More Driverless Tech from CES 2014 with Audi A7 and Navia

Audi brought out a self-driving A7 to this year’s edition of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, and they didn’t do so in vain and even offered journalists rides in it.

This allowed CNN reporters to discover that while the technology is not yet perfect and sometimes make for a jerky autonomous ride, the progress over last year’s is evident in the packaging – no more exposed wiring looms for 2014.

Ford also brought out its latest advancement in the field: cars that talk to each other. This is different to a system that relies solely on sensors to predict a threat, and Ford’s idea is that you are actually warned in advance. It would probably work best in conjunction with the radar, cameras and lasers.

Navia is another driver-less mobility (self-driving shuttle is what they call it) pod present at the show, and again is one that people actually got a chance to sit in. It’s a slow-moving means of transporting a small group of people around closed roads with no traffic (college campuses are the example given). What’s nice about it is that it’s simple and has already seen active duty, without facing any of the legal challenges – Consumer Reports got to try it out.

By Andrei Nedelea

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BMW Reveals M235i Self Driving and…Drifting Car, Smartwatch-Compatible i3 [w/Video]

BMW has chosen the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2014, held in Las Vegas, to show off its self-driving car. As they put it, it “a new kind of research prototype for highly automated driving which uses advanced control technology to demonstrate maximum safety up to the car’s dynamic limit.”

In other words, the M235i prototype running the system (called ActiveAssist) can drive itself (even around a track, briskly), and is capable of doing no-hands powersliding, as the opening photo shows. Moreover, it is claimed that it can thus predict if the car wants to oversteer or understeer and nip it in the bud, making even more planted driving possible when it’s not doing it by itself.

Another new piece of technology showcased at the fair is the Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch which runs a simplified Android OS, and can now be connected wirelessly to an i3 EV via the BMW I Remote App that it supports. Through it, the user/driver receives state of charge and range information, and is also made aware of whether or not the windows and/or sunroof are closed – the climate control can be remotely altered too.

The Bavarian automaker is also proud of its safety-oriented camera-based assistance systems – they’ve managed to bring costs down by not using radar, relying entirely on visual input from the cameras to make it work. They say, “modern camera-based systems have advantages over purely radar-based applications when it comes to recognition of stationary obstacles. A wide camera angle, moreover, enables reliable detection of objects pulling in or out at the edge of the driver’s field of vision.”

By Andrei Nedelea

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Renault Shows Off its Self-Driving Tech Called PAMU

Nissan’s knowhow in the field of autonomous driving tech was bound to trickle down to group partner Renault, as the symbiosis between the two is very strong.

The rhombus manufacturer chose a Fluence ZE all-electric sedan, which it filled with electronic wizardry that made the PAMU system possible.

The name stands for Advanced Urban Mobility Platform and to me, it sounds a lot like the one Volvo demonstrated some time ago via a self-parking V40 – they are calling it a valet service.

Exactly how it works can be seen in the video posted below, though, I don’t really know how scripted everything was, and whether it needed extra preparation like the Mercedes autonomous drive or not.

Either way, it shows Renault’s future intentions to venture into this section of the market among the first, even if it’s currently lagging behind the pack a bit in terms of active safety systems like autonomous emergency braking or active cruise control.

By Andrei Nedelea

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