When it comes to autonomous car, it is a given that we will have to take one small step at a time. There is not going to be a quantum leap wherein we simply take off the steering and let the car zip us to our destinations. Instead, it is going to be one small step at a time and Mobileye is among one of the companies making those small steps possible.
BMW and Mobileye are working together in order to facilitate and fast-forward these steps. BMW will be deploying the company’s Road Experience Management (REM) software in its cars from 2018. What that will mean is that, the advanced driver assist present in BMW cars will not only help human drivers, but will also crowdsource real time road data. This data will then be used to develop the autonomous cars of the future.
The REM system, in case you are unaware of it, is capable of providing information associated with things like road hazards and traffic delays. What’ s more, the system can also grab things like weather information and parking availability from individual vehicles and make them available for the greater good, as they call it. The data will be sourced to the clouds and then, will be used to complement the pre-existing static maps.
This kind of data, apart from helping drivers, will also be critical for cars that have no drivers — as it will help the systems within the cars, take informed decisions regarding their surroundings.
The data collected through Mobileye’s partnership with BMW will be passed onwards to Here. The mapping company, which is partially owned by a consortium of European carmakers, will then use the information it receives to make changes to its HD Live Map. The HD Live Map, in case you are unaware of it, is a real-time mapping service being made available to Here customers, for use with their autonomous and semi-autonomous cars.
Meanwhile, data really is the kind as far as autonomous cars are concerned. Mobileye’s partnerships with car manufacturers, could make it very valuable for companies looking to develop self-driving cars in the future.
