Self-driving truck technology provider, Plus, has passed China's national certification test and met all the key safety and performance metrics to begin on-road operation. Plus says it's the first independent certification of an automated truck in China, and called certification a critical step toward proving the commercial readiness its self-driving technology.

The truck, dubbed the J7+, was jointly developed by FAW and Plus, and tested at the China Automotive Technology & Research Center (CATARC) in Tianjin, China.

CATARC is the largest and one of the most advanced third-party automotive testing facilities and proving grounds in Asia. The facility team has deep expertise in automotive testing, vehicle forensic authentication, quality system certification and training, and more. The certification test that the FAW J7+ automated truck passed was based on China’s strict highway and transportation standards and rules, including JT/T 883-2014, GB/T 26773-2011, and GB∕T 33577-2017.

“I’m proud of our team for achieving this significant milestone,” said Shawn Kerrigan, COO and co-founder, Plus. “As the result of years of intense technology development and collaboration with leading technology suppliers, Plus now has a best-in-class product that meets the stringent requirements of a commercial self-driving system.”

Plus entered into a strategic partnership with FAW Jiefang in 2018 and joined its “Colombo Smart Transportation” program. A year later, Plus formed a joint venture with FAW to focus on the development of automated trucks. The jointly developed FAW J7+ intelligent truck will start mass production in the first half year of 2021.

In October, Plus released its Voluntary Safety Self-Assessment report. The report details the company's overall approach to building a fully functional and safe self-driving system, an overview of the technologies behind Plus’ driving system, and its belief that billions of real road miles are needed to statistically prove the safety of the system before making fully driverless trucks commercially available.