Some of the world’s leading manufacturers of heavy-duty trucks and engines recently gathered at a summit conference have called for further collaboration among the regulatory authorities of Europe, the U.S. and Japan for the promotion of vehicle-freight-road connectivity.

Assembling in Tokyo, the chief executives of 10 global truck and engine manufacturers discussed industry approaches to future regulations and standards aimed at enhancing road safety, labor saving and freight transport efficiency with the help of communications technology and automated driving technology.

The summit meeting was chaired by Yoshio Shimo, president of Hino Motors Ltd. and chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association’s Heavy Vehicle Committee. This was the 14th meeting of chief executives to discuss global issues and recommend solutions to the critical challenges confronting heavy-duty vehicle manufacturers.

Summarizing the meeting, Shimo stated, “Commercial vehicle and engine manufacturers have made definite progress in exhaust emission reductions, fuel efficiency improvements and the global harmonization of test methods and regulations. We have also reaffirmed the importance of identifying our common issues and sharing perspectives unique to heavy-duty vehicles, and our intention to continue talks on vehicle connectivity with the communications infrastructure and reconfirmed our awareness that the best approach to resolving connectivity issues is closer cooperation between government and industry.”

Patterning after the achievements of previous meetings, the industry leaders reviewed ongoing progress in the harmonization of fuel efficiency standards, and affirmed their intention to pursue the following activities on a priority basis: a) Push ahead with their expert-level collaborations for tackling the technical issues of connectivity, and b) Move forward with their support of the United Nations activity to develop an international fuel efficiency procedures for heavy-duty commercial vehicles.

It was decided that a new meeting of technical experts be hosted by the U.S. industry association to examine the connectivity and other technical issues identified at the summit meeting.