Freightliner Says New Cascadia Has First Level 2 Automation in North America

Daimler Trucks North America announced it's now offering the first SAE Level 2 automated truck in series production in North America with the latest enhancements to the Freightliner new Cascadia for the 2020 model year. Level 2 automation means the truck is capable of both lateral (steering) and longitudinal (acceleration/deceleration) control - but Daimler also wants to put Level 4 automated trucks on North American roads this year.

The company made the announcement during the CES electronics show in Las Vegas Monday, Jan. 7, where parent company Daimler Trucks also announced additional investment in automation - and that it's reassessing truck platooning after testing "currently shows no business case" for the technology on new aerodynamic trucks.

Automating acceleration, deceleration, and steering reduces the chance for human error, mitigates collisions, and can potentially save lives, DTNA said. These technologies can also enhance the driver experience by making the truck-driving task easier.

The move is backed by parent company Daimler Trucks, which announced at CES an investment of over half a billion dollars and more than 200 new jobs in its global push to put highly automated trucks (SAE Level 4) on the road within a decade. Most of these jobs will be located at the new Daimler Trucks Automated Truck Research & Development Center at DTNA's headquarters in Portland, Oregon.

Source: Heavy Duty Trucking