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Honda Aiming for 'Level 4' Automated Driving by 2025

Level 4 (high automation) means the vehicle can handle all driving tasks in most situations, with possible exceptions during inclement weather or unusual driving environments, where a driver would be required to take over.

Angela Moscaritolo
 & Angela Moscaritolo Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

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Eight years from now, you may be able to buy a highly-automated Honda vehicle that can drive you around most of the time.

The automaker on Wednesday said it's targeting 2025 for the introduction of vehicles with "SAE level 4" automated driving systems. The SAE International standard defines automated driving based on six levels of capability, ranging from zero (no automation) to 5 (full automation). Level 4 (high automation) means the vehicle can handle all driving tasks in most situations, with possible exceptions during inclement weather or unusual driving environments, where a driver would be required to take over.

Honda previously announced its intention to introduce vehicles with highly-automated freeway driving capability (SAE level 3) by 2020. In a news release, Honda said these goals are "critical steps" in its "commitment to contribute to a collision-free society."

"We are striving to provide our customers with a sense of confidence and trust by offering automated driving that will keep vehicles away from any dangerous situation and that will not make people around the vehicle feel unsafe," Honda President and CEO Takahiro Hachigo said at a Wednesday media briefing in Japan.

The company at the event showed off its automated vehicle technologies in freeway and urban driving scenarios.

Honda conducted the freeway demo on a closed test course using a vehicle equipped with an "advanced suite of sensors," including multiple cameras, five LiDAR (light detections and ranging) sensors, and five radar sensors. The company showed how the vehicle can drive itself on the freeway, even with other cars on the road.

In the urban driving demo, Honda offered a look at its latest generation artificial intelligence technology with deep learning capability, which can "sense and respond to complex driving environments and situations, such as roads without proper lane markings," the company said. "The system also can detect pedestrians and bicyclists at night with only partial visibility." It also gets smarter over time, and "improve its ability to predict an outcome" based on what's happened in the past.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade. 

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes. 

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app. 

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth. 

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light. 

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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