Kia have announced plans to introduce a range of partially-autonomous driving technologies to its model line-up whilst it aims to bring its first fully-autonomous car to market by 2030. The initial stage of investment by Kia will enable the company to develop the first of its new Advanced Driver Assistance System technologies and employ a greater number of engineers.
“Fully-autonomous vehicles are still some way off, and a great deal of research and rigorous product testing will need to be carried out to make the ‘self-driving car’ a reality. Kia is still in the early stages of developing its own technologies, and we are confident that the latest innovations – both partially and fully autonomous – will ultimately make driving safer for everyone.” – Tae-Won Lim, Vice President, Central Advanced Research and Engineering Institute of Hyundai Motor Group.
With ADAS still in its infancy, Kia is working closely with suppliers and affiliated companies to develop a range of technologies across three distinct categories to enable a vehicle to drive autonomously: Recognition, Judgment and Control. Many of the ADAS technologies require simultaneous input from more than one sensor, with much of Kia’s investment into R&D allowing them to secure localised knowledge and establish a production-base for the high precision sensors required.
Kia are also developing Highway Driving Assist (HDA) technology, which combines a Lane Guidance System (LGS) and Advanced Smart Cruise Control (ASCC), Traffic Jam Assist (TJA), an enhanced version of the existing Smart Parking Assist System (SPAS) and Remote Advanced Parking Assist System (RAPAS). These new technologies will join the suite of technologies already offered by Kia on its latest production vehicles in many of its global markets and are designed to make driving safer and identifying hazards easier.
Kia are targeting 2030 for the introduction of fully-autonomous vehicles with a key part of Kia’s development of fully-autonomous driving technologies.
