Virtual testing is a linchpin in the delivery of cost-effective ADAS and AD technologies, but how can engineers integrate it effectively into the development process while ensuring robust validation, asks Alex Grant in an exclusive feature first published in the September 2024 issue of ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle International magazine. 

Automation is positioned at the crossroads of competing trends within the automotive industry. Arguably one of the most significant technological challenges in the history of road transportation, it’s evolving during a period of increasingly tight budgets, short deadlines and shifting regulations. Virtual testing helps alleviate the development bottlenecks but it isn’t a catchall and there are still plenty of gray areas to overcome.

Continue reading FEATURE: Can virtual testing meet robust validation requirements? at ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle International.

NHTSA has begun a policymaking process that is set to make alcohol and driver impairment detection mandatory for new light-duty vehicles sold in the USA – and the rule-making could prove influential worldwide, reports Alex Grant in the September 2024 issue of ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle Technology International. 

Impaired driving accounts for around one-third of road fatalities in the USA, according to NHTSA, but technology targeted at preventing it remains divisive. The agency’s long-awaited advanced notice of proposed rule-making (ANPRM) was published December 2023, gauging the practicalities of mandating alcohol and impairment detection for light-duty passenger vehicles.

Continue reading FEATURE: Driver impairment – new detection protocols and solutions at ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle International.

Robust driver monitoring is coming under ever sharper scrutiny as more capable assistance features reach the market – and the most advanced systems could offer advantages beyond occupant safety, writes Alex Grant, in the January 2024 issue of ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle International.

Within the development arc of autonomous vehicles, the last two years might well be remembered for making driving more cooperative. Toyota, Ford and BMW have joined General Motors in adding ‘hands-off, eyes-on’ Level 2 highway assistance to new models, while Mercedes-Benz offers conditional Level 3 features in selected markets.

Continue reading FEATURE: Driver monitoring systems – trends and developments at ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle International.

As the USA looks set to make AEB mandatory for new light-duty vehicles, how is the automotive industry working to address the challenges faced by today’s technology, asks Alex Grant, in an exclusive feature first published in the September 2023 issue of ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle International.

On May 31, 2023, USDOT took a decisive step toward raising the bar for factory-fitted ADAS on new vehicles. NHTSA has proposed introducing a Federal Vehicle Motor Safety Standard (FMVSS) that will make automatic emergency braking (AEB) mandatory for light-duty cars and trucks within four years of publication.

Continue reading FEATURE: How are OEMs upgrading their Automated Emergency Braking systems to meet tougher NHTSA guidelines? at ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle International.

As companies look to expand the operational design domains for Level 5 autonomous vehicles, crash testing is highlighting some unexplored scenarios for passive safety to address – and a need for reforms to streamline future development. Alex Grant discovers more in an exclusive feature first published in the September 2023 print edition. 

At the crossover point of electrification and autonomous driving, the automotive industry has an unprecedented opportunity to rethink the way vehicles look. It’s a transition that removes the packaging constraints of bulky combustion engines and driver controls while enabling designers to focus on maximizing space and comfort for occupants.

Continue reading FEATURE: How crash testing is highlighting passive safety issues around robotaxis at ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle International.

After a decade of bold claims and massive investment, what do stakeholders see as the biggest hurdles for automated driving – and how have these changed their approach? AAVI recently caught up with experts across the ADAS & autonomous vehicle sector to share their thoughts.

CHALLENGE 1: SCALABLE SOLUTIONS

The biggest near-term challenge is finding affordable, useful applications for automated driving. Addressing CES in January 2023, Mobileye CEO Amnon Shashua said OEMs are increasingly aware of opportunities to provide conditional automation using already-available technology, such as its SuperVision driver assist system. The company is bridging the gap between ADAS and automated driving using modular components, and incrementally expanding the operational design domain (ODD), beginning with highways.

Continue reading FEATURE: Industry outlook – five key challenges for the ADAS and autonomous vehicle sector at ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle International.

The challenges of developing autonomous vehicle systems aren’t only in the edge cases – a growing body of research continues to highlight that rainfall could be problematic too.

Safety is a cornerstone of autonomous vehicles. Autonomy promises unwavering concentration while navigating the world’s complex, crowded and variable road networks. But while the latest vehicles are using multimodal sensor suites and gaining 360° vision that no human could match, they face some familiar perception challenges in heavy rain. 

This is already a problem for production vehicles. Last autumn, the AAA (American Automobile Association) carried out closed-circuit testing of ADAS weather resilience, targeting a roof-mounted high-pressure water jet at the windshield-mounted cameras while driving.

Continue reading Seeing in the rain – how good is your AV’s sensor performance? at ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle International.