(Yicai Global) Dec. 4 -- China has unveiled the world's first self-driving vehicles on the open road with the introduction of driverless buses in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong province, on Dec. 2, Beijing Daily reported.

Shenzhen decided to introduce two vehicles first on a route with three bus stops. Passengers can enjoy free ride during the trial period. The self-driving vehicles are supported by "AlphaSmart bus driving system." The project was initiated by the national intelligent transport systems center of engineering and technology, which operates under China's ministry of transport, and Shenzhen Bus Group Co. that operates the new buses.

The system is able to make an accurate response in real time to other road users and unexpected situations through industrial personal computer (IPC), vehicle controller and controller area network (CAN) analysis of the road environment.

The self-driving buses successfully operate such functions as pedestrian detection, vehicle detection, deceleration and avoidance, emergency stop, obstacle bypass, lane change and automatic stop by station under automatic driving.

Each bus is equipped with 16 laser heads emitting laser beams at the same time, continuing to scan the outside environment, ranging up to 100 meters with an accuracy of two centimeters.

Although they are self-driving buses, they have drivers for assistance to ensure safety.