Ssangyong Motor obtains Ministry of Land approval for temporary operation of 'Level 3 Autonomous Driving Korando'

[Asia Economy Reporter Suyeon Woo] SsangYong Motor announced on the 30th that it has obtained temporary driving permission for a Level 3 autonomous vehicle based on the Korando from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and will begin test driving on public roads starting next month.

This is SsangYong Motor's second temporary permit for a Level 3 autonomous vehicle, following the 2017 autonomous vehicle based on the Tivoli Air. Since February 2016, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has implemented a temporary driving permission system for autonomous vehicles for testing and research purposes. Level 3 autonomous driving refers to conditional autonomous driving within certain areas such as highways, where the vehicle sends signals to the occupant when driver control is needed.

The Korando autonomous vehicle can not only maintain and change lanes, and keep distance and speed between vehicles, but also drive autonomously on highways, including tollgates and tollgate sections, by adhering to the maximum speed limits based on high-definition maps (HD maps) and precise positioning information.

Driving through tollgate sections requires safe navigation of highway junctions (JC) and interchanges (IC) depending on the destination, making technology development challenging. SsangYong Motor explained that when entering curved ramp sections, the vehicle reduces speed in advance to maintain a safe speed, ensuring driving stability while minimizing mechanical discomfort.

Korando autonomous vehicle equipped with Level 3 technology
Photo by Ssangyong Motor

Additionally, the Korando autonomous vehicle analyzes surrounding traffic conditions to actively and safely change lanes for junction and interchange entry, and is equipped with a function to overtake slow-moving vehicles ahead. When obstacles are detected in blind spots during lane changes, the system enhances safety by issuing driver warnings and applying lane change stop and return technologies.

Furthermore, in case of system failure or unexpected situations, visual and auditory alerts (requests for driver control transfer) are generated to allow the driver to take control. If the driver does not assume control within a certain time, the system autonomously initiates risk-minimizing driving.

SsangYong Motor began research and development related to autonomous driving in 2014 and held an autonomous vehicle demonstration event in 2015. In 2017, the company successfully completed a demonstration of intelligent transportation system autonomous driving technology through communication with domestic road infrastructure using the Tivoli autonomous vehicle, accelerating its autonomous vehicle development efforts.

SsangYong Motor stated, "The Korando autonomous vehicle, which has received temporary driving permission this time, possesses safety and reliability that bring us one step closer to Level 3 mass production autonomous driving technology." It added, "We will continue to secure future growth engines by strengthening next-generation and eco-friendly vehicle technology development and respond to the rapidly changing global automotive market."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.