Audi 2014 Annual Report Download - page 162

ECONOMIC REPORT
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
162 >>
Audi prologue show car
/ INNOVATIONS FOR SAFETY AND COMFORT
// DRIVER ASSISTANCE SYSTEMS
With our extensive range of innovative driver assistance systems,
we make the driving experience even more convenient for our
customers. All driver assistance systems, from adaptive cruise
control (ACC) with stop&go function – an automatic distance
control system – to traffic sign recognition – a system to display
the current speed limit for the driver – are tightly integrated.
The assistance systems support drivers and reduce their work-
load, but always leave them in charge of the vehicle.
Various driver assistance systems from the full-size category
are now also available in our premium compact vehicles. For
example, an extensive range of standard features significantly
improves safety in our new TT generation. Systems such as
attention assist and the adaptive brake light in the LED rear
lights help to avoid accidents. The Audi TT 2.0 TFSI and TTS
models also come with the Audi active lane assist function –
a technology that informs drivers as soon as they change lanes
without indicating and, depending on its settings, guides the
vehicle back.
Audi is also working intensively on the development of various
technologies for piloted driving. Piloted driving means that in
certain situations the driver surrenders the task of driving. One
particular system can make the driver’s task easier by auto-
matically taking charge of steering, accelerating and braking
the vehicle in traffic congestion at speeds of up to 60 km/h.
Piloted parking can also assist our customers with tight, awk-
ward parking maneuvers. In the future, the driver will be able
to initiate a maneuver into or out of a parking space performed
by the vehicle itself at the press of a button, without the driver
actually needing to be in the vehicle.
Audi demonstrated the impressive potential of piloted driving
during the final date in the German Touring Car Masters (DTM)
calendar. The RS 7 piloted driving concept lapped the Hocken-
heim Grand Prix circuit at racing speeds, entirely without a driver.
Journalists were able to witness piloted driving live from the
driver’s seat in a car driving to the Consumer Electronics Show
(CES) in Las Vegas at the start of 2015. The Audi A7 piloted
driving concept competently handled a variety of everyday
driving situations on a long-distance journey from Silicon Valley
to Las Vegas.