Autopilots at Mercedes-Benz: “Automated driving”

[Wolfgang]

The latest Daimler press release.

Driver assistance systems for the city: seeing and recognising dangers in the same way as a human

• Where is the danger? Scene labelling allows complex traffic situations to be reliably understood
• Has he stopped? Or is he walking? Identifying the intentions of crossing pedestrians
• All clear? City-centre lane changing made easy
• Where next? Identifying intentions to turn or change lane
• Closing presentation of UR:BAN research project

Cross-traffic, cyclists, crossing pedestrians, perhaps engrossed with their smartphones, mothers with buggies, children playing – city traffic places demands on drivers in many different situations while at the same time posing risks of accident. Plenty of scope for assistance systems that support the driver in addition to making urban driving safer and less stressful. On the way to that goal, Daimler researchers have achieved a breakthrough in connection with the UR:BAN research initiative. Using so-called "scene labelling", the camera-based system automatically classifies completely unknown situations and thus detects all important objects for driver assistance – from cyclists to pedestrians to wheelchair users. Researchers in the "Environment Sensing" department showed their system thousands of photos from various German cities. In the photos, they had manually precisely labelled 25 different object classes, such as vehicles, cyclists, pedestrians, streets, pavements, buildings, posts and trees. On the basis of these examples, the system learned automatically to correctly classify completely unknown scenes and thus to detect all important objects for driver assistance, even if the objects were highly hidden or far away. This is made possible by powerful computers that are artificially neurally networked in a manner similar to the human brain, so-called Deep Neural Networks.

Consequently, the system functions in a manner comparable to human sight. This, too, is based on a highly complex neural system that links the information from the individual sensory cells on the retina until a human is able to identify and differentiate an almost unlimited number of objects. Scene labelling transforms the camera from a mere measuring system into an interpretive system, as multifunctional as the interplay between eye and brain. Prof. Ralf Guido Herrtwich, Head of Driver Assistance and Chassis Systems, Group Research and Advance Development at Daimler AG: "The tremendous increase in computing power in recent years has brought closer the day when vehicles will be able to see their surroundings in the same way as humans and also correctly understand complex situations in city traffic.” To advance this system quickly Daimler continues researching together with partners to achieve the vision of the accident-free driving.

Future driver assistance functions were demonstrated in test vehicles

At the closing event of the collaborative research project UR:BAN, short for "Urban Space: User-friendly Assistance Systems and Network Management", the Daimler researchers presented convincing results from a total of five different test vehicles. In addition to a real-time demonstration of scene labelling, another test vehicle showed imaging radar systems and the new, fascinating possibilities they offer in urban environments. It was shown that radar sensors are now capable of comprehensively resolving and visualising not just any dynamic object, but also every static environment. The particular properties of radar waves mean that the system can also function in fog and bad weather. Moreover, the so-called micro-doppler allows the signatures of moving pedestrians and cyclists to be unambiguously classified. In addition, it was demonstrated at the trade fair how environment data from radar and camera sensors are merged by sensor fusion to form an environment model. The model takes account not only of the locations and speeds of the various road users, but also of attributes such as the type and size of the objects. The environment model also makes allowance for incomplete sensor data as well as missing information, as is typically the case in actual road traffic.

The third test vehicle included a system for the detection, classification and intention identification of pedestrians and cyclists. Similarly to a human driver, this system analyses head posture, body position and kerbside position to predict whether a pedestrian intends to stay on the pavement or cross the road. In dangerous situations, this allows an accident-preventing system response to be triggered up to one second earlier than with currently available systems.

A further highlight that was demonstrated was how radar- and camera-based systems can make lane-changing in city traffic safer and more comfortable. Following a command from the driver, this system provides assisted lane-changing in a speed range between 30 and 60 km/h. The system senses the environment as well as the traffic in the lanes. The situational analysis predicts how the scenario will develop and then enables the computed trajectory. This is followed by assisted longitudinal and transverse control for changing lane. The driver can tell intuitively from the instrument cluster whether or not the requested lane change can be executed by the system. After the change of lane has been successfully completed, longitudinal control with lane-keeping function is resumed. The driver at all times has the option of overruling the system by intervening with the steering, accelerator or brakes.

The fifth test vehicle showed the potential for predicting driver behaviour in relation to planned lane changes or changes of direction. With regard to an imminent change of lane, for example, glances over the shoulder are linked with driving parameters that have already been sensed. A likely change of direction can be predicted from the interplay between steering movement, reduction of speed and map information. In the demonstration, the direction indicator was then automatically activated to inform other road users as early as possible.

Daimler

 

[Wolfgang]

Bosch and Daimler team to make fully autonomous vehicles for city driving

Bosch and Daimler have announced they will work together to create ‘fully automated, driverless vehicles’ designed specifically for use on city roads. The alliance aims to get such vehicles on public streets at the beginning of the next decade — that is, in the next handful of years. Among other things, these vehicles are designed to make the roads safer while decreasing congestion.

Cities pose unique transportation issues, and autonomous cars are poised to address many of them. Bosch and Daimler’s fully automated and self-driving cars will aim to do the same, including helping traffic to flow better and making the roads safer for everyone, according to the companies. As well, the duo anticipate their vehicles being an ‘important building block’ for the future of city traffic.

What kind of vehicles are the companies going to make? The entire scope of the project isn’t clear, but it will include automated taxies designed specifically for use in urban traffic environments. These vehicles will be SAE-Level 4 automated and SAE-Level 5 self-driving, with Bosch providing hardware and systems while Daimler is the powerhouse behind the vehicles.

http://www.germancarforum.com/threads/mercedes-benz-whats-next.47554/page-67#post-824688

Once available, everyone will benefit from such automated vehicles. Drivers will have more time to complete personal projects, for example, by being able to focus on their work instead of on the road. Even better, driverless individuals will have a new, arguably better, transportation option for getting around that is faster and more reliable than buses. The companies’ say riders will be able to use their phones to order rides from these automated taxis.

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https://www.slashgear.com/bosch-and...utonomous-vehicles-for-city-driving-04480764/

 

[Wolfgang]

AUTONOMOUS CARS HAVE TO START AS TAXIS, SAYS MB
Privately owned ones may come much later

At this point, you can safely assume that self-driving cars are coming. Not only are tech companies like Google and Tesla hard at work developing autonomous technology, so are established automakers like GM and Ford. But when self-driving cars eventually do go on sale, it may be a long time before you can put one in your garage.

Speaking to Automotive News, Ola Kaellenius, Daimler’s head of Group Research & Mercedes-Benz Cars Development, said he thinks self-driving taxis are the only way forward. Why? Because privately owned cars would be too expensive. At least in the beginning.

“The number of sensors you have to put on the car, the computing power and so on adds tens of thousands of dollars once you get it into production,” said Kaellenius. “Where do you have a business case for something like that? You have it in a robot taxi scenario, where you can take a city or a part of the city and say, ‘OK, I’m going to put a hundred, 200, 300, a thousand … into this area.'”

And by providing a taxi service instead of selling cars privately, he thinks Mercedes could actually start to make money pretty quickly.

“The amortization comes through not paying the driver. You could have a very quick amortization, so our effort on Level 4, 5 is robot taxi first. In our case the commercialization of that happens between 2020 and 2025 where we start rolling that out — either through our own mobility services that we’re building up or as a partner with other mobility services,” said Kaellenius.

After that, if the cost of autonomous technology comes down and consumer interest is high enough, you may see Mercedes sell self-driving cars directly to consumers. But unless Kaellenius has it wrong, it’ll probably be a long time before you can buy a Mercedes that can truly drive itself.

Autonomous Cars Have to Start as Taxis, Says Mercedes-Benz - Motor Trend

NICO ROSBERG (@nicorosberg) • Instagram photos and videos

 

[Wolfgang]

Mercedes-Benz Intelligent World Drive on five continents: On the road to autonomous driving: Deep Learning needs real, global road traffic

Stuttgart/Las Vegas. Deep Learning in country-specific, real road traffic plays a central role on the road to autonomous driving. This is shown by Mercedes-Benz Intelligent World Drive, which ended at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas after five months. A test vehicle on the basis of the current S‑C lass completed a challenging study trip on five continents in order to "learn" in automated test drives in real traffic. From zebra crossings on Chinese motorways, turning off right from the left-hand lane in Melbourne, Australia, pedestrian traffic on all kinds of roads in South Africa or a temporary driving ban in the immediate vicinity of stopping school buses in the USA – on every continent the S‑Class faced challenges which will have an influence on the driving characteristics of future autonomous vehicles. Automated and autonomous vehicles have to know about these country-specific particularities and understand them in their respective context in order to be able to make the correct driving decisions.

The Intelligent World Drive also underlines just how important the international harmonisation of the legal framework for automated and autonomous driving and its infrastructure is, in particular of lane markings and traffic signs. "The Intelligent World Drive makes it clear that autonomous driving requires global development activities and test drives" says Ola Källenius, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG responsible for Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars Development. "Automated and autonomous vehicles need international learning material from actual road traffic in order to understand traffic situations and to be prepared for different scenarios."

Intelligent World Drive provides an insight into the complexity of global challenges

With the test vehicle on the basis of a semi-automated S‑Class test drives were carried out in Germany, China, Australia, South Africa and the USA. The differences in the countries give a small insight into the complexity of global challenges in the development of automated and autonomous driving functions. In particular the national particularities in terms of infrastructure, traffic regulations and the conduct of other road users place very different requirements on the sensors and algorithms of the vehicle. It also becomes apparent just how important high-resolution maps could become for the development of higher automation. Daimler AG is thus involved in the map service HERE and is working on faster implementation and updating of even more precise navigation data.

