Levels of self-driving cars

Cars that can assist drivers or even drive themselves are no longer a fantasy but are gradually becoming a reality in the near future.

According to this definition given by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) in 2014, self-driving cars are divided into 5 levels.

3 - 4 years is the time when we will have self-driving cars on the market. Self-driving cars in the future will not need human presence at all, that is, they will drive themselves, brake themselves if there are obstacles, steer themselves... According to this definition given by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) in 2014, self-driving cars are divided into 5 levels.

Level 0

Level 0 relies entirely on the driver behind the wheel to control the vehicle’s features. There are no self-driving features. Most cars on the market today can be classified as level 0, including cars with features like collision warning or blind spot sensors.

Level 1

Cars with automatic emergency braking are in level 1.

There are some driver assistance features that can control the speed or direction of the car, but not both. Level 1 examples include cruise control - which automatically maintains the accelerator pedal when the driver sets it. Subaru also has active lane control on popular cars. Cars with automatic emergency braking are also in this level 1.

Level 2

Level 2 autonomous driving is more supportive, but it cannot drive itself in all situations, including merging on the highway. Some premium automakers already offer the ability to control steering and speed simultaneously without driver interaction for a certain period of time (less than 1 minute). Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW all offer Level 2 capabilities, but all require the driver to monitor the surrounding environment while the car is moving. Tesla's Autopilot can also be considered a Level 2 autonomous feature, adjusting steering effort based on the driver's attention.

Level 3

Conditional self-driving. Unlike level 2, level 3 autonomous cars can operate themselves in all situations, they will also monitor road conditions, but will return to human control when they can no longer handle the situation.

Level 3 autonomous cars can operate autonomously in all situations, monitoring road conditions themselves.

According to the definition from SAE, level 3 vehicles will require human intervention when the self-driving system fails, but according to some car manufacturers, they believe this can affect the safety of the driver, some car manufacturers such as Ford or Volvo announced that they will skip this stage.

Level 4

Almost self-driving. At level 4, the car will no longer require driver interaction and the system will stop automatically when it detects an error. Some car manufacturers such as Tesla or Mercedes-Benz have integrated features to automatically reduce the speed of the car or warn with lights if the driver is distracted. Recently, Ford and Volvo both announced that they will launch level 4 self-driving cars before 2021.

Level 5

Fully autonomous. This is the final level and if a car reaches this level, it will be able to drive itself in all conditions, without the presence of a driver. Levels 4 and 5 are a huge leap and require a lot of technological improvements. Level 5 does not require a human, it will handle the situation itself when it arises.

Level 5 is the final level, it can drive itself in all conditions, without the need for a driver.

Basic car parts such as accelerator, steering wheel, brake pedal will not be needed in this final level of self-driving car, because there will be no human on board. No car company has given a specific schedule for this final level, only a general timeline of about a decade from now.

A recent study by Navigant suggests that self-driving cars will initially be for ride-sharing services (like Uber and Lyft today) rather than for individual users, and they will be operated by automakers to better manage safety. But we are getting closer and closer to fully autonomous technology.

According to Zing