He is standing next to the company’s P7 electric sedan while addressing the media at the Xiaopeng 2020 Beijing Auto Show.
Evelyn Cheng | CNBC
Guangzhou, China – Chinese electric car maker Expang Motors has announced a new autonomous driving facility. Designed to work on highways, as it will advance its challenge against local competitors as well as Tesla.
A feature called a navigation-guided pilot or NGP – will allow the company’s flagship P7 sedan to automatically change lanes, speed up or slow down, or let cars overtake and enter and exit the highway.
It is part of the next generation of advanced driver-assistance called Expang’s XPILOT 3.0. The system (ADAS) that the company expects to launch in the first quarter of this year. ADAS refers to a system with some autonomous features but where a driver is still required.
Expang is a Chinese electric vehicle start-up that wants to advance in the country’s growing market as it battles US stars such as the Neo and Lee Auto Toe, as well as the US electric car giant Tesla.
Mass delivery of the P7 sedan, a direct competitor of Tesla’s Model Dell 3, began last June. Xpeng delivered 27,041 vehicles in 2020 – more than double the number a year ago.
The challenge for NGP Tesla’s autonomous ADAS is as a topilot. One of the features of Op Topilot is called Navigate Onig Topilot, which has functions like Expang’s NGP.
Chinese electric vehicle companies are considering adding more autonomous features to their cars. Neo has its own system called NIO Pilot.
How the Expang’s System Works
The driver must watch the safety video before being able to turn on Expang’s highway driving function. Drivers need to keep their hands on the wheel while using the vehicle’s autonomous driving features.
Users then input their destination into the map. The car will then start doing some tasks like lane switching by itself.
Drivers will be alerted when they need to take control of the car itself, for example, during adverse weather conditions or a road accident.
Xpeng said its cars are equipped with 14 cameras and other complex sensors. Nvidia’s Xavier Computing System Power XPILOT 3.0.
The highway driving feature will be available on the premium version of the P7 and is only available to customers in China.
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