When you think of the future of driving, your first thought is most likely self-driving cars. We can thank brands like Tesla for bringing this vision to reality with impressive features such as ‘Autopilot’.
Autonomous cars can sense its environment and move with little or no human input. This won’t only revolutionise transportation but also how people live and work. Majority of major car brands have identified the future of driving as being fully autonomous or self-driving.
There are 5 levels of automation from level one being driver assistance to level five being fully automated. Volkswagen have identified that by 2025 to 2030 they will introduce fully automated cars, like their concept ‘SEDRIC’, onto the road.
Despite autonomous cars being an incredibly popular topic, there is still much confusion surrounding the 5 different levels of autonomy. Though the widespread adoption of driver-less cars is still decades away, the early levels of autonomy are available in novated leases today.
Level One
Level One is driver assistance, where the vehicle can operate without feet controls. This includes technology such as adaptive cruise control, that can bring the car to a stop behind another car, and Autonomous Emergency Braking.
Level Two
Partial automation or level two is where the vehicle can steer, brake and accelerate itself. This is achieved by technology such as Lane Keep Assist, Blind Spot Monitoring and Adaptive Cruise Control. This requires the driver to hold the wheel at 15 to 30 second intervals.
Level Three
Level three is conditional automation, requires the driver to be much less observant. While the driver is still required to sit in a driver’s seat, they only need to plug in their destination then the car will do the rest. Effectively allowing the driver to take their eyes off the road, with intervention needed only when there is a situation the car technology cannot deal with.
Level Four
Level four is high automation, these vehicles can be driven by a human, but they don’t need to be. They can drive themselves under the right conditions but can still ask for human assistance if needed.
Level Five
The final level is full automation. These vehicles do not need a human onboard and can drive autonomously on any road under any conditions.
Autonomous vehicles have enormous potential to improve lives, as well as efficiency and safety on Australian roads. The first three levels of automation can be seen in cars available today from popular manufacturers such as Toyota, BMW, Mercedes, Volkswagen and many more!
Do you want to bring some autonomy into your drive? Contact Remunerator today to organise your new car today!