Different traffic signs and road markings worldwide

When it comes to traffic signs for speed limits alone there are many different variants. In the USA, for example, their shape and size are fundamentally different from the usual round metal signs in Europe and China. In Australia, electronic displays with variable speed limits are used. Special displays indicate the current speed limit. They are equipped with bright white LEDs, a red LED ring and a yellow LED warning lamp and can also depict simple symbols and letters as well as speed limits. In some cases they are positioned next to one another and can change their display within a short time. This demands more of, for instance, the Multi Purpose Camera (MPC) and the quality of digital maps. Speed limits or even data which only apply at certain times of day are equally as challenging.

A prime example of country-specific traffic signs and rules is the "Hook Turn" sign in Melbourne city centre. It controls the procedure of turning off from roads which are also used by trams. If you want to turn off right over the tram tracks in this country with left-side traffic you have to move to the outer left lane and first let the traffic straight ahead and the tram pass before you are allowed to turn off right. The junction can only be crossed if your own traffic light is on red and that of the cross traffic switches to green. The sensors and algorithms of an automated and autonomous vehicle must be in a position to detect the "Hook Turn" sign, to comprehend the context of the complex turning procedure and take other road users into account.

Road and lane markings are not standardised around the world either. In China, for example, the zebra crossing has a double meaning. In the city it marks a pedestrian crossing, on the motorway, on the other hand, it shows the minimum distance between vehicles driving behind one another. On multi-lane Interstates and Freeways in the USA there are often dedicated lanes for car pools of at least two people. They can be separated from the other lanes by two uninterrupted yellow lines or by metal guard rails. It can be difficult for the vehicle sensors to detect and correctly interpret them as special lanes. In the USA there are also what are known as Botts' Dots. These dots for lane marking are plastic or ceramic and also put special demands on lane detection. California is thus the first federal state planning to abolish the Botts' Dots and to standardise the lane markings for future autonomous driving.

What makes things more difficult is the fact that in some countries signs and lane markings are sometimes missing. So even for experienced drivers it is difficult at mega junctions and on multi-lane roundabouts in the Chinese metropolis of Shanghai to select the correct lane for turning off. In South Africa missing stop or warning signs in front of speed bumps pose challenges when it comes to the performance of sensors and the quality of digital map data.

Detect country-specific traffic situations and understand them in context

Another special feature of road traffic in the USA are school buses and the traffic regulations associated with them. As soon as they stop the traffic in their immediate vicinity must also stop. No vehicle is allowed to pass, not even in the opposite direction. Automated and autonomously driving vehicles must learn to distinguish school buses from all other vehicles in relevant traffic situations, and recognise whether they are stopping to let children get in and out.

Equally challenging for vehicle intelligence is pedestrian conduct in South Africa, which bears no resemblance to that in Europe, Australia or the USA. Not only are there many more pedestrians about here, they also frequently walk on the road itself and sometimes unexpectedly cross the carriageway. Future systems must reliably detect such pedestrians even at higher road speeds and interpret their movement correctly. Overtaking manoeuvres on single-lane roads are the norm in South Africa, with the slower vehicle driving on the hard shoulder and the overtaking vehicle driving past it at clear points in spite of the broken line. Future vehicles must learn to use this tolerance depending on the situation. To do this they would have to be able to tell whether the road is free and clear enough for overtaking – or whether an overtaking manoeuvre is too dangerous due to bends or oncoming traffic. It goes without saying that appropriate infrastructure measures help to facilitate faster and more extensive autonomous driving.

For example, where the danger of wild animals crossing is concerned kangaroos in Australia and springboks in South Africa represent a particular challenge. Depending on their posture they have a different shape and are therefore very difficult to identify definitively. According to statistics from an Australian insurance company, kangaroos cause nine out of ten road accidents in which animals are involved nationally.

Worldwide development activities are the key to systems which learn

The special country-specific features to which the S‑Class test vehicle was subjected on five continents underscore the necessity of worldwide development activities and test drives. This is the only way to develop learning-capable systems and algorithms which are in a position to cope with a multitude of situations reliably and safely. Alongside programming concrete routines for clearly defined applications, this mainly involves establishing strategies for solutions in unexpected situations. All the information and experience gathered on the Intelligent World Drive are flowing into the further development of more highly automated systems on the road to autonomous driving.

