Wednesday May 26, 2021
No more radar sensors
Tesla brings models with camera “autopilot”
Later this month, Tesla is planning new versions of the Model 3 and Y models in North America that rely solely on camera vision and neural network processing. The system is controversial. Tesla is also warning drivers of restrictions. Apparently, the e-car manufacturer is working on solutions.
The US electric car manufacturer Tesla has announced an innovation for its electric cars in North America: From this month, the 3 and Y models will be able to do without radar sensors for partially automated driving. “These will be the first Tesla vehicles to rely solely on camera vision and neural network processing to provide autopilot, full self-driving and certain active safety features,” the company announced.
Tesla admitted that the transition to the camera-focused system could lead to limitations in some of its driver assistance functions such as lane centering and parking assistance. Tesla has come under repeated criticism from US regulators in recent months for accidents related to its autopilot system.
Why is Tesla testing lidar sensors?
A message from US finance agency Bloomberg on Monday, citing sources not mentioned, initially caused confusion in this context: According to this, the e-car pioneer recently signed a contract with Luminar Technologies, a leading lidar startup, for tests and development. Photos are already circulating on social media a Model Y equipped with the sensors. What plans Telsa has with these tests is not known, Bloomberg quoted the sources as saying.
Lidar and camera vision are completely different technologies. Who will win the race in partially automated driving is, so to speak, a question of faith. Elon Musk described lidar sensors in 2018 as “crutch” and “fool’s prank”. With Lidar, light pulses are emitted in order to generate a three-dimensional image of the surroundings of a vehicle. For many, they are considered a key technology for autonomous driving.
Accordingly, Luminar cannot complain about a lack of success. The company already works with Pony.ai, Airbus, Volvo, Audi and the Toyota Research Institute. For Musk, on the other hand, there was the Köigsweg for autonomous driving is always in passive optical recognition.
Experts consider it unlikely that Musk could have changed his mind. Observers believe it is more likely that Tesla will use the luminar lidar to compare its technical solution for autonomous driving and the 3D perception of lidar sensors in order to improve functionality.
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