The Science Council of Japan’s 2008 Report, “Aiming for a Zero Traffic Accidents Society,” states that “it is necessary to establish various driver assistance technologies based on the fact that most drivers make mistakes”; “for advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) technologies, cooperation between human operation and machine assistance, and social acceptability need to be evaluated”; and “new driver assistance by introduction of robotics technology and application of automated driving in specific operating domain should be considered in the near future.” A wide array of robotic technologies is expected to contribute to developing intelligent and advanced technologies for passenger and transport vehicles, as well as creating a rich future for the transportation of people and logistics. Over the past decade, researchers and engineers have attempted to achieve these goals. In 2015, the government announced a policy to make practical use and deployment of automated driving technologies by the year of Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics. Now, looking toward the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, we organized a special issue of the JRM: “Innovative Robotics and Mechatronics Technology of Modern Passenger Cars for Zeroing Traffic Accidents.”

This special issue features 16 papers carefully written and reviewed by field specialists. We express our heartfelt appreciation to the authors and reviewers who have contributed their expertise to this issue.

We would also like to thank the members of the Journal of Robotics and Mechatronics board for giving us the unique opportunity to coordinate this issue.