GM’s next driver assistance system will be hands-free in “95% of situations”

On Wednesday and Thursday, General Motors presented its plan for the coming years to its investors. The company wants “a world with zero accidents, zero emissions and zero traffic jams,” said Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra, explaining that GM’s investment in electric vehicles and autonomous driving technology got it started. quickly.

GM has revealed that a new Silverado electric truck will be officially unveiled at CES in 2022, and a $ 30,000 Chevrolet electric crossover is also in development. These two models, along with the electric Buick, GMC, Hummer EV and Cadillac, will use GM’s new family of Ultium batteries and Ultium Drive engines.

Some or all of these vehicles will be equipped with GM’s Super Cruise hands-free driver assistance system, but the company plans to roll out an even better hands-free driver assistance system soon. Called Ultra Cruise, it will eventually “drive hands-free in 95% of all driving scenarios,” GM said.

Unlike Super Cruise, which has a tightly controlled operational design domain that allows it to operate only on restricted and geo-fenced freeways, Ultra Cruise will “eventually” work on all paved roads in the United States and Canada, according to the company. However, initially the service will only be activated on approximately 2 million miles (3.2 million km) of paved roads. For context, Super Cruise will operate on approximately 200,000 miles (321,869 km) of road.

Ultra Cruise will use a mix of cameras, radar and lidar to create a 360-degree view of the world around the vehicle. The lidar sensor will be mounted behind the windshield to keep it clean. (The optical camera that enables lane keeping assist on current cars is also behind the windshield.)

“We believe that the combination of different sensors, or the fusion of sensors, leads to the most robust hands-free driver assistance system for our customers,” said Doug Parks, executive vice president of global product development, of GM’s purchasing and supply chain.

GM says Ultra Cruise will be able to handle shipping routes, including left and right turns. It will perform automatic and on-demand lane changes and react and obey traffic lights and signs. He will also be able to park in the residential alleys.

Ultra Cruise will debut in a still unnamed Cadillac in 2023.