Daimler and Bosch have teamed up to realise driverless parking (Automated Valet Parking) in the multi-storey car park at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart. Cars now proceed without a driver to their assigned parking space in response to a command issued by smartphone, without any need for the driver to supervise the manoeuvre. Automated valet parking marks an important milestone on the way to autonomous driving. The pilot solution at the multi-storey car park of the Mercedes-Benz Museum represents the world's first infrastructure-supported solution for an automated drive-up and parking service in real-life dual operating mode. From the beginning of 2018, visitors to the museum's multi-storey car park will be able to experience the convenient service at first hand and avoid spending time parking their cars.

"We are approaching autonomous driving faster than many people suspect. The driverless parking solution at the Mercedes-Benz Museum demonstrates in impressive fashion just how far the technology has come," said Dr Michael Hafner, Head of Automated Driving and Active Safety at Mercedes-Benz Cars Development. "Parking will be an automated process in the future. By applying an intelligent multi-storey car park infrastructure and networking it with vehicles, we have managed to realise driverless parking substantially earlier than planned," said Gerhard Steiger, Director of the Chassis Systems Control unit at Bosch.

(Continued on next page)