The next Audi A8, which is due to arrive in 2017, will be the first car available to the public to offer fully autonomous driving.
It is believed that initially this first publicly offered system will enable the car to perform driving tasks up to speeds of 80km/h in usual driving environments such as on motorways. Audi has already demonstrated the advanced levels of its current autonomous systems, which it calls Piloted Driving. Prior to this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) a number of journalists travelled from Silicon Valley to Las Vegas in an Audi A7 named 'Jack' that performed the bulk of the driving itself. While last year, our own Road Test Editor, Dave Humphreys, experienced the Ascari Race Circuit at high speed from the passenger seat as 'Bobby' briskly chauffeured him round - Bobby being Audi's RS 7 equipped with Piloted Drive technology.
Discussing the topic of Piloted Driving at the Geneva Motor Show, Ricky Hudi, Head of Electronics at Audi, revealed exclusively to CompleteCar.ie that the new A8 saloon, which is currently in development, will be the first to offer customers Piloted Drive. "We are going to be the first with autonomous driving, and we have shown already that we are leading this 'megatrend'. Since 2009, every year we have shown where we are in relation to that technology and the test drive of Jack at CES gave a clear message to the world. If Audi was not comfortable with the status of its technology it would not do this."
When quizzed more about just where Audi is in the process of rolling this technology out in series production, Hudi said; "The big challenge now is not in showcasing the technology, but to bring this in automotive grade, quality, safety and costs to the car. We are already doing this very intensively. Jack, for example, was driven completely with series level sensor technology, some of which are already in mass production like the radar and supersonic sensor while others are very close to mass production."
Technology aside, one of the other key areas holding back Audi's plans to bring Piloted Drive to the masses is the current legislation regarding to use of autonomous vehicles on public roads with other road users. Hudi went on to say: "We are continually in discussions with the legislators. The fact that some states in the US are pushing this technology is positive. We have a license in Nevada since 2013 (the first car manufacturer to be awarded this), in 2014 we got a license in Florida and California. Telling this to European authorities gives a fruitful foundation towards the discussion to push this in Germany and in Europe."
Anything else?
Audi's desire to use Piloted Drive is as much a safety device, as it is a way of showcasing its technological prowess and it is a point that its Head of Electronics is keen to emphasise: "Sometimes I think they (the legislators) could be a little faster as the technology is moving faster than the regulations, and at the end of the day the customer will benefit from this. Our primary aim is to increase safety. 90% of all accidents around the world happen due to failures of the driver. Piloted Drive can support the driver, because the system does not get tired and could see things that the driver might not see, this is the big step, the big benefit of all of these activities."