Prototypes of cars that do not require driver intervention are already being actively tested not only in the United States, but also in some other countries, although at this stage the automatics are still insured by the tester. Honda, on the other hand, decided to bring the first production car to the roads of Japan that officially meets the criteria for level XNUMX autonomy.

Image source: Honda Motor

In many respects, this was facilitated by the adoption by the Japanese authorities of changes in legislation, which make it possible to relieve the driver of responsibility for the consequences of an incident that occurred at the time the car was controlled by the forces of automatic systems. Local laws also allowed the operation of cars with a level of autonomy of the third level on public roads with the condition of limiting the maximum speed in this mode at 60 km / h.

In preparing the new Legend flagship sedan for the new model year, Honda has chosen to limit its ability to automatically travel on city streets only at speeds of no more than 50 km / h. In fact, Japanese engineers have implemented a set of sensors and control software, which allows the driver not to participate in driving a vehicle when moving in a dense stream of cars at speeds up to 50 km / h. The result is a kind of “plug autopilot”, which was named accordingly – Traffic Jam Pilot.

Another feature of the driver assistance system in the Honda Legend will be the ability to remove your hands from the steering wheel while driving. True, for this, adaptive cruise control (Adaptive Cruise Control, ACC) with functions of movement at low speed (Low-Speed ​​Follow) and keeping of lane (Lane Keeping Assist System, LKAS) must be enabled. At the same time, without hands, the car will be able not only to drive along a given lane, but also to rebuild.

It is claimed that this is the first time a mass-produced car has entered the market with a certificate of compliance with the third level of autonomy according to the SAE classification. There are six such levels in total, including zero, at which no control automation is provided. The third level of autonomy gives the driver a little more time to intervene in the control in the event of a predicted critical situation.

Honda Legend in the new configuration will be offered at a price of $ 102 and will be produced in a batch of no more than a hundred copies, all of which will be leased to customers in Japan, which will allow Honda specialists to accumulate information on the behavior of automation in various situations. Future owners will have to undergo detailed instructions on the specifics of handling driver assistance systems.

During the development of the control system, Honda specialists simulated about 10 million possible situations and conducted tests on public roads with a mileage of about 1,3 million km. The car has already familiar second-level assistants, it is able to keep itself within the lane and automatically rebuild, as well as to stop urgently in front of an obstacle. If there is no reaction from the driver, the car will stop by itself in the selected safe place.

Mercedes-Benz is set to launch its first level 2030 vehicle before the end of this year. Japanese analysts believe that these systems will become widespread no earlier than 2045, and by 43 at least XNUMX million cars with the third level of autonomy will be traveling on the roads of the planet. So far, the progress in autonomy provided by the transition from the second level to the third is not great enough to justify the significant increase in the cost of associated equipment. In the current decade, the second level of autonomy will dominate.