Programme

The shift from SAE level 2 to level 3 vehicles represents a significant change, as the responsibility for traffic situations transitions from the driver to the manufacturer. Various sensor technologies, including camera, radar, lidar, and ultrasonic, are used to enable ADAS and AD features. Radar systems are often the primary input for ADAS functions due to their ability to detect and range even in poor environmental conditions. An approach for ADAS testing in the periodical technical inspection is testing on the sensor level. Each sensor involved in an ADAS function gets stimulated virtually, by applying screens (camera, lidar sensor), or radar target simulators (radar sensor). The goal is to setup realistic driving scenarios virtually and evaluate the variance between the set scenario and the detected sensor information. Assessing the proper sensor functionality and combining it with the information about a type-approved software version closes the testing loop and proves the system reliability to a high extent.

A study from the UK has shown that the idea of “VisionZero“ – as promoted by the European Commission – by employing radar or LiDAR sensors is not only working, but saving money, i.e. paying back! The enhancement of the existing sensors, i.e. the development of 4D radars in the 80 GHz range, is quickly ongoing worldwide. And furthermore, the combination of such radar sensors with optical cameras and LiDAR sensors for a real and robust AD is becoming a reality.
However, there are several basic conditions hampering this very desirable development:

- The discussion of FMCW vs. PCM
- HMI as a corporate ID of the different OEMs
- Driver information and education

These 3 subjects will be discussed – technically and societally – during this talk, showing what is already happening in these fields, as well as what has to be fostered and initiated to make it happen in the near future – to make AD - Autonomous Driving - and thus "VisionZero" - a reality on our roads.

The research activities in automated driving of recent years made it quite obvious what the challenges in that discipline are, namely perception and scene interpretation.  It is well-known, that a perception system of such a vehicle may consists of cameras, lidar sensors as well as radars. To find the right balance in between of them and the right degree of redundance is still open. In this contribution the authors are going to present their findings in terms a of all-weather operational sensor set-up. It contains a distributed spares photonic radar as a novel approach.