Japanese automaker Nissan and NASA are teaming up to advance the technology behind cars that drive autonomously. Researchers from Nissan's U.S. Silicon Valley Research Center and NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif., will focus on autonomous drive systems, human-machine interface solutions, network-enabled applications, and software analysis and verification, all involving sophisticated hardware and software used in road and space applications.

Researchers from the two organizations will test a fleet of zero-emission autonomous vehicles at Ames to demonstrate proof-of-concept remote operation of autonomous vehicles for the transport of materials, goods, payloads and people. For NASA, these tests parallel the way it operates planetary rovers from a mission control center. The first vehicle of that fleet should be testing at the facility by the end of 2015.

The safety technology in the works includes cars that know through sensors they are about to collide and will brake automatically, even if the driver doesn't do a thing. There are also cars that can park themselves.

"The partnership will accelerate Nissan?s development of safe, secure and reliable autonomous drive technology that we will progressively introduce to consumers beginning in 2016 up to 2020," said Carlos Ghosn, president and CEO of Nissan Motor Co.

Nissan has set 2020 as the timeframe for the introduction of autonomous drive vehicles that have the ability to navigate in nearly all situations, including the most complex situation, city driving.

Automakers besides Nissan are working on the technology, including Japanese rival Toyota Motor Corp. and U.S. manufacturers General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co.

And companies outside the industry are getting involved, such as Google.