China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has introduced a series of regulations that directly affect both the use of terminology and technological applications in line with the discussions that came to the agenda after the Xiaomi SU7 accident in recent weeks.
China officially bans the term ‘autonomous driving’
The new guidelines prohibit the use of terms such as ‘autonomous driving’, ‘intelligent driving’ or ‘advanced intelligent driving’. Car companies will only have to use the internationally recognised phrase ‘L (level) assisted driving’ when promoting these technologies.
In addition, beta test programmes in public areas are completely banned. Public testing of autonomous systems will only be possible if authorised through the official approval process.
The regulations also target self-driving features. Fully autonomous functions such as valet parking, ride-hailing or remote control are now banned. In addition, driver monitoring systems can no longer be switched off.
These systems will have to work in such a way that they recognise when the driver takes his hand off the steering wheel. If for 60 seconds steering control is lost, the vehicle will have to pull over safely by switching on the warning lights and slowing down.
Restrictions on automatic software updates also attracted attention. Car manufacturers will no longer be able to test ADAS systems with remote software updates on delivered vehicles. For any update, safety tests must be completed and official approval obtained in advance.
In addition, safety standards for electric vehicle batteries have been tightened to reduce the risk of fire and explosion. Chinese authorities emphasise that the main goal of the regulations is to maximise user safety.
