Amsterdam and Munich – HERE Technologies, the leading location data and technology platform, today announced the usage of the HERE HD Live Map onboard BMW’s new 7 Series with “BMW Personal Pilot” Level 3 highly automated driving function. This marks a key milestone in the companies’ longstanding collaboration on high-definition mapping for advanced driving assistance and automated vehicle systems.
BMW’s Personal Pilot allows drivers to take their hands off the wheel and eyes off the road under certain conditions. Drivers can use the extra time to work, chat or even use entertainment features such as video streaming while the function is activated. Beginning with the new 7 Series, BMW will introduce the function starting in Germany in March 2024.
The HERE HD Live Map provides safety-enhancing data to the vehicle system for tasks such as localization, prediction and path planning, working in combination with various vehicle sensors. The HERE HD Live Map extends the functions capabilities to "see" and "plan" in scenarios where vehicle sensors alone might fall short, enhancing overall situational awareness, by delivering precise information about the road network’s features and local rules in advance.
BMW also utilizes HERE HD map data to define the operational design domain (ODD), which lets the vehicle know when and where the Personal Pilot function can be activated.
“The HERE HD Live Map plays a central role for our BMW Personal Pilot Level 3 functionality. It acts as the primary input source to create the car’s driving path, providing critical information about attributes such as geometry, lane positioning and predicting road traffic signs in time”, said Nicolai Martin, SVP Driving Experience at BMW Group. “With the BMW Personal Pilot, the car drives itself ‘on-map’, with the car’s sensors acting as an extra layer sharing the safety load with the map.”
“We are proud to support our partner BMW in bringing the next level of vehicle automation to customers,” said Jason Jameson, Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Officer at HERE Technologies. “The integration of the HERE HD Live Map with BMW's Personal Pilot function marks a significant achievement, underlining the pivotal role high-definition maps play in the future of automated driving.”
The HERE HD Live Map contains three distinct layers: