually

A Serving of Manufacturing Know-How Helps Those in Need

Toyota Teams with Food Bank to Help It Serve More People during Holiday Season

Feed more people in need more efficiently.
 
That was the goal for team members from Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia (TMMWV), who recently shared manufacturing and process best practices with the Facing Hunger Food Bank in Huntington, W.Va. And thanks to the collaborative effort, the food bank is now set to operate more efficiently.
 
Its back pack program, which provides food to youth, increased efficiency by 600 percent. The project also helped increase warehouse storage by two-thirds.
 
“Better serving the community was the ultimate goal,” says Charles Jarrell, TMMWV training and development specialist. “More than that, it was incredibly rewarding to watch the food bank staff learn, grow and challenge their assumptions about how best to serve the community. This just goes to show the things we do every day at the plant can be applied anywhere and make a dramatic impact.”
 
“Being able to help the food bank improve their operations not only benefits the food bank, but it also benefits thousands of people around the Tri-State area,” says TMMWV training and development specialist Michael Smith.
 
The project mirrors the efforts of the Toyota Production System Support Center, Inc. (TSSC). For years TSSC has provided personnel support and manufacturing expertise to agencies across various industries, helping them become more efficient and better able to serve communities.
 
“Toyota’s approach is built around people,” says TMMWV President Millie Marshall. “Knowledge-sharing across industries helps community partners help more people in need, which benefits the communities we live and work in. Once the food bank learned our methodology, they made it their own and utilize it every day.  At Toyota, we believe when good ideas are shared, great things happen.”

Toyota Research Institute Brings Prius Challenge to Silicon Valley Community

Third annual Onramp event combines the technical challenges of data analysis, machine learning and simulation with the fun of competing at a major racetrack
 

 Toyota Research Institute (TRI) announced today that Toyota is bringing the Prius Challenge to the Sonoma Raceway for the third iteration of its ongoing Onramp series, an innovation event designed to engage the startup and tech community. This year’s event, to be held on March 3, 2017, will be hosted by Toyota Research Institute (TRI) and will feature a team competition where participants optimize their driving based on data and simulation from a connected Toyota Prius.

 
The Prius Challenge is a unique competition that originated at Toyota’s headquarters in Japan, where participants battle it out to see who can achieve the best fuel economy and efficiency rating on a Prius within a target time range. While Toyota employees and dealers have been able to participate in the challenge, this is the first time that members of the public will have the chance to compete. TRI is furthering the concept of Onramp to incorporate a technical challenge for participants that includes data crunching and simulation.
 
“TRI is excited to host the Prius Challenge and introduce a competition that will allow participants to use machine learning and sophisticated data analysis tools to test out their theories in the real world,” said Dr. ‎Gill Pratt, CEO at Toyota Research Institute, Inc. “Silicon Valley and the Bay Area are a hotbed for automotive talent and innovation, and this event is the perfect opportunity for TRI to engage with the tech community and have some fun in the process.”
 
This is the third Onramp event sponsored by Toyota. Jason Wiener, winner of the Onramp 2015 Smart Mobility Challenge, will return for Onramp 2017 with his connected car startup, Hyperdrive, by developing an application that enables Prius Challenge contestants to track telemetry data and optimize their performance during the race. Additionally, Open Source Robotics Corporation (OSRC), as part of a partnership with TRI, will provide a driving simulator that allows participants to strategize and practice driving through a virtual program.
 
“The Toyota Onramp series is a fantastic set of events aimed at driving collaboration between Toyota and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs,” said Wiener. “I hope we will see a great field of competitors out there on the racetrack on March 3 competing to bring home the Prius Cup.”
 
Toyota Onramp is an invitation-only event. For more information, including details on how to request an invitation or participate in the Prius Challenge, please visit the website here.
 
For updated information on Toyota Onramp, please follow @ToyotaResearch on Twitter.

CAR Study Shows Toyota’s Substantial Impact to U.S. Economy

Total U.S. Employment is 470,100 and Seventy Percent of Vehicles Sold Here are Built Here

Hundreds of thousands of jobs. Billions of dollars in payroll.  That is just part of the impact Toyota has on the U.S. economy.  A new study released today by the Center for Automotive Research (CAR) estimates the employment and economic contribution of Toyota Motor North America’s operations and activities to the United States economy.  CAR’s analysis found that Toyota has a total employment impact of 470,100 jobs, $32.3 billion in private non-farm payroll (0.35 percent of total U.S. private compensation) that results in $23.6 billion in net disposable income for individuals.  Each Toyota job creates employment for 6.1 others at suppliers or manufacturing support companies.
 
The complete report is available now on CAR’s website:
http://www.cargroup.org/?module=Publications&event=View&pubID=147

Toyota Aims for Net Positive Impact: 2016 North American Environmental Report Tracks Progress

For Toyota, boldly shaping the future of mobility starts with making a positive impact on the environment in diverse communities across the United States and Canada.
 
In the recently published 2016 North American Environmental Report, Toyota outlined these positive impacts.  Over the past year, Toyota’s North American operations have reduced water usage by nearly 100 million gallons, the equivalent to the annual water use of more than 900 average American families. Toyota also announced plans for a 7.75 megawatt solar array at Toyota’s new headquarters campus in Plano, Texas, which will reduce annual carbon dioxide emissions by 7,122 metric tons, or the equivalent of the electricity used by almost 1,000 homes in a year.
 
These and other efforts that address ever-better cars, ever-better manufacturing, and enriching lives within communities, are a core part of Toyota’s Global Environmental Challenge 2050, an ambitious set of six challenges that ultimately will create a net positive impact on the planet.
 
“To achieve our 2050 goal of net positive impact, we’ll continue to make consistent, incremental improvements,” said Toyota Motor North America Regional Environmental Director Kevin Butt.  “These constant improvements, supported by innovative projects across Toyota operations in North America, will create positive change and a more sustainable future.”
 