Thanks to the global Research & Development network of Daimler AG it is possible for Mercedes-Benz to incorporate potential country-specific traffic conditions into the development of automated driving functions and thus put them in the vehicle more quickly. The Mercedes-Benz Research & Development Centres in North America and China have their own test vehicles which collect local information on infrastructure and traffic habits plus carry out test drives for validation of driver assistance systems in the field. In other core markets Mercedes-Benz is increasingly cooperating with the local market companies. Since spring 2017, for example, Mercedes-Benz Australia has been testing automated driving functions in Australia and New Zealand in close cooperation with the Research and Development Centre in Germany. The Intelligent World Drive supplements these extensive validation projects. With a multitude of test vehicles Mercedes-Benz is gathering information internationally for the continuous advancement and improvement of automated driving functions.

To enable more highly automated and autonomous driving functions to be tested in real road traffic and then to enter series use, further international harmonisation of the legal framework is necessary. There is a need for action, especially in relation to international agreements on road traffic law, which set the binding framework for national legislation and which currently still compulsorily require a driver. Further changes are important with regard to vehicle certification and data storage.

CASE – on the way to autonomous driving

Autonomous driving is one of the four strategic areas for the future which form an integral part of the corporate strategy of Daimler AG under the acronym CASE. CASE – these letters will shape the future of mobility. They stand for networking (Connected), autonomous driving (Autonomous), flexible use (Shared & Services) and electric powertrains (Electric). The aim is to shape intuitive mobility for the customers through intelligent dovetailing of all four CASE fields.

Intelligent World Drive on YouTube:

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[Wolfgang]

The first robocabs may arrive soon?

At the same time, we are working with Daimler to enable fully automated and driverless driving in urban environments – driverless driving meaning vehicles such as robocabs and the driverless delivery of shared vehicles. The first test vehicles will be on the roads as early as sometime in the next few months. Source: Bosch & Automobilwoche

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[Wolfgang]

Spotted on Stevens Creek in California.

Mercedes-Benz Urban Automated Driving Vehicle Spotted in San Jose

Announced long ago, now they are here. The first Mercedes-Benz vehicle to be a robotaxi used in a fleet in an urban environment with passengers was spotted on Stevens Creek Boulevard, right at the corner of Santana Row.

Because the vehicle, an S-class 450, with safety driver and two passengers (probably engineers) stopped at the curb, I could get a good view of the vehicle and make this video.

Very well visible is the makeshift roof mount with sensors. Four LiDARs and eight cameras on the roof, two LiDARs at the front bumper. In the middle of each of the four sides of the car seem to be radars at ground level.

The vehicle’s license plate was a manufacturer’s plate from Michigan.

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Mercedes-Benz Urban Automated Driving Vehicle Spotted in San Jose

Announced long ago, now they are here. The first Mercedes-Benz vehicle to be a robotaxi used in a fleet in an urban environment with passengers was spotted on Stevens Creek Boulevard, right at the …

thelastdriverlicenseholder.com

 

[Wolfgang]

Another one.

 

[Wolfgang]

A commercial may be in the pipeline?

 

[CrunchSlaughtered]

Does anybody know what is happening with the Uber's order of 100 k S class cars, that was announced a couple of years ago?

 

[Wolfgang]

^ Was an unconfirmed rumor. Dieter Zetsche and UBER's Travis Kalanick explained it at NOAH 2016.

GCF

UBER BLACK

 

[Wolfgang]

Mercedes exec outlines next steps in road toward autonomous driving

Khan: "We have challenges to overcome in terms of perception, path planning, mapping and the accuracy of certain sensors, for example."

Sajjad Khan heads up Mercedes-Benz's future technology development, grouped under the name CASE, short for connected, autonomous, shared and electric. He recently spoke to Automotive News Europe Correspondent Christiaan Hetzner about the challenges slowing the debut of self-driving cars.

You plan to test Level 4 cars together with Robert Bosch in San Jose, California, by year-end. When will we see tests like this in Germany?

We are already testing our cars with safety drivers on public roads in Stuttgart, with permission from the local authorities. What is unique about San Jose is it's a pilot project with special parameters. We plan to do the same in Germany, but you will have to wait a little bit. It will be in the foreseeable future.

How big of an issue is the lack of regulatory support?

Once we have the technology ready and available for fully autonomous vehicles that require no human drivers, we believe policymakers will work together hand in hand with us to bring them to market. The first task is to develop it.

But the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe has yet to approve a Level 3 system for sale in Europe, and the S class that should feature this is coming next year. How are you handling this?

I am optimistic that we will have clarity on the specific regulations by the middle of the next year. Daimler wouldn't approve its use anyway, however, until we are convinced it is 99.999 percent safe and can drive in the same neighborhood where children are playing.

What are the biggest hurdles?

There is no one specific issue that is impeding progress. We have challenges to overcome in terms of perception, path planning, mapping and the accuracy of certain sensors, for example. Some of these things are more complicated to solve than others. Ultimately, these are all manageable because it's the combination that matters. If one part of the equation is less advanced, we have the opportunity to compensate elsewhere.

