Lucid announces hands-free driving OTA updates, BMW details its hands-free driving feature safety concept
Lucid Group, maker of advanced software-defined vehicles and technologies, has begun rolling out its latest over-the-air software update for the Lucid Gravity SUV, which introduces hands-free driving capabilities and several enhancements, including navigation, charging, and everyday usability.
“Hands-free drive assist makes highway driving more comfortable while keeping drivers attentive to the road,” a Lucid press release states. “Hands-Free Drive Assist supports steering, acceleration, and braking on compatible highways in North America. When the driver signals, Hands-Free Lane Change can guide the vehicle into an adjacent lane when it is safe to do so. Automatic Lane Change can also initiate passing maneuvers to overtake slower traffic.”
Lucid Navigation now integrates Google Maps Places API, which Lucid says provides richer, more contextual search results.
“Drivers can view improved business details, ratings, photos, and parking information, along with enhanced charging station listings that include more accurate real-time availability and recent imagery,” the release states.
Lucid says the new features also include:
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- Adaptive Driving Beam, available on DreamDrive Premium and DreamDrive 2 Pro: Improves nighttime visibility by maintaining high beams while dynamically adjusting around other vehicles to reduce glare.
- Advanced Preconditioning View and Predictive Charging Power: Provide greater transparency into battery temperature and expected peak charging performance before plugging in.
The release notes that the new features are only applicable to Lucid Gravity vehicles in North America. Future availability of these features in markets outside of North America may vary and will be communicated at a later date.
It also includes a disclaimer that Hands-Free Drive Assist and Hands-Free Lane Change Assist aren’t a replacement for safe, attentive driving or a driver’s judgment.
“Drivers should remain focused on the road and their surroundings at all times. Do not use with a hand-held device,” the disclaimer states. “Only use on compatible roads as indicated via an in-vehicle alert. Visibility, weather and road conditions may affect feature performance. More details and limitations will be available in your Owner’s Manual. DreamDrive 2 Pro is an optional feature.”
BMW has also announced its Hands-Free Drive Assist has logged over 200 million kilometres (over 124 million miles) driven hands-free by customers, and highlighted expanded European reach as well as the safety concept behind the feature.
The function is used daily by customers across several model ranges, including the 5 Series and 7 Series, iX, X5, X6, X7, XM, and the new BMW iX3, according to a BMW press release.
BMW says its BMW Highway Assistant enables hands-free driving on highways at speeds of up to 130 km/h (about 81 mph). The system takes over longitudinal and lateral control and supports the driver with automated lane changes confirmed with a glance, according to the release.
Mihiar Ayoubi, BMW Group’s driving experience development senior vice president, added, “The symbiotic interplay between driver and driver assistance during hands-free driving with our Highway Assistant, and the underlying safety concept, are unique in the industry. Over 200 million kilometres of hands-free highway driving in real-world customer use demonstrate just how reliable and relevant this system is in everyday life.”
With the new generation of BMW driver assistance systems, the availability of the Highway Assistant in Europe is being significantly expanded from just one country to over 20, according to the release.
The system now provides support from the motorway entrance to the exit (entry-2-exit) when navigation is active using BMW Maps. While the previous generation was available in Germany, the U.S., and Canada, the new BMW iX3 and subsequent models such as the BMW i3 and BMW 7 Series now enable customers to enjoy hands-free assisted driving on suitable routes across borders in numerous European countries due to DCAS approval. These include Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, France and the Benelux countries.
Further countries such as the UK, Ireland, Spain, and Portugal will follow shortly. In Northern, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe, the function will be available at a later date, according to the release.
Function naming in the U.S. and Canada is BMW Highway Assistant and in the UK is BMW Motorway Assistant.
Special safety concept for hands-free assisted driving on highways, motorways, and the autobahn
Hands-free assisted driving with the BMW Highway Assistant is based on a comprehensive safety concept, including redundant systems for lane detection and vehicle positioning via cameras and high-resolution maps.
“Using information from the side cameras, the system continuously checks whether the vehicle is centred in the lane,” the release states. “A safety chip on the ADAS computer constantly monitors that everything is functioning correctly.
“At the same time, the driver always remains responsible. A driver camera ensures that the driver stays alert and ready to take over at all times. To this end, the driver’s line of sight, eye status and head movements are analyzed. The system is designed to ensure that hands-free driving is restricted exclusively to suitable conditions. When the system detects that the driver needs to place their hands back on the steering wheel, it prompts them to do so – for example, when approaching a highway exit.”
For the new generation of vehicles, starting with the BMW iX3, the Motorway Assistant has been further developed with BMW Symbiotic Drive.
“The function is designed to enable seamless interaction between driver assistance systems and human driving behavior,” the release states. “When driver assistance is activated, the driver can accelerate, steer, and brake as required without immediately triggering a deactivation of the longitudinal and lateral guidance. The intuitive operating logic and clear displays in the BMW Panoramic iDrive ensure that assisted driving is intuitive and can be controlled at any time — for the safe use of SAE Level 2 automation.”
Images
Featured and second images provided by Lucid
Other secondary images provided by BMW