Intel’s Mobileye will test self-driving cars at up to 80 MPH in Germany
Intel’s Mobileye self-driving division has received regulatory approval to test its vehicles on German roads, Intel announced. With a safety driver at the wheel, it can shake down its systems on city streets and the Autobahn at up to 130 km/h (81 mph). Mobileye said it’s one of the first non-OEMs to get an autonomous vehicle testing permit from German authorities.
To gain the permits, Mobileye’s test vehicles had to pass safety tests, provide hazard analysis and “[prove] that the cars can be safely integrated into public road traffic,” Intel said. The permit will help it demonstrate its “true redundancy” systems and responsibility-sensitivity safety (RSS) AI policy that makes “common-sense” decisions to avoid accidents.
Intel recently purchased mobility startup Moovit for $900 million and intends to create an app-based ride-hailing service using Moovit and Mobileye technology. The company is already doing autonomous vehicle testing in Jerusalem, and plans to deploy self-driving fleets in Tel Aviv, Daegu City, South Korea and Paris by 2022.
Mobileye is working on two self-driving systems. One is based purely on cameras, much like Tesla’s Autopilot, while the other uses radar, LiDAR and other depth-detection sensors. So far, it has not proven (nor has any other self-driving company) that its systems are remotely ready for hands-off level 5 or even level 4 self-driving. Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently said that its full self-driving systems are “very close,” but German regulators recently ordered it to stop mentioning “autonomous driving” or “Autopilot” in its ads.
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