Mercedes-BenzMercedes-BenzGermany, 1924 > present197 models
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and NissanNissanJapan, 1932 > present159 models
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have both declared that they will have autonomous driving technology on sale by 2020, and AudiAudiGermany, 1909 > present83 models
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has also been working on autonomous tech. ToyotaToyotaJapan, 1937 > present155 models
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as put more of a focus on hybrids than on autonomous driving, but it is working on improving its tech and will have its second generation on sale by the middle of the decade.

Toyota says that it will have semi-autonomous driving systems on sale by the mid-2010s in its cars. Its system is called Automated Highway Driving Assist and combines adaptive cruise control and lane keeping. Drivers can take control of the system at any time.

The adaptive cruise control uses adds car-to-car communication to transmit speed and direction data to surrounding vehicles. It reduces the amount of unnecessary acceleration and deceleration to improve fuel economy and reduce traffic congestion.

The lane-keeping system combines cameras and millimeter-wave radar to view the area around the car and keep steering inputs smooth.

Toyota is starting real-world trials of the system on the highways around Tokyo on October 15.

The next step will be to add cameras that can detect traffic signals and sensors on the corners of vehicles to examine vehicles, pedestrians or obstacles at intersections or for merging traffic lanes.

An offshoot of the semi-autonomous driving is that Toyota is launching a system called PCS (Pedestrian-avoidance with no steer assist) in 2015 on several models. A version of the system with steering assist is already available on the Lexus LSLexus LS Gen.4Japan, 2006 > present40 versions
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, but Toyota thinks it will be several years before it is cheap enough to put on mass market models.

The system uses pre-collision, automatic braking to prevent low-speed collisions. When the steering assist function is added it can activate at the higher speed and steer the car out of the path of an accident.

Toyota’s system is similar to the one used by VolkswagenVolkswagenGermany, 1938 > present98 models
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for its City Braking system. Both use a front-mounted sensor to scan for pedestrians or other obstacles. If it detects an accident is imminent, it first issues a visual warning, then an audio warning and finally is activates the automatic braking and steering systems.

In the more immediate term, Lexus is adding an, optional LexusLexusJapan, 1989 > present26 models
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Hotspot in-car Wi-Fi system in the ISLexus Lexus IS Gen.3Japan, 2013 > present18 versions
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, GSLexus GS Gen.4Japan, 2012 > present19 versions
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, CTLexus CTJapan, 2010 > present21 versions
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and RXLexus RX Gen.3Japan, 2009 > present28 versions
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that allows for five Wi-Fi devices to be used simultaneously.

The system uses two 3G antennas to the car to obtain the signal and broadcasts it throughout the car for occupants to connect to. The system starts up as soon as the car is started and works with a GSM operator by inserting a SIM card.

Lexus says that it allows users to switch their phones over to Wi-Fi mode to safe battery power.