The sensing system of the automatic driving assistance system Pro of BMW iX3 is composed of ultrasonic radar, camera, short-range millimeter-wave radar and full-range millimeter-wave radar. Among them, the ultrasonic radar is mainly used in the parking assistance system, the top of the front windshield is equipped with a three-eye camera for near, medium and long-distance front visual recognition, a panoramic camera is arranged around the car body for visual recognition, and a 1 camera is arranged above the dashboard to monitor the driver's state. Short-range millimeter-wave radar is mainly used to detect adjacent lanes, and full-range millimeter-wave radar is mainly used to detect vehicles and obstacles driving ahead.
With the above rich hardware, iX3' s automatic driving assistance system Pro can realize the functions of driving assistance, traffic jam assistance, lane change assistance, emergency stop assistance, speed limit recognition assistance, automatic parking and parking assistance, tracking and reversing assistance.
Auxiliary driving
After the driver assistance function is activated, iX3 can keep driving in the current lane or follow the car in front through cameras and radars distributed around the car body. It is worth mentioning that when the lane line is unclear or disappears in a short time, the system can continue to drive along the track of the preceding vehicle, which is very intelligent and reduces the number of times the driver takes over the vehicle when using this function.
It is important to note that drivers need to keep their hands on the steering wheel during the operation of driving assistance functions to ensure driving safety. The sensor used by BMW to detect whether the driver is holding the steering wheel is capacitive. Compared with the torque sensors selected by most manufacturers at present, capacitive sensors have higher judgment accuracy and are easier to use. As long as the hand skin touches the steering wheel of iX3, the system can make a judgment.
Lane change assistance
When driving on an expressway or an urban expressway, the driver can use the turn signal to start the lane change assistance function, and then iX3 will automatically detect the surrounding environment and can automatically change lanes if conditions permit. IX3' s lane change timing is not radical, and the system-determined lane change timing also belongs to the safety category from the driver's point of view. The lane-changing action is very smooth and will be accompanied by the dynamic animation display of the dashboard. Of course, if the conditions are not allowed, such as the lane line is solid or there is a vehicle approaching obliquely behind, even if the driver turns on the turn signal, iX3 will not change lanes, ensuring the safety of people and vehicles.
Traffic congestion assistance
When the vehicle speed does not exceed 60 km/h and the vehicle map determines that the road section meets the requirements, the driver can turn on the traffic jam assistance function. When this function is turned on, the system will keep the vehicle in the lane or follow the speed of the preceding vehicle with reference to the preceding vehicle and lane line. During this period, the driver does not need to operate the steering wheel and accelerator pedal. Therefore, some people jokingly call this function "the function of liberating hands and feet", which can effectively reduce the driver's driving burden under congestion and low-speed road conditions.
It should be noted that although the hands and feet are "liberated", the driver still needs to observe the road conditions at all times and be ready to take over the vehicle at any time. The camera arranged on the dashboard will also monitor the driver's status at all times. If it is found that the driver is not paying attention to the road conditions, there will be an audible alarm and dashboard information to remind the driver. In addition, if the conditions no longer meet the requirements for starting the function, the function will automatically quit and give the driver a visual and auditory reminder, and the driver should take over the vehicle in time.
Speed limit identification assistance
This function is quite common. The camera monitors the roadside speed limit sign in real time and displays it in the instrument to remind the driver. On iX3, when the system detects the speed limit sign, the driver can set the current speed limit to cruising speed by clicking the setting button on the multi-function steering wheel, and then the vehicle will automatically adjust the speed according to the speed setting and traffic conditions, which is simple and safe.
Emergency stop assistance
When the driver can't continue driving due to sudden reasons, the emergency parking assist function can be activated by pulling up the electronic parking button and holding it for a period of time. After that, the vehicle will brake suddenly, stay in the current lane, turn on the double flashing warning rear vehicle, and automatically send an emergency call containing location information to minimize the risk of accidental collision.
Automatic parking &; Tracking and reversing auxiliary device
For novice drivers, parking is indeed a very difficult operation, but iX3 can realize automatic parking. When this function is turned on, when passing a row of parked vehicles at a speed lower than about 35km/h and a distance greater than 1.5m, the system will automatically detect the parking spaces. When there is a suitable parking space, there will be a prompt on the screen, and parking can be easily completed according to the prompt.
In daily driving, we sometimes encounter the situation of straying into a "dead end" because we are not familiar with the road conditions. If the road is too narrow to turn around, we should put into reverse gear and activate the auxiliary functions of tracking and reversing, and then iX3 will automatically reverse 50 meters along the original road, thus helping the driver to get out of trouble easily.
Combining all the above functions, the automatic driving assistance system Pro of iX3 is formed. This system is standard in all departments, and it has won 2020 E-NCAP all-star, which shows that this system is excellent. If compared with BMW's old rivals Mercedes-Benz and Audi, EQC and e-tron are really mediocre in autopilot assistance. Not only is it not as rich in function as iX3, but it is also much worse in experience. IX3 can go so far, which is not unrelated to the correct decision of BMW's electrification transformation and digital strategy.
In addition, it is worth mentioning that iX3 has just officially dropped by 70,000, and the price range of iX3 after the drop is also close to Tesla Model Y and Weilai ES6. Considering that the driver assistance system of this type of vehicle needs extra money, iX3 equipped with automatic driver assistance system Pro as standard is more competitive.
However, since the development of the automobile industry, BMW's rivals are not only Mercedes-Benz and Audi in the traditional cognition, but also the development momentum of many up-and-coming electric vehicles can not be underestimated. Moreover, these enterprises do not have the genetic shackles of traditional car companies, so they are more open to the development of new energy vehicles.
However, BMW, a big family, needs to be extra cautious when making changes. The good news is that BMW's iX3 did. As mentioned earlier, its automatic driver assistance system Pro is excellent in terms of function richness and experience. Moreover, BMW's strategic calibration of the driver assistance system is not radical, because its purpose at this stage is not to replace the driver's control of the vehicle, but to make the driving process safer, easier and smarter, which is not only an encouragement to the whole industry, but also for the immediate interests of consumers.