So get used to waiting?

Let me put it this way. In 2015 and 2016 when we were working on in-car connectivity, we talked about bringing a game-changing technology to market. That baby came to be known as MBUX [short for Mercedes-Benz User Experience, which is the automaker's in-car multimedia system]. With that same passion and focus, we are working on autonomous driving.

Source: Automotive News Europe

 

[Wolfgang]

Mercedes-Benz and Bosch start San José pilot project for automated ride-hailing service

• Mercedes-Benz and Bosch hope pilot automated ride-hailing project will provide additional insights for the development of automated driving.
• Automated S-Class vehicles equipped with Mercedes-Benz and Bosch driving system and software provide shuttle service between West San José and downtown.
• For its part, Bosch develops and manufactures the components for urban automated driving that the alliance has identified.
• Daimler Mobility AG fleet platform allows ride-hailing partners to seamlessly integrate self-driving vehicles into their service portfolio.
• San José contributes its urban infrastructure to the pilot project in order to enhance safety, environmental impact, and traffic flows.

Stuttgart, Germany, and San José, CA, USA – Bosch and Mercedes-Benz’s joint project to develop urban automated driving has now entered a new stage. Their pilot project for an app-based ride-hailing service using automated Mercedes-Benz S-Class vehicles has now been launched in the Silicon Valley city of San José. Monitored by a safety driver, the self-driving cars shuttle between West San José and downtown, along the San Carlos Street and Stevens Creek Boulevard thoroughfares. The service will initially be available to a select group of users. They will use an app developed by Daimler Mobility AG to book a journey by the automated S-Class vehicles from a defined pick-up point to their destination.

Mercedes-Benz and Bosch hope this trial will provide valuable insights into the further development of their SAE Level 4/5 automated driving system. The partners also expect to gain further insights into how self-driving cars can be integrated into an intermodal mobility system that also includes public transportation and car-sharing.

Mercedes-Benz, Bosch, San José – partners for the future of mobility

In mid-2017, San José was the first U.S. city to invite private companies to carry out field tests of automated driving and analyze the growing challenges in road traffic. Especially in congested city traffic, self-driving cars’ permanent 360-degree surround sensing can potentially enhance safety, and their smooth driving style can improve traffic flow.

“As a city, we want to know more about how automated vehicles can help improve safety and reduce congestion, as well as make mobility more available, sustainable, and inclusive. The project of Mercedes-Benz and Bosch ties in with San José’s extensive ‘smart city’ objectives. It will also help us develop guidelines for dealing with new technologies and prepare for the traffic system of the future,” says Dolan Beckel, Director of Civic Innovation and Digital Strategy.

“If automated driving is to become everyday reality, the technology has to work reliably and safely. And this is where we need tests such as our pilot project in San José,” says Dr. Michael Fausten, head of engineering for urban automated driving at Robert Bosch GmbH.

“It’s not just the automated vehicles that have to prove their mettle. We also need proof that they can fit in as a piece of the urban mobility puzzle. We can test both these things in San José,” says Dr. Uwe Keller, head of autonomous driving at Mercedes-Benz AG.

From August through November, representatives of the project joined staff from the City of San José to discuss the project with several community organizations. At seven meetings of neighborhood and business groups along the corridor, the team discussed the project goals, demonstrated the vehicle technology, explained the layers of safety redundancy built into the project, and took suggestions for future use cases.

Mercedes-Benz and Bosch partnering in the U.S. and Europe

For some two and a half years now, Mercedes-Benz and Bosch have been working together on solutions for automated driving in cities. Their common goal is an SAE Level 4/5 driving system for fully automated and driverless vehicles, including the software for vehicle management. However, they are not interested in prototypes, but instead want to develop a production-ready system that can be integrated into different vehicle types and models. In their work to develop software for controlling vehicle movement, the partners deliberately do not rely solely on artificial intelligence and clocking up test mileage. Their engineers also use simulations and specially designed proving grounds to specifically address the kind of driving situations that occur only very rarely in road traffic. For this purpose, engineers at the Immendingen testing and technology center in Germany can also make use of a 100,000 square-meter proving ground designed especially for automated driving. There, complex traffic situations can be reproduced extremely accurately, and as often as desired. For Mercedes-Benz and Bosch, thoroughness and safety are the top priorities. In addition, their alliance is not exclusively concerned with the road and weather conditions in the United States. While one part of the team is based in Sunnyvale, a Silicon Valley city between San José and San Francisco, another part comprising engineers from both companies works in the Stuttgart area.

