At the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas next month, BMW will be showcasing two technologies – a ‘360-degree Collision Avoidance System’ and ‘Remote Valet Parking Assistant’ – in what the company deems as the next key steps towards a future where automated driving is the norm.
With the ‘360-degree Collision Avoidance System’ installed on a BMW i3, the car is able to automatically apply braking power should it sense an impending collision with various obstacles such as pillars and fixed structures. It’s only when the driver steers the car away from the obstacle that the system releases the brakes.
By employing four laser scanners, the system records the surrounding environment and processes the feedback, identifying obstructions around the car and preventing the driver from colliding with said impediments. BMW says that the system will come in handy in low-visibility conditions.
In addition, the automaker has also succeeded in fully automating control of the car by relaying the vehicle’s sensors to a digital site plan, negating the need for a GPS signal, which is not always accurate. The test car is capable of determining its exact position in the car park and navigate itself remotely.
The ensemble of sensors onboard, coupled to the car’s ability to process its environment, leads to what BMW calls a ‘Remote Valet Parking Assistant’. As far-fetched as this may sound, the system allows the driver to disembark his/her vehicle at the entrance of a building while the car drives itself away to a parking slot.
Using a Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch – co-developed with BMW to enhance the i3 driving experience – the driver simply activates the system, allowing the car to drive itself autonomously around a multi-storey parking lot, locate a vacant spot and park itself.
With the provided algorithms, the car is able to detect aforementioned obstacles and even poorly parked vehicles. Upon the driver’s request – again accomplished via the smartwatch – the car is able to determine the estimated time of arrival for the driver to reach the car park exit and meet him/her there.
BMW is no stranger to technologies relating to automated driving as the company has invested in such platforms as far back as 2009, where a car was able to pilot itself around the North Loop of the Nürburgring. The pilot demo eventually led to the birth of the BMW Track Trainer project.
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
Here in Bolehland while the i3 is reversing into a parking, some Ah Beng will drift into the parking lot first…
I will hire Ahmad driver are much better.
Since i got many cars.
racist idiot
just wondering what if some cars accidentally hit the i3 when it is parking by itself, or some emergencies happen during its self-driving process. not every multi-storey carparks can have the perfect driving situation everyday at any moment.
If it autoparks at those car wash slot at parking lots, later car wash operator make noise..
Hmm….this car can pay parking fee……
lots of driverless car in a parking lot moving around hunting for a parking spot sounds really scary.
With this in the future, how can taxi companies continue to enslave taxi drivers, and bad drivers can abuse passengers with no-meter fares and hooligan monopoly at shopping centres?
SPAD will ban this, saying that since no driver, cannot issue driver license. So driverless cars must be banned. Please follow the law! The law is to protect you!
The point of this whole technology being?
Sorry I am from a third world country that just want to have efficient public transport and affordable cars. Maybe in year 2020 I will appreciate this more.
And I don’t think James Bond is a Malaysian.
BTW, if they partner with Galaxy Gear, can I assume that the target market is college yuppies? Because I don’t see rich old man (or woman) abandon their Rolex for that ugly watch. Maybe they will make their driver wear it.
Ahh.. now i get it… Is for the driver to still sit in the Mamak stall when the boss call them for a pickup. They can still eat their meal while sending the car off with the watch..
Err.. wait a min.. what about the yuppies…
Maybe BMW predict that yuppies will start their career as a driver… Ahhh.. it all make sense now.
So if Samsung sell the watch and give the car for free, do we still need to pay duties? Because watches has no tax in Malaysia.