Self-Driving Car Company Chases Next-Level Autonomous Driving

Swedish automaker Polestar has announced that its new Polestar 4 coupe-SUV will include Luminar’s next-generation lidar technology as it shapes up to deliver Level 3 automated functionality.

The company previously announced that the model would become the first to feature the new Chauffeur automated driving system from Israeli company, Mobileye.

Now, confirmation has come that Chauffeur will integrate Iris lidar from Luminar, as Polestar targets eyes-off, point-to-point autonomous driving on highways

As well as the front-facing Luminar lidar, the Polestar 4 will feature three Mobileye EyeQ6 processors and Mobileye’s front-facing imaging radar.

According to the automaker, this will provide “the extra layer of sensing and artificial intelligence needed to enable eyes-off, hands-off driving.”

But the introduction of Chauffeur will be phased in. At launch, the Polestar 4 will be offered with Mobileye’s SuperVision ADAS (advanced driver assistance system), with the upgraded, more advanced Chauffeur tech offered at a later date.

Polestar’s owner, Geely, has already deployed SuperVision in a model from one of the other brands in its stable. In September, the ZEEKR 001 executive car received an over-the-air update that saw SuperVision enabled on the car.

Related:Polestar 4 to Debut Mobileye Hands-off Tech

As with the ZEEKR, the Polestar 4 is based on Geely’s Sustainable Experience Architecture. 

At launch, its SuperVision tech is set to deliver the sort of hands off, eyes on functionality provided by the likes of General Motors’ Super Cruise and Ford’s Blue Cruise. These are designated as Level 2 driver assistance systems by the Society of Automotive Engineers, in that they require constant supervision by the driver.

But the planned Chauffeur package will take it into Level 3 territory, where the car is in control, although intervention is required if the tech requests. As well as the hands off, eyes off highway driving that is promised, Polestar says it will also provide “eyes on automated driving for other environments” – essentially hands-free city driving.

To date, Mercedes has led the way with the introduction of Level 3 technology in production cars, with Drive Pilot being made commercially available in selected models in Germany in 2022 before branching out to Nevada and California in 2023.

Explaining the significance of the latest development, Professor Amnon Shashua, CEO of Mobileye, said: “Combining our base SuperVision with an independent second redundant perception system – consisting of Luminar lidar, radars and an imaging radar – enables true redundancy and a level of accuracy that lays the foundation for fully autonomous driving.”

Related:Assisted Driving Functions Added to 110,000 ZEEKR Cars

“Being able to add Luminar’s industry-leading Lidar to the platform’s development increases the strong link between our companies and brings even more world-class technology to Polestar 4,” added Thomas Ingenlath, Polestar CEO.

Sales of the Polestar 4 will start in China in early 2024, with U.S. models being built at a factory in South Korea in 2025.

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