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BMW launches Personal Pilot L3: What it means for the future of automated driving

The future of mobility is unfolding before us, and BMW is at the forefront of this transformation. With the recent launch of Highly Automated Driving in the Series 7 model, BMW has become the first automaker to introduce a vehicle equipped with both Level 2 and Level 3 driving assistance systems. This milestone is setting new industry standards for safety, convenience, and the innovations in the consumer driving experience.

The road to autonomous driving

The path to fully autonomous driving (in which no human intervention is required) is continuously evolving. While Level 2 and Level 3 systems are well-suited to open roads, fully autonomous vehicles must be prepared for the complexities of diverse and dynamic environments. Urban settings, challenging weather, and unpredictable scenarios require vehicles to make rapid decisions while ensuring absolute safety. These vehicles must navigate traffic patterns, respond to pedestrians, and make split-second decisions that combine safety and efficiency.

This future demands flawless accuracy and reliable real-time data. We believe that this is where GNSS technology steps in as an invaluable asset to Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). GNSS (more commonly known as GPS, the U.S. system) has the unique capability of providing absolute location, helping to calibrate and initiate other sensors. As automated driving becomes more widely accessible, GNSS accuracy becomes important in real-world conditions.

Factors impacting GNSS accuracy

Three key factors influence GNSS accuracy in autonomous driving systems:

Multipath: Satellite signals reflect off tall buildings, trees and other obstructions and cause multipath interference. In dense urban areas, this is called the “urban canyon effect”. These reflected signals can cause inaccuracies in positioning and timing measurements, degrading the overall performance of GNSS. It can lead to errors in determining the user's position.

In dense vegetation, signals can also be weakened, making it harder for the receiver to get an accurate position.

Antenna design: Antenna design also plays a key role in positioning accuracy. It determines how effectively a vehicle can calculate positions for navigation, communication, and safety functions. Factors like frequency range, gain, radiation pattern, and form factor significantly influence how well a vehicle's systems can interact with GNSS, cellular networks, and other communication channels. For modern vehicles, achieving optimal antenna design is a balancing act between aesthetic and functional needs. While premium antenna systems maximise accuracy, automakers may seek more discreet or concealed designs, often trading performance for appearance.

Spoofing: Although GNSS spoofing is more commonly associated with planes rather than cars, it is an emerging cybersecurity threat that allows hackers to deceive a GPS receiver, causing it to report a false location. In August 2024 alone, 1,000 flights were affected every day by GPS spoofing. In fully autonomous vehicles, this poses a serious risk by potentially leading the car to navigate based on inaccurate location data, which could compromise the safety of the vehicle, passengers and other road users. In 2019, a staged attack caused a Tesla Model 3 to steer off its course, demonstrating the vulnerability of GNSS receivers to potential spoofing attacks. .

Enhanced GNSS accuracy for automated driving

At FocalPoint, we are committed to enhancing GNSS accuracy, safety and reliability. By enhancing the GNSS chipset’s sensitivity and performance, our technology supports automated driving systems in reaching new levels of coverage.

As a software upgrade to existing GNSS receivers, S-GNSS Auto® integrates into the vehicle’s sensor ecosystem, boosting measurement performance up to 5x. This means your vehicles can operate at their best, not just on open roads, but also in challenging environments. This precision is essential for a smooth, responsive driving experience that meets the high standards of safety and performance BMW exemplifies.

Our technology simplifies the engineering process for faster, more efficient development while also allowing automotive manufacturers to replace their costly, bulky antennas with smaller, more concealed designs without sacrificing performance.

Benefits of S-GNSS Auto include:

  • Software solution: Easily upgradable and improves accuracy at the measurement level

  • Add on, not instead of: Complementary to all GNSS correction-based services

  • Cost: Reduces the need for unnecessary high quality hardware

  • Widens accessibility: Allows ease of mass-market accessibility, sustainably

Recent trials, conducted in regions around the world including London’s Canary Wharf and Germany’s Black Forest, showed promising results.

Figure 1 (above) illustrates the improvement in position accuracy achieved by S-GNSS® Auto, closely aligning with the ground truth positioning. The blue line is positioned on top of the true trajectory (green line), thereby enhancing the measurements for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). Conversely, the red line, which deviates onto the pavement, indicates a potential ADAS failure when S-GNSS® Auto is not activated.

We would welcome the opportunity to demonstrate to BMW stakeholders how GNSS as a sensor plays a key role in the path to autonomy and market differentiation in line with your evolving customer expectations. Together, we can work towards our shared vision of redefining the future of mobility, with safety and sustainability as our core values.

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