Continental to position itself at the forefront of automatic driving technology

Dec. 28, 2012
The German supplier has outlined a roadmap for introduction of automated driving by 2025.

Continental has outlined a major new strategic plan which it hopes will position it as one of the global technology leaders in the area of automatic driving.

Continental has outlined a roadmap for introduction of automated driving by 2025. The German supplier will focus on the development of products and systems for automated driving as part of its long-term technology strategy, the company said in a press release. "Over the last few weeks, we on the Executive Board have considered the strategic and budget planning for our five divisions for the coming year in great detail. For our automotive divisions, this planning includes all of the necessary elements that need to be implemented step-by-step across the board so that fully-automated driving becomes reality by 2025," said Dr Elmar Degenhart, Chairman of the Executive Board of Continental.

Continental intends to invest several billion euros in the development of systems enabling semi-automatic and fully-automatic driving. With expertise in key areas of automotive interior, powertrain and chassis, Continental is looking to have what it describes as a "partially automated system" ready to offer its customers by 2016. "As a system supplier, we are perfectly positioned to develop and launch series production of solutions for partially automated systems for our customers by 2016. We will be able to develop the first applications for highly and ultimately fully automated driving, even at higher speeds and in more complex driving situations, ready for production by 2020 or 2025," said Degenhart.

Continental intends to achieve the goal of automated driving through a step-by-step approach. In terms of technology, automated driving extends the company's current development in area of driving assistance systems, and it plans to move forward through connecting driving assistance systems with driver information systems and the powertrain. By 2016, Continental expects to realise partially automated systems through assisting drivers in "stop and go" situations at low speeds of up to 30kph. However, at this initial stage of automated driving, the entire responsibility of driving will remain with the driver.

The next stage of highly automated driving could be achieved by 2020. Besides covering higher speeds above 30kph, highly automated driving will make it possible for drivers to perform other tasks such as reading papers or chatting online, but will be able to resume control of the vehicle at any time. However, when fully automated driving is possible in 2025 this may no longer be necessary. A fully automated vehicle will be able to control all driving operations autonomously at speeds of up to 130 kph on a motorway - when the vehicle reaches the desired exit onto another road, it will issue a request to the driver to assume control. But if the driver does not comply with the request, the vehicle will return to a safe state, meaning that it will automatically stop on the side strip.     

Outlook and implications

Automated driving can be helpful in improving road safety - human error is still the biggest factor for accidents on roads. According to the German Federal Statistical Office, driver mistakes were found to be the reason for more than 80% of all accidents involving personal injuries in Germany in 2010. Advanced driving assistance systems can play a major role in improving safety through supporting the driver in difficult situations and through developing room for freedom in a monotonous driving situation, which generally reduces driver attention. In the case of Continental's automated driving, customers will be able to decide if they prefer to drive themselves or let the vehicle take control. Higher level of vehicle-to-vehicle (C-2-C) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (car-2-X) technology investment should eventually make such automatically controlled vehicles much safer than conventionally driven cars.

Continental intends to leverage its expertise in driving assistance areas to achieve the goal of automated driving by 2025. Presently, more than 1,250 of the company's engineers are working on systems, technology and research related to automated driving. These specialists are working on driving assistance systems such as adaptive cruise control and emergency brake assistance. To intensify focus, Continental's Chassis and Safety division formed a new business unit called Advanced Driver Assistance System in April this year. To fulfil the goal of automated driving, the Chassis and Safety division is collaborating with Interior and Powertrain divisions. While the Interior division has several years of experience in the design of display of and user interface, the Powertrain division has expertise in the energy management of the drive systems. Earlier this year, Continental completed a two-week endurance test in Nevada (US) that covered over 15,000 miles of highly automated driving on public roads.

Continental's strategy to position itself at the forefront of automatic driving technology is a bold step, but further down the line it has the potential to reap significant dividends. It already supplies many of the high-end premium OEMs with a multiplicity of systems and components. These kind of companies, such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi and Lexus are likely to be among the first to offer automatic driving, or partial automatic driving systems on their cars. These systems will be high-value technologies that will allow Continental to generate strong margins on the product lines. While there is likely to be quite a high degree of consumer resistance, at least initially, to automatic driving, in the longer term it looks likely that the concept will take hold in mature, wealthy markets. As it stands, Continental's bold strategy could give it a strong early-mover advantage along with other leaders in the field such as Bosch.

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