THE JAPAN NEWS


 

Automated cars are classified into four levels based on how much the driver is involved in the operation of the accelerator, brakes and steering. The ranks range from Level 1 — in which one of the operations is automated — to Level 4 — in which a car is fully autonomous and can operate without a human driver.

Most domestic and overseas car manufacturers are at Level 2, with Tesla Motors Inc.’s Model S also in this category.

Toyota Motor Corp., Nissan Motor Co., Honda Motor Co. and other major domestic carmakers have been putting work into the research and development process, aiming to market automated cars that can run on expressways by around 2020.

The manufacturers are aiming to reach Level 3, in which a self-driving system mainly operates the car and the driver takes the necessary actions only in case of emergency, such as when the system malfunctions.

However, Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. Corporate Senior Vice President Tetsuo Onuki said, “High-level technologies are required for some maneuvers, such as stopping safely when a preceding car has an accident, as well as when merging into a busy lane.”

Carmakers have an eye on realizing autonomous vehicles that run on local roads, but the hurdle is higher than just developing such cars that run on expressways.

Self-driving cars on local roads require artificial intelligence that predicts the movements of pedestrians and oncoming vehicles and digital maps that contain detailed road information including the degree of slopes and whether there are curbs.

A vehicle-to-vehicle communication system is also essential. But these technologies have not yet been developed.




By Riki Ozawa / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer