The Chinese government has released new mandatory national standards regarding the safety requirements of autonomous driving systems. Nothing needs to be done urgently, as the new standards don’t go into effect until July 1, 2027. The standards apply to M- and N-category vehicles with Level 3 and Level 4 autonomous driving systems. However, they do not cover automated parking systems at all. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced the new standards on Tuesday, August 4. “The standard requires vehicle manufacturers to improve safety assurance mechanisms throughout the product life cycle and carry out simulation, field and road tests during the development and verification of autonomous driving systems, according to the MIIT,” China Daily writes. “It also calls for stronger capabilities in performing dynamic driving tasks, while specifying requirements for human-machine interaction and user notification to prevent misuse and abuse.” That includes requiring that the vehicles be capable of monitoring the driver and their readiness to take over control of the vehicle if needed. “Looking ahead, the ministry said that it will strengthen market access management for intelligent connected vehicle products, improve testing methods for autonomous driving systems, and build a sound regulatory mechanism for intelligent connected vehicles to ensure the sector’s high-quality development.” This is just the beginning, though. MIIT plans to keep developing and refining the standards. Considering how fast the industry is developing, this could be quite the challenge. On the other hand, if the cars are good enough at driving themselves, how much supervision and refinement is needed?
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