The first three challenges as part of Toyota’s Environmental Challenge 2050 focus on carbon and call for completely eliminating – not just reducing – greenhouse gas emissions from all vehicles, operations and supply chain. The fourth challenge addresses water availability and quality, while the fifth and sixth challenges seek to move closer to a recycling-based society and protect nature.
 
In North America, Toyota has already taken action to achieve the six challenges, which have helped Toyota meet, and in some cases exceed, 2014 to 2016 targets on vehicles, energy and greenhouse gases, water, chemical management, waste, biodiversity and outreach.
 
Additional highlights from the 2016 North American Environmental Report include the following:
 
Getting to Zero Emissions:

• Toyota introduced its second-generation plug-in hybrid vehicle, Prius Prime, with an EPA-estimated 133 MPGe, making it the most fuel-efficient vehicle on the road today. The improved efficiency represents a substantial 26 percent enhancement over its predecessor.
• The Toyota Mirai fuel cell electric vehicle continues to roll through California, boasting one of the highest ranges of any zero emission vehicle on the road.
• In 2016, Toyota established an in-house venture company for electric vehicles (EV) development.

Minimizing and Optimizing Water Usage:

• In 2016, Toyota reduced water withdrawals by 99.8 million gallons, the equivalent to the annual water use of more than 900 average American families.
• Toyota dealers in Northern California saved 8.4 million gallons of water last summer by encouraging customers to skip the complimentary car wash after service.

Establishing a Recycling-Based Society and Systems:

• Toyota’s North American facilities reduced, reused or recycled 96 percent of non-regulated waste during calendar year 2015.

Establishing a Future Society in Harmony with Nature:

• Toyota has more than 1,000 acres across 10 North American sites certified by the Wildlife Habitat Council.
• Toyota has been the national corporate sponsor of National Public Lands Day since 1999. The 2015 event contributed an estimated $18 million in volunteer services to improve public lands across the U.S.

Community and Dealer/Facilities Outreach:

• With 54 and counting, Toyota and Lexus have more dealership facilities certified to LEED® standards in the U.S. and Canada than any other auto manufacturer.
• Residents from more than 4,100 U.S. cities pledged to save over 1.9 billion gallons of water as part of the annual National Mayor’s Challenge for Water Conservation, sponsored by Toyota.
• Last year, Toyota sites collected 267,818 pounds of household waste and donations from team members and local residents, equal to the weight of 20 full-size male African elephants. 

To view the full report, visit http://www.toyota.com/usa/environmentreport2016/. 

Toyota Leads the Industry with the Most IIHS 2017 ‘Top Safety Pick+’ Awards

Nine Toyota and Lexus Models Earn Institute’s Highest Recognition for Crashworthiness, Front Crash Prevention and Headlight Quality

For the third year in a row, Toyota has topped the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) annual list of safety awards. Twelve Toyota and Lexus vehicles won IIHS awards in 2017, with nine receiving its highest award, the TOP SAFETY PICK+, the most of any manufacturer.

 
“At Toyota, our focus remains on the safety and peace of mind of our customers,” said Dino Triantafyllos, Toyota’s North American Chief Quality Officer. “We are proud that our commitment to developing safe and reliable vehicles resulted in such a strong showing in 2017 TOP SAFETY PICK+ awards”.
 
According to IIHS, automakers were required to meet tougher criteria to be considered for the top 2017 awards, including headlight evaluations launched in 2016. Among this year’s TOP SAFETY PICK+ recipients, the IIHS recognized the updated Toyota Corolla for improved small overlap crash protection and front crash prevention, as well as the Toyota Prius for its improved headlights.
 
To receive a TOP SAFETY PICK AWARD, vehicles were required to achieve good ratings in five crashworthiness tests, have an available front crash prevention system and have quality headlights. TOP SAFETY PICK+ award winners must also have a superior- or advanced-rated front crash prevention system with automatic braking capabilities.
 
2017 Toyota and Lexus TOP SAFETY PICK+ winners:

• Toyota Prius (built after August 2016),
• Toyota Corolla
• Toyota Camry
• Toyota Prius v
• Lexus RC
• Lexus ES 350
• Toyota RAV4,
• Lexus NX
• Lexus RX

 
2017 Toyota and Lexus TOP SAFETY PICK winners:

• Toyota Yaris iA
• Toyota Avalon
• Lexus CT 200h

Toyota Celebrates 10th Consecutive Year as a Best Place to Work for LGBTs

Human Rights Campaign Again Recognizes Toyota with Perfect Score on 2017 Corporate Equality Index

For the last decade, Toyota has been a leader in its commitment to equality for LGBT employees. So says the Human Rights Campaign, which today honored Toyota with its 10th consecutive perfect score of “100” on HRC’s 2017 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), a national benchmarking survey on corporate policies and practices related to LGBT workplace equality.
 
“We thank HRC for this recognition of Toyota’s commitment to workplace equality for all,” said Latondra Newton, Chief Diversity Officer of Toyota Motor North America. “Toyota’s LGBT initiatives stem from our core values—including respect for people and continuous improvement—and an appreciation for a diverse, inclusive workforce that better serves our customers. Toyota is proud to stand with its LGBT employees and be recognized as a best place to work.”
 
In compiling the index, HRC evaluated 1,043 businesses, assessing LGBT-related policies and practices including non-discrimination workplace protections, domestic partner benefits, transgender-inclusive health care benefits, competency programs, and public engagement with the LGBT community. Toyota is one of about 400 companies – from over a thousand rated—that earned a perfect score of 100. For more information on the 2017 Corporate Equality Index, or to download a free copy of the report, visit www.hrc.org/cei.