Alliance uses short decision-making channels and direct communication

Wherever they work, the Mercedes-Benz and Bosch associates sit desk to desk. This ensures short decision-making channels and rapid exchange across disciplines. And at any time, associates can draw on the knowledge and expertise of their colleagues in their parent companies. Here, Bosch know-how ranging from sensors, control units, and steering and brake control systems to entire automotive subsystems can be seamlessly complemented by Mercedes-Benz’s long years of experience in systems integration and automaking. The division of labor within the project is no different. Mercedes-Benz’s task is to make the jointly developed driving system ready for installation in the vehicle, and to provide the necessary trial vehicles, test bays, and test fleets. For its part, Bosch develops and manufactures the components for urban automated driving that the alliance has identified.

Platform allows integration of automated vehicles into taxi fleets

Specially for their automated ride-hailing service pilot project, Bosch and Mercedes-Benz have taken a further partner on board: Daimler Mobility AG is developing and testing a fleet platform to accompany the pilot operation phase. This allows potential ride-hailing partners to seamlessly integrate self-driving (Mercedes-Benz) vehicles into their service portfolio. The platform manages both self-driving and conventional vehicles, including operation and maintenance. An app-based mobility service for conventionally driven Mercedes-Benz vehicles went into operation in the Bay Area in the fall of 2019. The service is also available in the German capital Berlin.

https:///2019/12/bosch-und-mercedes...tprojekt-fuer-automatisierten-mitfahrservice/

 

[Wolfgang]

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[hannaz]

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[hannaz]

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[Wolfgang]

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[Wolfgang]

The Wall Street Journal published an update.


Sleeping in Self-Driving Cars? It’s No Pipe Dream.
When you absolutely, positively have to get there overnight, autonomous sleeper cars may be your best bet in the future, says Dan Neil

HIBERNATE BEHIND THE WHEEL The Mercedes-Benz F 015 represents autonomous concepts that may one day ferry us around the country as we sleep
PHOTO: MERCEDES-BENZ

HAVE YOU SEEN the video of the guy sound asleep at the wheel of his auto-piloted Tesla Model S? Mile after mile, with his head back, mouth open like he’s having his teeth cleaned. I envy him.

I’ve never been able to sleep in a moving motor vehicle—far as I can tell, no one really does. “It depends on your definition of sleep,” wrote Dr. Robert Pascuzzi, Chair of Neurology at Indiana University School of Medicine. “Not all sleep is the same and if you can’t get slow-wave sleep then it’s basically sleep deprivation.”

And yet, at a time when most jet travel is grounded, our fly-catching friend in the video suggests a fascinating possibility: Vehicle autonomy could give rise to a class of high-speed, long-distance, overnight personal transportation. Such vehicles/services could provide an alternative to continental, internodal air travel, either commercial or civil—what the Germans would call Schlaffenwagens.

Imagine not seats but berths, with comfy blankets and pillows, blackout shades and ambient active noise canceling. These teardrop-shaped machines (no windshield) would ride on large pneumatic springs, augmented with fully active and dynamic e-suspension, oscillating like an audio speaker to cancel vertical suspension energies. They could afford to be heavier than ordinary cars, with the structure tuned to enhance the mass-damping effect. Mercedes-Benz showed just such a vehicle at the 2015 CES: the F 015, a big steel cloud on wheels.

Vehicle autonomy could give rise to a class of high-speed, long-distance, overnight personal transportation.

These vehicles would have to be electric, for many good reasons, the first of which is packaging: A vehicle design allowing occupants to stretch out calls for a flat, open floor plan, typical of EV skateboards. Second is electric propulsion’s wins in noise, vibration and harshness. (You say you need the thrum of an IC engine to sleep by? They can artificially generate that for you. Just take your soma, Boomer.) Instead of chasing fleeting experientials like maximal lateral grip and acceleration, the platform engineers would optimize for silence, stillness and fineness. Third, an EV design’s inherently low center of gravity would reduce body roll, improving passenger comfort.


Lastly, range: The kind of battery-energy density auto makers are shooting for now—on the order of 500 Wh per kg—will make it fairly easy for sleeper cars to cruise at a whispering 200 kmh and have a range 2,000 km. In this age of enlightenment I’m hoping we will have also embraced the metric system.

All of the above is within reach of science and engineering. But our bodies might need an OS upgrade.

“We don’t really know if people can actually sleep in moving cars,” said Dr. Mikael Ljung Aust, a psychologist and researcher with Volvo Cars Safety Centre in Gothenburg, Sweden. “They can sleep on trains, and planes, and on ships…. They fall asleep all the time in the simulator.”

In 2018 Volvo Cars revealed its 360c, an autonomous concept with four different interior themes, including “Sleep” with a lay-flat bed.

