Welcome to Thomas Insights – Every day, we publish the latest news and analysis to keep our readers abreast of what’s happening in the industry. Sign up here to get the day’s top stories delivered straight to your inbox.
With so much talk about autonomous driving over the past five years, it’s almost hard to keep track of individual developments. But the efforts of automakers around the world have one thing in common: No one has yet offered the public a fully functioning, fully driverless car…not yet.
But the idea is getting closer to reality every year, and as 2022 approaches, Mercedes-Benz is making exciting progress towards fully autonomous driving.
Mercedes and technology partner Bosch have announced that they have been granted permission to use jointly developed Level 4 autonomous driving features – although both application and location are very specific.
The groundbreaking Level 4 autonomous driving feature enables Mercedes-Benz customers with an S-Class or EQS produced from July 2022 to book parking spaces at Germany’s Stuttgart airport via an app. Customers can drop off their vehicle at a dedicated garage equipped with the relevant technology and proceed directly to their flight. That’s because fully automated software allows the vehicle to park itself. Even better, when drivers return, they can use the same app to call their vehicle back.
The software reportedly relies on sensors that help the vehicle operate safely by detecting objects in its path. If you happen to be in Germany, at this airport and using a fully equipped Mercedes, this exciting development will bring level 4 driving capability to the public.
That said, the advancement is exciting because it’s never been done by another automaker. But even Mercedes admits the technology may be ready before the public wants it. According to the automaker’s website, “Today’s discussion is no longer about whether the technology will deliver on its promise, but whether people want what the technology can deliver.”
Image credit: Mercedes