“Lean back!”: Mercedes drives autonomously on the Autobahn

“lean back!”
Mercedes drives autonomously on the Autobahn

05/07/2022 3:44 pm

Autonomous driving has been announced for some time. For the first time, a system can be ordered for the electric and classic Mercedes S-Class that enables exactly the same as Level 3. But it currently operates only on the German Autobahn and only in daylight.

And while a piece of the future is beginning again, for Mercedes it also marks a new milestone in traditional company history. For the first time, and currently only in Germany, a carmaker has received the blessing of the state to install a system in a production car that allows the driver to delegate responsibility for everyday traffic to the technology. Until now, in many modern cars people have been supported by various assistance systems, but only for a few seconds the steering wheel was let go. Now assistants turn into machines that can handle commands at the push of a button. The central theme is the daily frustrations in motorway traffic jams.

“We want to give our customers some of their valuable time back,” explains Georges Massing, the vice president responsible for automatic driving at the Mercedes management team. The drive pilot assumes responsibility for the driver’s movements on the freeway such as steering, braking, lane keeping or accelerating. With all this, he doesn’t even need to be particularly vigilant. Because as long as the sophisticated system is in command, people can relax and devote themselves to other tasks. “The issue of responsibility is the main issue. We are now certain that we and all of our customers are safe,” says Massing.

“I’m driving now!”

First encounter with the invisible part-time captain on the always busy Berlin Ring Road, a queue of all-normal cars slowly pushing onto the asphalt. When merging into the ongoing traffic, the system still remains in the co-pilot role. More than 30 sensors, various cameras, radar eyes, ultrasound or so-called lidar, a combination of laser and radar, keep an eye on what is happening around the Black S-Class and feed the data to the on-board computer. In the central instrument behind the steering wheel, a bunch of moving rectangles appear around the emblem of the vehicle, as in a video shooting game. These are all Mercedes cars around. Welcome to the bustle of a German Autobahn near the city.

Then the column picks up speed, pulling apart a little. An “A” appears in the instrument panel, prompting the driver to press one of two buttons within thumb reach on the steering wheel. A green light immediately signals a turn, as if the car wanted to say: “Now I’m driving, sit back”. Of course, at first there is a kind of restlessness. Got stuck for a gentle left turn between a van on the left and a large truck in the right lane. The hands involuntarily reach again from their resting positions in the thigh region to the steering wheel rim. But stress does not give way to rest faster than expected. But the sovereignty with which the luxury vehicle drives in the hustle and bustle is reassuring.

traffic jam is a hotspot

To taste the new freedom of irresponsibility, stock prices or the latest news can now be read on a large central monitor with the help of a browser, and cell phones can be used without a hands-free system. Thanks to high computer performance and a good online connection, it will also be possible to stream your favorite series, but you can also easily see the S-Bahn pushing traffic to the right side of the motorway. The distance from the vehicle in front also increases. Because other buses are faster and do not have a programmed maximum speed. The automatic Mercedes tempo remains at 60, so it is in law and a prerequisite for the approval of the drive pilot.

“Traffic jam is our hotspot,” explains engineer Taner Kandemir, “we spent 200,000 hours in traffic jams” during our test drive. He can live with the current limit of 60 km/h as it covers the driving area of ​​long convoys with constant stop-and-go, which in everyday life often stresses customers and requires constant vigilance. it occurs. But speed brakes are not the only restriction that future customers will have to accept and pay an additional fee of 5,950 Euros for the S-Class or 8,840 Euros for the Mahan Stromer EQS. Drive Pilot operates only on freeways and is not yet capable of changing lanes, for example for overtaking. Defensive driving is part of the program.

not in the night and fog

Even at night, in tunnels, in heavy rain or snow, or on construction sites, the system refuses to work because the camera’s eyes always need a good view. But it can also be a role model for other participants in traffic. If stalling is in danger, this S-Class is the leader of the rescue lane. If the sensor, which also monitors the driver, detects his medical condition, or worse, the car is carefully stopped in its lane and assistance is automatically called. “There are warnings behind the traffic that our car is about to come to a standstill,” says Taner Kandemir. For medical examination, the camera also measures the blinking frequency, which is a reliable indicator of health status.

Of course, the added value of the Drive Pilot is still manageable at the current stage, as all the strict regulations and state of the art of the officers put the brakes on the potential arrogance on the part of the engineers. Nevertheless, a system is going into series production for the first time that makes a driver’s responsibility an issue and which has been researched and developed over a long period of time by a good 1000 experts from different departments of Mercedes. Ultimately, the carmaker must be held liable if the technology causes damage.

Sometimes it’s the small steps along with the big technology that bring us forward. The good news: Germany has finally become a global leader again,