A mock up of the Volvo ‘Sleep’ cabin.
PHOTO: VOLVO

But sleeping, Dr. Ljung Aust noted, is a behavior with a staggering diversity in adaptations. To an extent it’s the difference between falling asleep—succumbing to the car’s various somatic cues, what Dr. Ljung Aust called the “sound palette” of engine drumming, the dull roar of tires, as well as rocking and vibration—and staying asleep.

“Of course kinetosis is a big concern,” said Dr. Ljung Aust. We still don’t know precisely why passengers get carsick more than drivers do. Nor does there seem to be any mantra, opiate, wristband or patch to fully turn down sufferers’ vestibular response (equilibrium) or the body’s sense of moving through space (proprioception).

In my nuts-and-bolts imagining, the solution might involve some sort of hammock, suspended and actively damped in three axes of motion. Dr. Ljung Aust said all kinds of elastified couches have been visualized and prototyped. The deal breaker has always been safety.

“We expect A.I. and non-A.I. cars will share the road, coexist,” he said. “So we cannot compromise on crash safety.” Typically, humans move around in their sleep, some quite a lot. But passengers are safest when sitting with their hip girdle squarely belted into the seat. Part of the reason it’s hard to sleep through the night in any moving car is, ironically, the prolonged immobility.

“We created a sort of restraining blanket for the 360c,” said Dr. Ljung Aust. The team also tried occupant safety “leashes.” “That’s going to need a lot more work,” he said.

CHAUFFEURS: THE ORIGINAL AUTO-PILOTS

Bentley Mulsanne EWB Mulliner with Comfort Specification: Featuring two deeply sculpted, airline-style reclining seats and a center console with twin folding “picnic tables.”
PHOTO: BENTLEY

In my 30 years’ worth of classic-car shows, auctions and museums, including a decade of guest-judging at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in Monterey, Calif., I have never seen a chauffeur-driven car that was specifically kitted out for sleeping, in transit. I’m assuming I have just missed them. Such examples must exist, right? Or if they don’t there is probably a very good reason why. My guess is roads.

Could wealthy owners slumber on the button-tufted silk divans in the back of their 1924 Hispano-Suiza H6B Coup de Ville? I’m sure they could, as long as it was parked. But as soon as that big, hearse-like machine began clattering down the cobblestones of wherever—Vienna, Geneva or Madrid—votre dorme c’est termine. It would be like trying to grab 40 winks on Wells-Fargo stagecoach.

Mercedes-Maybach S 600 Pullman or Pullman Guard (armored): Named after the luxurious sleeper rail cars and nearly as big, the S 600 Pullman—or Pullman Guard, the armored version—is a perennial favorite of heads of state.
PHOTO: MERCEDES

The first and most ambitious national highway system ever built was Nazi Germany’s Autobahn, with its thousands of kilometers of meter-thick poured concrete surfaces, broad divided carriageways, and gently radiused high-speed curves—a veritable interstate to the Land of Nod. I naturally thought of the spectacular 1936 Mercedes-Benz 540K Autobahn-kurier, a streamlined, lightweight coupe that could sustain speeds of up to 150 kmh behind the raging, roaring, supercharged straight-eight. That couldn’t have been restful. And I’ve seen an Autobahn-kurier up close. I don’t think the seat backs even recline!

Lincoln Continental Coach Door Edition: A sleeper hit, so to speak, this low-volume, hand-crafted version of the new Continental sedan features the eponymous rear coach doors, that is, hinged at the rear.
PHOTO: LINCOLN CONTINENTAL

In my book, credit for the first super-luxury Schlaffenwagen goes to Daimler’s former CEO Jürgen Schrempp, who in late 1990s convinced the board to resurrect the pre-WWII Maybach marque as a rival to British ultra-luxury marques Rolls-Royce and Bentley. Mr. Schrempp was the first to take seriously the notion of high-speed, city-to-city executive transportation as an alternative to regional flying. With its airship-like fittings, electro-chromatically darkening skylights, blackout shades, and a pair of sumptuous leather lounges that lay out like business-class seats, the biturbo V12-powered, +600-hp Maybach 62 S still represents the fastest nap on Earth, capable of sustained speeds of 250 km/h, through the night. Getting sleepy yet?

Rolls-Royce Phantom EWB with Privacy Suite specification: Goodwood’s largest car offers a retractable, electrochromatic partition glass to separate driver from owner/occupant.
PHOTO: ROLLS-ROYCE

Maybach sales fizzled and in 2012 the brand was folded back into Mercedes-Benz to form Mercedes-Maybach. One challenge in the U.S. was the fact that most ultra-luxury cars were owner-driven. The picture is nearly the reverse in China and other Asian countries. One of the apparent vestiges of colonialism is the status attached to large, chauffeur-driven sedans or, lately, SUVs.

Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Audi, and what is now called Mercedes-Maybach offer extended-wheelbase versions of their largest sedans with bespoke interiors and high degrees of personalization. Included in the gallery are specifications designed around themes of rest, comfort and relaxation.

