A Brief introduction to the *NHTSA’s Five Stages of Automation for Self-Driving Vehicles

This brief takes you into the world of Autonomous vehicles by introducing you to the 5 stages of automation as defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE).

The five stages of automation show the different levels of autonomy that self-driving cars are expected to be able to operate with, starting from Level 0, where most vehicles are today, to more sophisticated stages four and five.

There are five levels of automation recognized universally and whilst the specifics of how each level is defined might vary, the most commonly used definition is by the SAE. The different stages provided by the SAE are illustrated below:

Icon	Stage	Description
	0	The human driver is in complete control of the vehicle.
	1	The human driver sometimes receives help from an automated system inside the vehicle which controls some parts of the driving task.
	2	The automated system is responsible for directing parts of the driving task whilst the human driver continues to monitor the driving environment and perform the rest of the driving.
	3	The automated system can conduct some parts of the driving task and it can also monitor the road in some cases. However, the human driver must be ready to take back control on request.
	4	The automated system can handle the driving task and monitor the driving environment. However, it will only be able to drive within a limited range of situations, specifically within certain environments and under certain conditions.
	5	The automated system can perform all driving tasks under all conditions that a human driver would also perform.

Key Takeaway

The most exciting takeaway, is that if you do eventually find yourself in a ‘fully’ or near fully Autonomous vehicle operating at Levels 4 and 5, you will not be responsible for any of the driving. Instead, an on-board AI will be handling all of this for you. The Ministry of Transports code of practice in the UK has described vehicles at stage five as being

“Capable of safely completing [all] journeys without the need for a driver, in all traffic road and weather conditions that can be managed by a competent driver.”

So to conclude, at any rate, as long as you have faith in the competent driver or soon to be ‘AI’. Whether you’re disabled, elderly, perpetually tired, intoxicated, or just poorly motivated, you can rest assured that there will soon be an Autonomous Vehicle to meet your (almost) every driving need.

Further reading

 ‘Federal Automated Vehicles Policy: Accelerating The Next Revolution In Roadway Safety’ [2016] U.S Department of Transportation https://www.transportation.gov/sites/dot.gov/files/docs/AV%20policy%20guidance%20PDF.pdf
*National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)