According to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA), automated vehicles can save lives and reduce injuries. NHTSA reports that in 2018 more than 36,560 people died in motor vehicle-related crashes in the United States. NHTSA explains this by noting that, per their research, 94 percent of serious crashes are due to human error. Automated vehicles can remove human error and avoid crashes, protecting drivers, passengers, cyclists, and pedestrians.
Safety Confidence
But autonomous vehicle design has its own technology hurdles to overcome to make these vehicles safe and ready to use. In 2019, Deloitte surveyed more than 35,000 consumers in 20 countries about 
the future of automobiles. Their report, “2020 Global Automotive Consumer Study: Is Consumer Interest in Advanced Automotive Technologies on the Move?” discussed different facets of the automobile but focused partially on autonomous vehicles. An overarching concern, by consumers, seems to be safety. In the study, about half of those surveyed feel that autonomous vehicles of the future will not be safe.
The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) has outlined six levels of driving automation. The levels range from level 0, which is fully manual, to level 5, or fully autonomous. Level 3 means “An automated driving system (ADS) on the vehicle can itself perform all aspects of the driving task under some circumstances. In those circumstances, the human driver must be ready to take back control at any time when the ADS request the human driver to do so. In all other circumstances, the human driver performs the driving task.”
Level 4 means “An automated driving system (ADS) on the vehicle can itself perform all driving tasks and monitor the driving environment—essentially, do all the driving—in certain circumstances. The human need not pay attention in those circumstances.”
Deloitte, in another study, looked at the future of automobile sales in the year 2035. “The largest technological hurdle lies between level 3 and level 4 autonomous driving. The expectation is that at least level 4 is to be applied initially in specific use cases only.”
Overcoming Technological Hurdles
While there’s much talk about autonomous vehicles, safety concerns mean that some technological
hurdles will need to be overcome. Eric Trantina is a product manager at Laird Performance Materials, a global company with locations in Asia, Europe, and North America, who designs materials and components that go into autonomous vehicles.
“As autonomous vehicles move to full autonomy, they need more fidelity, accuracy and reliability in their sensors, be it cameras, lidar, or radar,” he says. “The need to preserve safety by limiting false positives and negatives is paramount.”
This points to a potential payoff from autonomous vehicles: when the technological hurdles are crossed, and the right designs prevail, they can be an added boon to automobile safety. Such safety is welcomed and much needed.
Simulate. Design. Repeat.
Simulation is an effective strategy to overcome technological hurdles that lead to a safe and effective autonomous vehicle at levels 3 and 4. Last year, Dassault Systèmes and Cognata, Ltd. partnered to include Cognata’s Autonomous Vehicle Simulation Suite into Dassault Systèmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE platform. This allows autonomous vehicle developers to define, test, and experience autonomous driving, while in development, by reducing their risk and the risk of autonomous vehicle users by providing a faster, accurate, and safer autonomous vehicle to be put on the road.
According to the press release, “Simulation is key at all stages of cyber systems engineering,” said Philippe Laufer, CATIA CEO at the time of the announcement and now EVP for all Dassault Systemes global brands. “Billions of miles must be virtually run before a car can be considered safe. AI-powered experiences that combine vehicle behavior, sensors, and traffic models allow alternative designs to be tested in the concept phase to identify the optimal engineering solution. Integrating Cognata’s accurate and comprehensive offering into the 3DEXPERIENCE platform creates a unique solution to help our customers greatly reduce the time to market of safe autonomous vehicles.”
Simulation and other design tools will be crucial to close in on autonomous vehicles that instill drivers with confidence in their safety. There are many different components of technology within an autonomous vehicle design. Many of these components must integrate well with each other to replace the human driver.
PwC, in their report, “Changing Lanes. As Autonomous Vehicles Transform the Value Chain, What Moves Will You Make?” may have summarized it best:
“Whether you think that mass adoption of self-driving cars is right around the corner, or—as we firmly believe—still well beyond the horizon, it’s indisputable that the decisions being made today will have a profound impact on the structure of the industry far into the future.”
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