But sleep, it seems, is the one luxury they can’t promise.

Source: WSJ

 

[Wolfgang]

Mercedes bets on evolution as Tesla touts revolution in automated driving
By Edward Taylor

IMMENDINGEN, Germany (Reuters) - As Tesla touts the cutting-edge nature of its new Full Self Driving software, rival Mercedes-Benz says it has developed a similar system but stops short of allowing members of the public to take it on urban roads.

FILE PHOTO: An employee of Daimler demonstrates steering by the Drive Pilot Level 3 autonomous driving system in a new Mercedes-Benz S-Class limousine on the company's test center near Immendingen, Germany

The Germans, pioneers in developing advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), are taking a step-by-step approach to releasing new technology, waiting for their own engineers, rather than the general public, to validate their system.

Both approaches - one conservative and one radical in nature - are designed to push highly automated driving on to public roads, a step that could massively reduce accidents, since computers have faster accident-avoidance reflexes than humans.

Advanced driver assistance systems can provide steering, braking and acceleration support under limited circumstances, generally on highways. Carmakers have refrained from relying on their technology to let cars navigate urban inner-city traffic.

Tesla broke this tradition last week when it released its FSD software which allows its computer-powered cars to practise their reflexes in inner-city traffic situations, with a warning that its cars “May Do the Wrong Thing at the Worst Time.”

Mercedes does not allow members of the public to test still-experimental systems. Its engineers need to pass an eligibility exam to become test drivers, and another one for testing automated driving systems, the carmaker said.

Rather than force their customers to put their trust in processors, software and the ability of machines to learn over time, the Germans want their cars to be validated by engineers so that they remain predictable for owners.

“We do not want blind trust. We want informed trust in the car. The customer needs to know exactly what the car can and cannot do,” a Mercedes spokesman told Reuters on the sidelines of the carmaker’s test track in Immendingen, Germany.

“The worst thing would be if the car gets into a complex situation and there was ambiguity over whether the car is in control or not,” he said.

This is why the Stuttgart-based carmaker, owned by Daimler AG, is emphasising its decades-old experience of automated driver assistance systems as it seeks to gain global regulatory approval for its own Drive Pilot system which boasts level 3 automation.

Level 3 means the driver can legally take their eyes off the wheel and the company, Daimler in this case, would have to assume insurance liability, depending on the jurisdiction.

The new Tesla system forces customers to take responsibility for any crash.

‘LOGICAL NEXT STEP’

Mercedes-Benz started using camera-based systems in 2009, offering traffic-light recognition and lane-keeping assistance systems, switching to stereo cameras in 2013, to add depth of field and pedestrian recognition for emergency braking functions.

It was on a joint development project between the Tesla Model S and the Mercedes-Benz electric B-Class that Tesla’s CEO, Elon Musk, learned about camera and radar-based assistance systems, senior engineers familiar with the project told Reuters.

Mercedes plans to launch Drive Pilot next year and is pitching it as an evolution of its Distronic system, launched in 2013, which uses cameras and radar to keep cars in lane and at a distance to the car in front.

Drive Pilot will add a new sensor: Lidar, to cross-reference data gathered by radar, ultrasonic sensors, high-definition mapping, radar and cameras.

“It is a paradigm change from Distronic, but it is a strategic evolution. For us this is the logical next step and it is not shooting for the moon,” said Michael Decker, manager of automated driving at Mercedes-Benz Cars, while standing on the sidelines of the company’s testing campus in Immendingen, where the Mercedes hones autonomous driving systems.

Decker, behind the wheel of the new S-Class, drives the car on to a stretch of road mocked up to replicate an autobahn and selects Drive Pilot. The car glides seamlessly, providing gentle braking and steering inputs to keep its place in moving traffic.

“I spend most of my time dealing with edge cases, those special situations that we need to have under control,” he said. The Mercedes Drive Pilot will only work at up to 60 kilometers an hour, and reach higher speeds once the legal framework allows.

It will function only on highways in Germany from mid-next year onward, if a new law is passed.

“If the car crosses the border into France, it will disengage, because we use high-definition mapping as one of our validation systems, and France has not created the legal framework for allowing this system to operate,” Decker said.

Although Mercedes engineers are aware of Tesla’s more aggressive approach to marketing their systems, they appear unruffled.
“Yes. We always followed this path. And we now see that we have the right strategy,” Decker said.

“What is paramount here is safety. This is about having a mature system. Mercedes safety standards stand over and above everything, including speed.”

Mercedes bets on evolution as Tesla touts revolution in automated driving

As Tesla touts the cutting-edge nature of its new Full Self Driving software, rival Mercedes-Benz says it has developed a similar system but stops short of allowing members of the public to take it on urban roads.

www.reuters.com