By 2027, cars will be capable of doing without a driver, encouraging car sharing and reducing urban traffic. Bosch and the Daimler Group are working to develop the new autonomous driving system.
In recent years, the term autonomous driving has forced its way into the automotive lexicon. Several manufacturers already boast driver assistance systems described as "autonomous" — Tesla, Mercedes-Benz and BMW among them — although drivers are still required to maintain at least the same level of attention as usual and, above all, are still expected to intervene in emergency situations. The prospect of cars that drive themselves one hundred per cent of the time has yet to arrive. In the distant future? Not exactly. Within a decade we should see the first vehicles operating entirely without human input on our roads. So say Bosch and Mercedes-Benz.
The Bosch Group, a long-established global supplier of technology and services, and the Daimler Group, which owns the Mercedes-Benz and smart brands, have signed an agreement to develop a fully autonomous driving system and to put driverless vehicles on urban roads by the start of the next decade. The goal of the two German giants is to jointly develop software and algorithms that give cars their own "intelligence", radically transforming the mobility landscape, enabling urban traffic to be managed more efficiently, and delivering clear benefits in terms of lower emissions and reduced congestion in major cities. At the same time, safety will be enhanced, as the new technologies promise to significantly reduce the risk of accidents.
The development of a fully autonomous driving system — and consequently of cars capable of operating without any human input — promises to give fresh impetus to car sharing, allowing people to make better use of the time spent travelling and opening up new possibilities for those who do not have, or cannot obtain, a driving licence. This is a far from negligible social purpose, since it would allow people with severe disabilities, the elderly and minors, as well as all other users, to have vehicles come to them wherever they are. An epochal reversal of roles, with the vehicle — electrically powered — becoming a tool for sustainable mobility.
The aim of the Bosch-Daimler project is not to develop a prototype technology, but rather to bring to market a system intended for mass production. Within a given urban area, people will be able to use their smartphone to book a shared car or an autonomous taxi that will arrive at the desired location and transport them to their destination. Car ownership — and with it the use of land for parking, which takes space away from urban life and green areas — will become a distant memory for those living in a major city, with clear benefits both from a social and an environmental standpoint.