Stellantis on SAE Level 3 Public Road Autonomous Driving

Ken Zino of AutoInformed.com on Kia battery-electric EV6

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Stellantis has made known its contributions to the L3Pilot automated driving project at the L3Pilot final event in Hamburg, Germany, in conjunction with ITS World Congress. The four-year project is critical to automated driving data collection and validation in order to perform extensive tests of SAE Level 3 autonomy technology functions.

At SAE Level 3, the driver does not need to monitor the driving circumstances constantly but must take back control when the system requests. L3Pilot, the flagship research and innovation project in Europe, is arguably one of the most important for the future of automated driving since it is focused on testing and evaluating the technology as a safe and efficient means of transportation in real traffic conditions. It also assessed technical aspects, driving behavior, user acceptance and impact on traffic and safety.

During the research project, which involved 34 partners including suppliers, research institutes, road authorities and other OEMs, Stellantis’ Research and Advanced Technologies teams led the driving test operations. The project involved a total of:

  • 70 cars equipped with automated driving functions in 14 pilot sites and seven countries
  • 750 professional drivers, experienced in SAE Level 3 functions, either as a driver or a passenger
  • 400,000 km driven on motorways, half of that in automated mode and half as a baseline
  • 24,000 km driven in urban scenarios, 22,200 km in automated mode and 1,800 km as a baseline

The piloting phase covered a wide range of driving situations, including parking, overtaking on highways, driving through urban intersections and in close distance scenarios. This assessed Level 3 automated driving functions such as:

  • Motorway Chauffeur: High-speed driving and automated lane change
  • Traffic Jam Chauffeur: Low-speed driving in congested roads
  • Remote Parking: In parallel and cross-parking scenarios
  • Home Zone: Path memory for repetitive maneuvers to park in and out in parking areas

A fleet of sixteen Stellantis prototypes was deployed in different scenarios and driving situations and exposed to variable conditions across several European countries to collect data, detect scenarios and evaluate all aspects of the road tests, to answer key questions bringing these systems to the market.

Building on the results of the L3Pilot, Stellantis will continue to contribute to the large-scale effort with the next European Union co-funded project, Hi-Drive. Over the next four years (2021-2025), Hi-Drive will address a number of key challenges toward the deployment of greater levels of automated driving.

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About Ken Zino

Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
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