System Competence for the Autonomous Future – Continental Lets You Experience Groundbreaking Technologies
TechShow Around the World 2021
- Extensive product portfolio for automated and autonomous driving functions
- "Driving Planner" software can look several seconds into the future
- Continental develops intelligent infrastructure systems for autonomous parking
Frankfurt, Germany, October 2021. Continental is presenting key technologies for assisted, automated and autonomous driving at the TechShow. The extensive product portfolio shows that partially-automated driving in particular is no longer a distant vision, but a reality that is relevant to everyday life. Today and in the near future, intelligent system solutions from Continental can make road traffic significantly safer and more sustainable – and also make driving much more comfortable. "Continental develops and produces groundbreaking technologies for the mobility of today and tomorrow," says Frank Petznick, head of the Advanced Driver Assistance Systems business unit at Continental. “Our lidar and radar sensors, camera systems and high-performance computers are crucial for the realization of autonomous driving. To this end, we are taking a decisive step forward: Our innovative high-tech components are combined into smart systems that are used in specific applications and are already driving the evolution of mobility towards autonomous driving." Important new developments can be experienced at the TechShow in development vehicles and virtual demonstrations.
Extensive portfolio of near-series product solutions
Visitors to the TechShow can experience three particularly innovative, daily-use technology solutions for partially automated driving exclusively in demonstration vehicles: a cruising assistant for driving on motorways and expressways, a package of automated parking functions including collision avoidance and the intelligent software Driving Planner, which enables complex autonomous driving maneuvers. What is special about all three solutions is that they are already close to series production today and can be used as early as 2024.
The TechShow also provides insights into other intelligent product solutions that make the vision of autonomous driving concrete. Continental will be showing the latest generations of lidar for near and long range applications. Lidar sensors are one of the key technologies for automated and autonomous driving, because they work with high precision even in backlighting and have a greater range than radar sensors, for example. Continental is developing an innovative long-range lidar sensor with the US company AEye. This makes it possible to see other vehicles and objects at a distance of more than 300 meters.
Cruising-Assistant and Driving Planner for autonomous driving functions on the road
At the TechShow, Continental is showing a near-series system for automated driving maneuvers on motorways and expressways. The technology combines various assistance systems into an innovative cruising assistant: adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning, lane change assistant, emergency braking assistant and a “minimum risk maneuver” emergency stop function. The fusion of these automated driving functions enables automated driving. This means that the vehicle stays in lane independently, independently adjusts its speed to the traffic, brakes in appropriate traffic situations, automatically changes lanes and brings the car to a standstill in emergency situations if the driver does not intervene despite warnings.
Continental is presenting an innovative software solution that enables the next step towards highly automated driving at level 3. This means that vehicles can master certain driving tasks independently and without intervention by the driver. The software developed by Continental represents a significant upgrade in terms of driving intelligence. The Driving Planner uses a large number of sensor data to calculate precise decision-making options in order to manage complex driving maneuvers on the autobahn or expressway autonomously. To do this, the software can calculate traffic situations several seconds in advance and use this to derive the vehicle's optimal driving strategy. What’s special about the new solution: It allows the combination of longitudinal and transverse movements in a harmonious, intelligent and closely timed interaction.
Autonomous driving also means that the infrastructure is becoming intelligent
The exchange of data not only between different vehicles, but also with intelligent infrastructure systems is an essential prerequisite for autonomous driving. At the TechShow, Continental is showing how cars will communicate with the traffic infrastructure in the future – in this case in the parking garage. Together with the Leipzig start-up Kopernikus Automotive, the technology company has developed a solution for automated valet parking, which was first presented at the IAA. The vehicle is transferred to an intelligent system via a user app and parked automatically. The system shows that key components from Continental can also be used outside the vehicle. Infrastructure systems, for example, are equipped with sensors or cameras that help vehicles navigate – and are also an essential prerequisite for autonomous driving.
Sören Pinkow
Media Spokesperson and Topic Manager Safety and Motion
Continental Automotive