Online news source Fender Bender, the official website of the Auto Body Repair Network USA, has reported that Ford is getting ready to implement Level 3 autonomous ADAS in its vehicles. It was reported that the Blue Oval would develop the technology entirely in-house.
The website quoted Ford Authority stating that Ford CEO Jim Farley said the company was close to road-ready Level 3 technology.
Farley has also shared that this technology could be ready for customers by 2026, making Ford one of the first mass market automakers to offer it.
According to Ford Authority (ital.), Ford gave up on its joint venture with commercial autonomous vehicle technology company Argo AI some time ago, but it ended up creating one of its own shortly thereafter using many of the same employees and even physical locations, called Latitude AI, which has since been focusing on Level 3 autonomy, rather than Level 4 and 5, which the automaker doesn’t see as a profitable venture in the short term.
SAE International categorises the six different levels of ADAS depending on their sophistication and level of autonomy compared to actual driver input. These levels are:
- Level 0: No driving automation
- Level 1: Driver assistance
- Level 2: Partial driving automation
- Level 3: Conditional driving automation
- Level 4: High driving automation
- Level 5: Full driving automation
Level 3 ADAS primarily uses three inputs to prevent the vehicle it’s fitted to becoming involved in an accident: radar, lidar, and cameras.
Radar
Radar systems measure the distance and velocity of objects by emitting radio pulses and measuring the reflected pulses.
Lidar
Lidar operates in a similar manner to radar, except it uses light pulses in the near-infrared spectrum. Automotive lidar systems emit wavelengths enabling exceptional resolution. The wide field of view and high resolution of lidar enable autonomous vehicles to create a 3D map of their surroundings to track other vehicles, lane markers, pedestrians, and objects on or near roads.
Cameras
Today’s cars have blind-spot cameras and 360-degree-view cameras, which both the driver and the vehicle can use to see what’s around the vehicle. Cameras offer even higher resolution than lidar and can quickly identify a wide variety of objects when paired with real-time image processing.
While Ford’s BlueCruise uses eye-tracking technology to ensure drivers are looking at the road, Level 3 autonomous would enable them to avert their eyes and take their hands off the wheel when on the highway.