Open location platform company Here has announced that it is providing highly accurate high-definition (HD) map data to French automaker PSA Group to aid its testing of highly automated vehicles for the company’s Peugeot and Citroen brands.
Here is making its HD Live Map roadway data available to PSA for 17 different routes within France, totaling 932 miles (1,500km) of coverage. Here is developing its HD Live Map to provide a precise lane level and real-time representation of the road network to support the positioning, localization and strategy planning of an automated vehicle, enabling their greater safety and efficiency. For the precise sub-lane level data used by PSA for its Peugeot, Citroën and DS models, Here deploys lidar technology to collect billions of 3D points, and models road surfaces down to the number of lanes and their width. It captures important details such as the slope and curvature of the road, lane markings, and roadside objects, such as sign posts, including what that signage denotes.
Here introduced its HD Live Map at CES 2016 (Consumer Electronics Show), and since then it has been working with multiple auto makers and industry suppliers to deliver data for research and development and pilot engagements, helping drive forward the development of the autonomous vehicle.
The HD Live Map uses many different data sources, including the Here fleet of lidar-equipped data collection vehicles, which scan road networks precisely, and the sensors from connected vehicles. The data collected from these sources is then aggregated, processed and analyzed in the Here Location Cloud, and pushed out to cars on the road, offering near real-time updates so that they are always equipped with the most accurate road information possible. Over the past year, Here has been collaborating with several auto makers, including Audi and Daimler, which are both using the HD Live Map system for their commercial highly automated driving programs.
One year on from the unveiling of the HD Live Map, Here will use CES 2017 in January to showcase how it is using rich sensor data from auto maker partners to keep its maps as up-to-date and relevant as possible. The new generation of vehicle-sourced data services for the auto industry use real-time sensor data generated by connected vehicles, which is then crunched by the Open Location Platform and delivered back to drivers and vehicles, offering up-to-date information on everything from potential road hazards, to traffic updates and on-street parking.
“Precise digital maps are a key component for highly automated, and ultimately autonomous, driving,” said Bruno Bourguet, senior vice president of sales and business development at Here. “We have the expertise and experience to help our customers advance their efforts to develop this crucial technology. This agreement with PSA Group is a recognition of the high level of quality and accuracy of our maps.”
