Earlier in the week we noted that Japan Government is considering widespread deployment of driverless cars by 2020.

Today we noticed another little tidbit in an article at Tech On!

 [Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT)] plans to clarify the issues related to automated driving and compile an interim report by March 2013. This is the first time in the world that a ministry or an equivalent government organization has started to seriously consider the introduction of automated driving, MLIT said.

The Japanese Government wants two of its parliamentary secretaries to have bi-monthly meetings with Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Mazda and Fuji Heavy Industries on the issue of automated driving. In a nutshell: Japan seems to be taking this very seriously.

Here’s a tantalising snippet from someone who visits Honda’s tech development center.

Next we saw the AC-X (Advanced Cruiser Experience), a clever concept that offers two driving modes. When it’s in auto-drive, for autonomous cruising, the steering column retracts into the dashboard, an ottoman appears and the interior illuminates to create a relaxed living-room feel. Outside, the front bumper, rear diffuser and front running lights adjust to the mode.

 

What I find interesting about this is the sense of inevitability about autonomous driving that brought upon this design.