The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued a document saying ＂No＂ to the single pedal mode brake stop.

On May 27th, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced that in accordance with the Standardization Law of People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Administrative Measures for Compulsory National Standards, the First Division of Equipment Industry of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology organized the National Automobile Standardization Technical Committee to carry out the revision of five compulsory national standards, such as Technical Requirements and Test Methods for Passenger Car Braking System (draft for comments) (hereinafter referred to as the draft for comments), and solicited opinions from the public. The Opinion Draft has added additional requirements for vehicles equipped with electric regenerative braking system: For Type A vehicles and vehicles with both Type A and Type B electric regenerative braking systems, the braking effect achieved by releasing the accelerator pedal in the forward gear cannot slow down the vehicle to stop. Why did the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology make such a provision? What impact will this regulation bring to the automobile industry?

Simple operation and popular.
　　"A-type electric regenerative braking system" is generally called single pedal mode, and Tesla is the most used car company. Tesla’s owner’s manual shows that as long as the vehicle is running and the driver releases the accelerator pedal, the energy recovery brake will reduce the speed and transport the recovered electricity back to the battery. The recovery of braking energy of accelerator pedal can increase the driving range of pure electric vehicles. At the same time, in this mode, when the driver completely releases the accelerator pedal, the driving motor recovers kinetic energy with greater power, and the vehicle decelerates faster, which can partially replace the braking function. Therefore, in most road conditions, the driver can control the acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle through the depth of the accelerator pedal.
　　Tesla’s "stop mode" provides three options: slow, rotate and hold. If the driver starts the "go slow" mode, the vehicle will slow down after releasing the accelerator pedal, but it will not stop; "Hold" mode, after releasing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle will decelerate to the braking mode. After the "Hold" mode is started, the acceleration and deceleration are all controlled by the accelerator pedal, and the brake pedal is only used for emergency braking, and does not undertake the daily acceleration and deceleration tasks during driving.
　　"I usually start the’ hold’ mode because the braking process in this mode is very comfortable, smoother than artificial braking, and the driving experience is better." Ms. Li, who has been driving Model 3 for 5 years, is very fond of Tesla’s single pedal mode. There is also a Tesla owner who said that the single pedal mode will give the driver a muscle memory of lifting his foot and slowing down. Traditional automobile braking needs to lift the foot and then step on the brake before braking. In case of emergency, the single pedal mode is simpler to operate than the traditional braking mode, which requires shorter braking time and is therefore safer. Many Tesla owners like the simple single pedal mode.
　　However, some drivers report that they are not adapted to this model. "I am used to driving oil cars, or I am used to stepping on the brakes." In the view of Mr. Huang, the "old driver", it is safer for vehicles to have brakes.
　　Car blogger "No.42 Garage-Reinhardt" publicly expressed his support for the single pedal mode. He believes that a single pedal does not mean that the vehicle has only one pedal, and the brake pedal still exists. The single pedal mode is a "strong kinetic energy recovery+zero idle stop" mode. The former makes the vehicle slow down by the motor when the throttle is released, which can not only provide braking, but also reverse charge the battery to recover energy. The latter makes the vehicle not idle, and the vehicle can slow down to 0km/h after the accelerator is completely released at low speed in D gear, just like an electric bicycle. Tesla 3/Y domestic models do not force users to choose the single pedal mode, and there are two modes: idling and stopping at zero idle, which are always freely set by users. A few years ago, Tesla had a period of time when the system defaulted to strong kinetic energy recovery, which could not be set at that time.
　　Improper use can easily bury potential safety hazards.
　　Although the single pedal mode is loved by many consumers and has a good energy recovery effect, there has always been controversy about it. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology stated in the revised explanation of the "Draft for Comment" that with the gradual and extensive application of the A-type electric regenerative braking system technology, the driver may develop corresponding driving habits by controlling the accelerator pedal for a long time, which may lead to accidental stepping under emergency braking conditions. In order to define the position of Type A electric regeneration as an auxiliary brake, this requirement is put forward on the basis of full industry research and discussion, aiming at guiding drivers to develop good driving habits and ensuring driving safety.
　　The "Tesla brake failure" incident, which has been widely discussed by the public, is also largely due to the driver’s improper operation during use, thus creating danger. Some analysts believe that in the accident, because the driver is used to the single pedal mode, he mistakenly stepped on the accelerator pedal in an emergency.
　　Dai Yifan, assistant dean of Suzhou Automobile Research Institute of Tsinghua University, stressed that since Tesla introduced the single pedal mode, it has been accepted by many consumers because of its simple operation. At the same time, because the motor can produce better braking force and complete vehicle braking at the same time of energy recovery, this mode has also been widely used by other car companies. After much use, drivers get used to the single pedal mode, and even turn into braking without stepping on the brakes. In particular, some drivers who pursue individuality may sometimes have some extreme operations or improper operations, thus putting the vehicle in danger. Therefore, the management department will restrict the use of this function.
　　However, whether the single pedal mode will bring greater security risks is still controversial. Statistics from the National Bureau of Statistics show that by the end of 2019, traffic accidents caused by drivers stepping on the accelerator pedal by mistake accounted for 12.6% of the total traffic accidents in China. In this year, the number of new energy vehicles only accounted for 1.46% of the total number of vehicles. The Report on the Development of Road Traffic and Transportation Safety (2017) shows that in 2021, when the "single pedal mode" was used less, there were about 90,000 accidents in China where the accelerator pedal was stepped by mistake, with about 25,000 deaths and 100,000 injuries. How big is the safety hazard of a single pedal? The current data can’t give a conclusion. However, the enterprise level is constantly adjusting the application of this model.
　　In May last year, the State Administration of Markets issued a recall order involving more than 1.1 million Tesla products sold in China, because drivers were not allowed to choose the energy recovery braking strategy; At the same time, it may not provide enough reminder for the driver to step on the accelerator pedal for a long time. The superposition of these factors may increase the probability of mistakenly stepping on the accelerator pedal for a long time, and increase the risk of collision, which has potential safety hazards. Subsequently, Tesla said that it will push the following functions for vehicles within the recall range through OTA (Remote Upgrade of Vehicles) technology: on vehicles that do not have the choice of energy recovery braking intensity, provide options to allow drivers to choose energy recovery braking intensity; Adjust the factory default state of vehicle energy recovery braking strategy; Give a reminder when the driver deeply depresses the accelerator pedal for a long time.

