Take your hands off the steering wheel while driving and let the car steer independently – this is now permitted with the corresponding driving function of the BMW 5 Series Sedan. The Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) has given the group approval to put semi-automated vehicles on the road at speeds of up to 130 km/h, BMW announced in a press release on Tuesday. This makes the BMW Group the first car manufacturer in Germany to offer a system for partially automated driving at speeds of up to 130 km/h.
Specifically, the permit applies to motorway journeys with separate carriageways. Here the system should be able to take over speed and distance control as well as steering tasks. According to the manufacturer, changing lanes is also possible. And for the first time, a lane change offered by the system can be initiated by looking at the outside mirror, promises BMW.
On certain routes, the driver should finally be able to take their hands off the steering wheel “for a longer period of time”, but must always be able to take over the steering again. An intelligent camera is designed to monitor the driver’s attention.
Technically, the semi-automated driving in the BMW 5 Series, which corresponds to level 2 of autonomous driving, is to be supported with the help of built-in cameras, ultrasonic and radar sensors and a 360-degree sensor system. A live HD map with GPS positioning is also used. The Autobahn Assistant is not yet available. However, BMW announced that the system would be available “soon” in the new 5 Series sedan. When asked by Stern, BMW spokesman Christophe Koenig confirmed that the function would be available with the market launch of the 5 Series from October 2023. In the USA and Canada, however, it is already available in the luxury class 7 Series sedan, among other things.
This means that BMW is a bit ahead of Mercedes. Because the competitor from Stuttgart is the first car manufacturer in Germany to launch a car with an autonomous driving function. According to Mercedes, in December 2021 “the world’s first automobile manufacturer to receive an internationally valid system approval for highly automated driving” according to Level 3.
Around six months later, the Stuttgart-based company then offered special equipment for the S-Class and for the electric version EQS, which is intended to enable level 3 autonomous driving on the relevant sections of the motorway. In contrast to Level 2, which the BMW 5 Series Sedan offers, highly automated vehicles can overtake, brake and accelerate independently. The driver can even read the newspaper in the meantime, but has to take control of the vehicle again if necessary.
So far, however, the Mercedes driving function can only be used at speeds of up to 60 km/h and is therefore an option for driving in heavy traffic or traffic jams. Specifically, the “Drive Pilot” system regulates speed and distance within the lane and can take traffic signs into account, for example. It should also be able to initiate evasive and braking maneuvers. Like BMW, Mercedes mainly relies on radar, lidar and cameras. In addition, ultrasonic or moisture sensors are installed. A digital HD map offers a three-dimensional image of the road and the surrounding area.
Earlier this month, Mercedes received approval for the operation of highly automated production vehicles according to Level 3 in the USA. This applies to driving on freeways in the state of California. “Drive Pilot” should therefore be available for the S-Class and the EQS next year. Other markets are to follow.
The German car manufacturer is by no means the only one in the USA when it comes to offering autonomous cars. Tesla is also actively promoting autonomous driving, even if the autopilot and “full self-driving” repeatedly lead to accidents. In addition, the Google sister company Waymo and the General Motors subsidiary Cruise in San Francisco are already using autonomous robotic taxis, some without safety drivers.
The development of autonomous driving is a major challenge. As a result, manufacturers such as BMW, Mercedes and Co. are likely to outbid each other even more often in the future when it comes to introducing automated and even autonomous vehicles. BMW states, for example, that research vehicles have been testing highly automated driving on public roads for “several years” – a point in which Mercedes is currently ahead of the competition.
But other manufacturers are already testing the use of automated and autonomous vehicles in Germany. Mercedes wants to follow suit here. By the end of the decade, vehicles from Stuttgart should make highly automated driving on the autobahn possible at speeds of up to 130 km/h. As an interim goal, an autonomous driving function is to be made available in Germany, in which one should be able to follow a driver ahead on the autobahn at a speed of up to around 90 km/h in a highly automated manner.
Sources: BMW, Mercedes, with material from the dpa
