{"id":7110,"date":"2020-08-20T12:43:27","date_gmt":"2020-08-20T10:43:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/?p=7110"},"modified":"2020-08-20T12:43:27","modified_gmt":"2020-08-20T10:43:27","slug":"autonomous-car-levels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/2020\/08\/20\/autonomous-car-levels\/","title":{"rendered":"What are autonomous car levels? Levels 1 to 5 of driverless vehicle tech explained"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">If you\u2019re interested in the future of transport, you\u2019ll probably have heard of the autonomous vehicle levels already. Simply put, they\u2019re a set of guidelines determined by the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sae.org\/about\/\">Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)<\/a> to describe the differing levels of autonomy in driverless cars. There are currently five-ish levels in total &#8211; we&#8217;ll explain why that&#8217;s happened in a bit &#8211; with Level 1 being the most basic and Level 5 being the most advanced.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\">What are the different levels of self-driving tech?<\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">It&#8217;s pretty straightforward. What is now called Level 1 has been around for a few years now, and Level 2 is commonplace too. We&#8217;re on the cusp of Level 3 and the next big thing &#8211; proper hands-off driving for long periods of time &#8211; is called Level 4 and, ultimately Level 5.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">For the last few years, car brands have begun to pick up and use the autonomous level terminology \u2013 the latest Audi A8\u2019s Level 3 autonomous was heavily used during its promotion \u2013 but what the levels are, or what they actually mean isn&#8217;t widely publisiced.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">To make things easier, we\u2019ve explained every level of driverless tech, as well as who&#8217;s in control, what features they include, and when they&#8217;ll be on our roads.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Level 1 autonomous cars: a single aspect is automated<\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.sae.org\/about\/\">The SAE, the Society of Automotive Engineers,<\/a> has created a lexicon of autonomy. Level 1, the most basic type, is where one element of the driving process is taken over in isolation, using data from sensors and cameras, but the driver is very much still in charge. This started in the late 1990s at Mercedes-Benz, with its pioneering radar-managed cruise control, while Honda introduced lane-keep assist on the 2008 Legend. These were the first steps towards removing the driver\u2019s duties behind the wheel.<\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><strong>When?<\/strong> The first steps in 1990s\/00s<\/li>\n<li><strong>Includes:<\/strong> Lane-keep assist, auto cruise control<\/li>\n<li><strong>Who\u2019s driving?<\/strong> Driver <em>is<\/em>\u00a0still in control<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Level 2 driverless cars: chips control two or more elements<\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Level 2 autonomy is where we\u2019re at today: computers take over multiple functions from the driver \u2013 and are intelligent enough to weave speed and steering systems together using multiple data sources. Mercedes says it\u2019s been doing this for four years. The latest <a href=\"https:\/\/www.carmagazine.co.uk\/mercedes-benz\/s-class\/\">Mercedes S-Class<\/a> is Level 2-point-something. It takes over directional, throttle and brake functions for one of the most advanced cruise control systems yet seen \u2013 using detailed sat-nav data to brake automatically for corners ahead, keeping a set distance from the car in front and setting off again when jams clear, with the driver idle.<\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><strong>When?<\/strong> Current state of the art<\/li>\n<li><strong>Includes:<\/strong>\u00a0Lane-change mode, self-parking features etc<\/li>\n<li><strong>Who\u2019s driving?<\/strong> Human hands-on at all times<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Level 2+ autonomous cars: somwhere in between<\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Nestled in between Level 2 and Level 3, Level 2+ is more where most car makers hope to be by the end of this year. It\u2019s a level that\u2019s been coined by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nvidia.com\/en-gb\/self-driving-cars\/drive-platform\/\">Nvidia<\/a>, and although not quite the driverless Level 3 below, it\u2019s a little more than Level 2. With Level 2+ the driver is still alert and in control, but the vehicle is also well aware of its surroundings \u2013 and make adjustments if necessary. As well as the outside, the car is more aware of the drivertoo, and will monitor things like tiredness.<\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><strong>When?<\/strong>\u00a0End of the year<\/li>\n<li><strong>Includes:<\/strong>\u00a0Driver monitoring, and more complex tasks<\/li>\n<li><strong>Who\u2019s driving?<\/strong>\u00a0Still human, but the car is aware of what&#8217;s going on<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Level 3 autonomous cars: the car can boss safety-critical functions<\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Highly automated vehicles are not far off. The SAE calls Level 3 \u2018conditional automation\u2019 \u2013 a specific \u2013 mode which lets all aspects of driving be done for you, but crucially the driver must be on hand \u00a0to respond to a request to intervene. Audi calls its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.carmagazine.co.uk\/audi\/a8\/\">new A8<\/a> a Level 3 ready autonomous car \u2013 meaning the car has the potential to drive itself in certain circumstances, where it will assume control of all safety-critical functions. How? By refining maps, radar and sensors and fusing this environmental data with ever-wiser and faster processors and logic. Today\u2019s assumption of a two-second comms lag will soon look very slow.