Driving habits dominate safety.
　　The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology restricts the use of single pedal mode, which makes relevant car companies have to re-examine the braking system design of vehicles and ensure that vehicles can provide stable and reliable braking performance under any circumstances. It also sounds an alarm to car companies. While pursuing technological innovation, we cannot ignore the protection of driver safety.
　　The "Draft for Comment" also pointed out that "A-type electric regenerative braking system" may affect driving habits, and clarified the positioning of "auxiliary braking" in single pedal mode. In the single pedal mode, when the driver releases the accelerator pedal, the vehicle will decelerate and replenish electric energy through the kinetic energy recovery system, and can also decelerate continuously until it stops completely. The current regulation change does not allow the vehicle to stop completely only by releasing the accelerator pedal, that is, the driver must step on the brake pedal to complete the emergency braking. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology emphasizes that in order to clarify the positioning of Type A electric regeneration as an auxiliary brake, this requirement is put forward on the basis of full industry research and discussion, aiming at guiding drivers to develop good driving habits and ensuring driving safety.
　　An industry expert said that in the 1930s, in order to reduce the fatigue of pilots in long-term flight, three-axis stable autopilot was used in the civil aviation field, and there were doubts about pilots’ excessive dependence on machines and possible slow response in emergency situations, which finally forced the management department to formulate a series of strict standards and regulations. "The same is true for the automobile industry. The single pedal model has also encountered similar tests at present, and the application of new technologies is always developing in the debate." The industry expert stressed, "At present, the key to the safety hazard of the single pedal mode is driving habits, which is also the purpose of amending the relevant regulations in the Draft for Comment."
　　"This is just a matter of software settings and driving habits. Enterprises only need to make changes to software settings, which has little impact." According to Dai Yifan, from the operational level, it is not too difficult for car companies to change their design and stop with single pedal mode. The key is to guide safe driving habits through the change of mode.