Can motorhomes also be automated? Is this possible in the foreseeable future?
Autonomous driving itself will be a long time coming and the old promises that it will be ready soon have all had to be canceled. Autonomous driving will not be possible for a long time. That also implies the motorhomes, but there are more interesting details to consider here.
Motorhomes already have modern technology that makes driving easier. Such assistance systems help, for example, when parking backwards, when maneuvering in narrow areas and they help in strong winds track to keep. With its dimensions, a motorhome has a large area that can be caught by the wind. Such cross winds can be quite dangerous. Technology has already found an answer here.
But the idea of a motorhome is to travel to remote areas. Driving into nature and just spending the night there. But these areas may not be well mapped. Modern systems rely on permanently updated maps, which are usually very accurate. This is ensured by constantly driving vehicles whose sensor data in the cloud updates and, if necessary, expands the map material. Where one is secluded, however, not many vehicles drive around.
Furthermore, autonomous driving requires a good internet connection. Not just to match the data on the maps, but possibly also to avoid having to have the computing power in the car. The evaluation of the sensors, the map comparison, the route calculation – all of this may require access to the network, because calculations that are never necessary may be carried out in a data center. Because the power consumption such a system is not to be despised. If future mobility is electric, demand will be even higher.
Motorhomes, which come in different versions and according to different needs (See here a list of Types of Motorhomes), will experience some partial automation. The goal is also already explained, like the manufacturer Hymer made. The automation will then probably only succeed on part of the route. But you probably have to cover the last mile to the nocturnal location yourself.