Mercedes Gets the OK to Roll Out Advanced Autonomous Driving in Nevada

The state of Nevada has officially given Mercedes permission to sell vehicles with the most advanced autonomous software available to US consumers.

Mercedes first announced(Opens in a new window) Nevada had accepted its application at CES 2023 earlier this month; as of Thursday, the final certification steps are complete.

Mercedes S-Class and EQS Sedans for the 2024 model year will have Level 3 autonomous capabilities, with the first customer deliveries beginning in the second half of 2023. Last year, Mercedes also became the first automaker in Europe to achieve this certification, and has been selling vehicles with the software in Germany since May 2022.

“Certification in Nevada marks the start of [an] international rollout and, with it, the dawning of a new era,” says(Opens in a new window) Markus Schäfer, chief technology officer at Mercedes. “This significant milestone sets the ground-breaking Mercedes-Benz Drive Pilot system apart as the first and only Level 3 system in a standard-production vehicle authorized for use on US public freeways.”

Conditional Automation

Level 3 refers to an automation range from 0 to 6, as determined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). Six is the highest level, with no steering wheel required. Mercedes’ Level 3 vehicles are considered “conditional automation,” where the vehicle can detect the environment and perform most tasks, although human drivers are still required.

As Mercedes explains: “The driver must be ready to take control of the vehicle at all times when prompted to intervene by the vehicle.”

Tesla’s Autopilot is considered Level 2 autonomous driving, and is therefore less advanced. Level 2 means “partial automation,” according to the SAE, where the vehicle can primarily perform acceleration and steering. The driver is expected to monitor and intervene as necessary, as well as perform other functions, such as merging.

The Mercedes Drive Pilot software takes in information collected from exterior cameras, microphones, and LiDAR to learn its surroundings (like road wetness) and act accordingly.

Mercedes Drive Pilot autonomous system
(Credit: Mercedes)

Mercedes drivers activate the software by pressing a button on the rim of the steering wheel. Once the system detects suitable conditions—typically freeways with high traffic density—it will signal to the driver that they may turn Drive Pilot on.

There is one limitation: It only works up to 40mph. Given highways have a speed limit above 40mph, it’s unclear how often drivers can use the feature, although waiting in traffic is an obvious one where such automation would likely be welcome.

“When the driver activates Drive Pilot, the system controls the speed and distance, and effortlessly guides the vehicle within its lane,” Mercedes says. “Events occurring on the route and traffic signs are correspondingly taken into consideration. The system also reacts to unexpected traffic situations and handles them independently, [for example] by evasive maneuvers within the lane or by braking maneuvers.”

Mercedes says its software is “much more powerful than conventional GPS systems.” The software, which runs on a chip in the vehicle’s central control unit, works together with the hardware on the vehicle (cameras, LiDAR sensors, etc.) to continuously process images and generate a high-resolution 3D map of the road.

Mercedes with Drive Pilot operating in Germany.
(Credit: Mercedes)

“Each vehicle also stores an image of this map information on board, constantly compares it with the backend data and updates the local dataset as required,” Mercedes says. “All of this enables stable and accurate positioning through a representation of the surroundings that is independent of factors such as shadows or dirty sensors.”

The vehicles still remain “maneuverable even if one of these systems fails and a safe handover to the driver can be ensured.”

If a driver is unresponsive and fails take back control of a car after “increasingly urgent prompting,” the car will come to a stop “in a controlled manner” and turn on its hazard lights. The Mercedes-Benz emergency call system will be activated and the doors will unlock so first responders can access the car.

On-the-road results with autonomous systems have been mixed. Between June 2021 and November 2022, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) logged 18 fatal crashes involving cars with Level 2 automation, 16 of them Teslas. A BMW in Germany with Level 2 autonomy also was involved in a fatal crash(Opens in a new window) last summer.

Another issue is liability and legal issues if a self-driving vehicle gets in an accident. At a roundtable discussion at CES, Schäfer told PCMag that if the vehicle is responsible for the crash, the company will be held liable and not the driver.

Next, Mercedes will likely receive approval for the technology in the state of California. The company has already submitted its application and expects approval later this year.