<\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><strong>When?<\/strong> The next big thing: 2020<\/li>\n<li><strong>Includes:<\/strong> Next-gen sensors, algorithms, new laws<\/li>\n<li><strong>Who\u2019s driving?<\/strong>\u00a0Driver still on standby, but can be hands-off for periods of time<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Level 4 driverless cars: fully autonomous in controlled areas<\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Early next decade cars will fully drive themselves in geofenced metropolitan areas, as HD mapping, more timely data, car-to-car comms and off-site call centres (to deal with unusual hazards) improve accuracy. \u2018You won\u2019t really need the driver in Level 4,\u2019 says Merc\u2019s autonomous guru Christoph von Hugo. \u2018The likelihood is you will just be renting the car, rather than owning it. You won\u2019t take this car on vacation to Florida but you\u2019ll take it on an urban journey around New York, say. It is easier to have ultra-detailed mapping for carefully defined areas.\u2019 Twenty car makers say they\u2019ll sell autonomous cars in the US by 2022.<\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><strong>When?<\/strong> Due early to middle of next decade<\/li>\n<li><strong>Includes:<\/strong>\u00a0Driverless cars, shared pods<\/li>\n<li><strong>Who\u2019s driving?<\/strong> Genuine hands-off driving<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Level 5 driverless cars: fully autonomous, anywhere. Driver optional&#8230;<\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The difference between Level 4 and 5 is simple: the last step towards full automation doesn\u2019t require the car to be in the so-called \u2018operational design domain\u2019. Rather than working in a carefully managed (usually urban) environment with lots of dedicated lane markings or infrastructure, it\u2019ll be able to self-drive anywhere. How? Because the frequency and volume of data, and the sophistication of the computers crunching it, will mean the cars are sentient. It\u2019s a brave new world \u2013 and one that Google\u2019s Waymo car is gunning for, leapfrogging traditional manufacturers\u2019 efforts. The disruption will be huge: analysts HIS forecast 21 million autonomous vehicles globally by 2035.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>When?<\/strong> Not long after Level 4, mid next decade<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Includes:<\/strong> Far-roaming robo taxis<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Who\u2019s driving?<\/strong> Steering wheel optional<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"author-name\">By <a href=\"https:\/\/www.carmagazine.co.uk\/about-us\/#pollard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Tim Pollard<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"posted-by\">Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.carmagazine.co.uk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/www.carmagazine.co.uk<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/consultancy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>CUT COTS OF THE FLEET WITH OUR AUDIT PROGRAM<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/consultancy\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-5377\" src=\"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/04\/nueva-ley-auditoria.jpg\" sizes=\"(max-width: 858px) 100vw, 858px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/04\/nueva-ley-auditoria.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/04\/nueva-ley-auditoria-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/04\/nueva-ley-auditoria-1024x682.jpg 1024w\" alt=\"\" width=\"858\" height=\"572\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The audit is a key tool to know the overall status and provide the analysis, the assessment, the advice, the suggestions and the actions to take in order to cut costs and increase the efficiency and efficacy of the fleet. We propose the following fleet management audit.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/consultancy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>FLEET MANAGEMENT AUDIT<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019re interested in the future of transport, you\u2019ll probably have heard of the autonomous vehicle levels already. Simply put, they\u2019re a set of guidelines determined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) to describe the differing levels of autonomy in driverless cars. There are currently five-ish levels in total &#8211; we&#8217;ll explain why that&#8217;s&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":7111,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18],"tags":[8],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7110"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7110"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7110\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7112,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7110\/revisions\/7112"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7111"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7110"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7110"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7110"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}