One more level in the autonomy of cars. Mercedes-Benz will market in Germany in mid-May vehicles equipped with the “Drive Pilot” system allowing level 3 to be reached with, in certain circumstances, the possibility of taking your hands off the wheel, checking your emails or watching a film… This system will be offered to buyers of the two most expensive models of the German brand, the S-Class and its electric counterpart EQS, for 5,000 and 7,430 euros excluding taxes.
Concretely, this system will only be usable in the event of heavy traffic on the motorways and provided that the maximum speed does not exceed 60 km/h. However, the pilot must at all times be able to intervene in less than ten seconds if the system asks him to. Otherwise, the car automatically stops “safely”. To analyze its environment and decide on maneuvers, the Drive Pilot system approved by the brand since 2019 relies on a large number of sensors, including a LiDAR laser telemetry system from equipment manufacturer Valeo.
One more step towards full autonomy of cars
This system is a further step towards the total autonomy of cars even if the manufacturers are progressing slowly in this area which raises many legal questions and in particular on the responsibility of the manufacturers. At Tesla, the autonomous driving currently marketed is “level 2” and requires an attentive driver at all times, supervising the operations of the on-board computer. However, the company is under fire from the critics of the American regulator, who accuses it of having ignored its recommendations on the driver assistance system.
The manufacturer Audi had thought of integrating this technology on its flagship, the A8, before retracting. The Stellantis group (Peugeot-Fiat) plans to implement its first level 3 system in 2024. However, countries are beginning to integrate vehicle autonomy into their legislation. If Germany authorized level 3 in the autonomy of vehicles as early as 2017. At the end of 2020, Japan became the first country in the world to approve a level 3 autonomous system on public roads. Honda should also market a limited series equipped vehicle in the coming weeks. In France, the circulation of level 3 vehicles could be authorized in July.
It remains to be seen when level 5, the holy grail of the autonomous car that will take passengers from point A to point B will be reached? We will probably have to wait several more years even if the boss of Tesla is already dreaming of a fleet of fully autonomous taxis in cities.