Valeo's Cruise4U autonomous vehicle has completed an impressive 24 hour trial in Paris. The self driving car logged a total of 766km, the equivalent of driving around Paris more than 20 times, and nearly 99% of the distance and time was completed in autonomous mode.

The test took place on the 35km Paris beltway which is characterised by a number of specific features that make driving particularly challenging, with scooters and motorcycles driving between lanes, traffic jams, roadworks, faded road markings, priority on the right and short exit and entrance ramps. The Valeo prototype was able to process and anticipate these situations over the full 24-hour period, day or night, demonstrating its unique technological prowess. 

This breakthrough innovation in mobility is the result of a unique combination of solutions: A Valeo camera; radar and laser scanner technologies arranged around the entire vehicle to form a “cocoon” able to detect any obstacles at distances from as little as 10 cm to as much as 200 meters or more; and a sophisticated software program that can process data in real time to effectively analyse the vehicle’s surroundings and adjust its behaviour accordingly. 

The 24 hours spent on the Paris beltway follows the approximately 21,000km driven in the United States in summer 2016 and the 4,000km road trip taken around France in 2015. This means Valeo Cruise4U now has 125,000km on the clock, 97% of which were driven in autonomous mode, making Valeo one of the most advanced companies in terms of vehicle development. 

As leader of the driving assistance systems market and inventor of the Cruise4U technology, Valeo can now promote innovative active safety features and move ahead toward fully automated driving.