D He guides people and not only thinks, they can also feel. At least experienced drivers have switched on their 'popometer' in addition to their eyes and brain. This enables the car's reactions to be recognized and felt, for example on slippery surfaces or when approaching a large puddle. Anyone who has ever experienced aquaplaning can understand that.
When self-driving cars are on the road in the future, the computer brains will see and think much more in them than a human pilot. Cameras, lidar systems and sensors receive signals from other networked cars and compare navigation maps and real-time traffic information with the reality in front of and around the car. An artificial intelligence only needs to be trained to feel. This succeeds with the provision of information.
Road condition information for autonomous cars
The supplier Bosch wants to train autonomous cars to feel this through a cooperation with the Finnish company for weather forecasting Foreca. Petri Marjava, Foreca Sales Manager, explains: “The combination of Foreca and Bosch expertise will lead to a new era in road condition forecasting. In contrast to weather forecasts in the media, the road condition services from Bosch take into account several possible forecast scenarios. ”
These services are to be brought onto the market step by step. From 2020 initially on the basis of weather data, which will later be supplemented with data that networked vehicles collect and pass on. Bosch assumes that around 20 million connected cars will be needed to cover the 80,000 kilometers of German autobahns alone.
Data from ESP and Co. also help
'Rain, snow, ice - with our predictive road condition services we report dangers long before a critical situation arises,' says Bosch CEO Dr. Dirk Hoheisel. “An automated vehicle knows exactly where and how it can drive independently.” In the future, an automated vehicle will make a decision about how it will continue on the route, for example if there is a risk of aquaplaning or black ice, as well as its speed and driving behavior adapts. Data that is collected in the car is also included in the decision-making process, including values from the ESP, the outside temperature and the activation of the windscreen wipers.
The technology from Bosch and Foreca can not only determine the driving behavior of autonomous drivers Influence cars after level 4 or level 5. The data can also be used for adaptive cruise control and other systems at an earlier stage of automation, for example with the motorway assistant.