We learned from foreign media that Mercedes-Benz recently announced that when a vehicle equipped with a DRIVE PILOT system (L3 automatic driving system) is opened to a driver assistance system, the company will bear legal responsibility for the operation of the car. This means that in the event of a car accident after the activation of the autonomous driving assistance system, Mercedes-Benz will bear the corresponding responsibility.
It is reported that Mercedes-Benz hopes to help it gain an advantage in the field of autonomous driving through this move, and also reflects its confidence in its own L3 level automatic driving system.
At the end of 2021, Mercedes-Benz passed the approval of the German Federal Transport Authority, becoming the first manufacturer in the world to legally use L3 level autonomous driving in Germany, meeting the latest requirements of the German road traffic law in 2017 on automatic driving, and the first models to apply L3 automatic driving technology are the new generation S class and EQS.
It is understood that the Mercedes-Benz DRIVE PILOT automatic driving system uses a stereoscopic multi-eye camera, microphone, ultrasonic radar, lidar, humidity sensor, special color sensor, while receiving real-time information from high-definition maps, and equipped with a redundant system, which can ensure that it can still maintain normal operation after a system failure.
After the use of the Mercedes-Benz DRIVE PILOT system, after activating the buttons on the steering wheel, the vehicle takes over the driving, the driver can leave the steering wheel with both hands and engage in other things, note that these are legal.
The system is allowed to be used in heavy traffic on Germany's 13,191 km long highway network, with speeds limited to 60 km/h as required by law, after which OTA upgrades will be made in accordance with changes in the law.