Project INSIGHT is one of eight projects awarded a total of £20 million in funding from the government’s £100 million Intelligent Mobility Fund, to develop driverless shuttles with advanced sensors and control systems. The project will focus on improving the accessibility of transport for people who have difficulty travelling independently, as well as on the safety, reliability and integration of autonomous vehicles into an urban environment.

INSIGHT will be delivered by Conigital alongside Westfield Sports Cars, Heathrow Enterprises, Fusion Processing, Creative Example and Birmingham City University.

The vehicles will feature the world’s first four-dimensional tactile display which will provide continuous sensory feedback for blind users over the course of their journeys. Advanced indoor and outdoor positioning systems will allow blind users to know their exact locations using a smartphone app and will link to a cloud-based system which will allow nearby vehicles to be virtually requested or ‘hailed’.

Prem Moti, Technical Director at Conigital Group, said: “We are thrilled to be part of the INSIGHT project and to have received this funding from the Intelligent Mobility Fund. This will be a great opportunity for us to showcase our accessibility technology and to develop the next generation of autonomous vehicles.”

Founded by Roger Wilson-Hind who has been blind since birth, Conigital launched the GeorgiePhone app in December 2015, providing talking and text services to enable the disabled and visually impaired to way-find indoors. They are one of 12 tech start-ups recently accepted on to the Serendip Smart City Incubator at Innovation Birmingham’s new 42,149 sq ft iCentrum building.