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Ford launches BlueCruise: Not an "Autopilot," but a big step in assisted driving
The German subsidiary of the US automaker Ford has received approval from the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) for the use of BlueCruise technology in Germany. With it, drivers are allowed to take their hands off the steering wheel on certain sections of the autobahns, called Blue Zones, while continuing to "remain attentive to the traffic situation," as the manufacturer puts it. The system is designed to relieve the driver and enable a more relaxed arrival. The technical basis for the approval is an infrared camera mounted behind the steering wheel that checks whether the driver is still observing the traffic situation. In this way, active monitoring of the traffic situation and control of the vehicle by the driver are ensured.
"We are very pleased that we can now offer our customers this innovative technology in Germany as well, after becoming the first manufacturer in Europe with such a system in April in the UK," said Martin Sander, Managing Director of Ford Model e Europe.
Through sensors such as the forward-facing front camera, the system detects lane markings, speed limits, and changing traffic conditions. Based on this information, the assistance system controls steering, acceleration, braking, and the positioning of the vehicle within its own lane. Depending on the speed, it maintains the appropriate distance from the vehicle ahead – up to stopping and starting in stop-and-go traffic, as the manufacturer further outlines. At the same time, the infrared camera positioned behind the steering wheel detects whether the driver continues to give their full attention to the current traffic situation.
Worldwide data collected from more than a million test kilometers formed the basis for a successful approval in Germany. A competitive system has been developed, emphasizes Torsten Wey, Head of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems at Ford Europe. In the USA and Canada, more than 194,000 vehicles of the Ford and Lincoln brands have driven over 175 million kilometers in BlueCruise mode, summarizes the provider. The system has been in series production there since 2021.
In Europe, engineers tested the latest generation of advanced driver assistance systems and associated functions over an additional 160,000 kilometers in public road traffic. Validation drives in the UK confirmed that the assistance systems can also handle difficult conditions, such as worn lane markings, bad weather, and construction sites, promotes the manufacturer. In Germany, the all-electric Mustang Mach-E* will be the first model to be launched with the Ford BlueCruise system. The ordering option will be available in the next few weeks.
What does that mean?
Following the hype triggered by Tesla around "Autopilot" and supposedly autonomous driving, which has not been fulfilled so far, Ford is bringing the debate down to a reasonable level and honestly refers to its system as "assisted driving" at its launch. This is more honest than their Californian counterparts with their visionary Elon Musk, who raised much too high expectations that the Tesla Autopilot has never met. Sensitive maneuvers like lane changes or overtaking are something we still prefer to do ourselves in a Tesla.
Currently, when it comes to the rule quality (and honesty) of semi-automated driving, the "old European" manufacturers Mercedes-Benz and BMW are leading, as their systems are significantly more mature and thoroughly implemented. VW is also now at a good level. Ford had to catch up to that. The question remains whether drivers will react positively to constantly being monitored for attentive behavior. In Chinese cars (which also promise a lot in terms of autonomous driving and do not deliver everything), this is already standard, but as a driver, you still get an uneasy feeling every time.
Translated automatically from German.
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