A driverless van funded by the EU has successfully completed a 13,000 km test drive from Italy to China.

The non-polluting vehicle, powered by green energy, reached Shanghai after a three-month journey.

The experiment, led by Prof. Alberto Broggi of Parma University, is part of a pioneering research project on autonomous driving, made possible mainly thanks to significant funding by the European Research Council (ERC).

Like a modern version of Marco Polo's journey halfway around the globe, the expedition started from Italy on 20 July. After 80 days of travelling through Eastern Europe, Russia and Kazakhstan, the vehicle finally entered China. It then crossed the Gobi desert and continued towards Shanghai.

The project uses low-cost technologies that can be integrated in most vehicles' chassis and – by complementing human drivers - could help improve road safety and fuel efficiency.

Twelve sensors allow the vehicle to drive safely in very different types of traffic, weather and road conditions.

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