There are various definitions for the term digitalisation. The stable networking of systems in real time is important for autonomous driving. The Gabler economics encyclopaedia provides a useful explanation:
The term “digitalisation” has a range of meanings. It can refer to the digital transformation and representation or provision of information and communication, or the digital modification of instruments, devices and vehicles, as well as the digital revolution, also known as the third industrial revolution, or the digital transition. In the latter context, which is the focus of this paper, the terms “information age” and “computerisation” are also used. While in the 20th century information technology (IT) primarily served the purpose of automation and optimisation, the modernisation of private households and workplaces, the creation of computer networks and the introduction of software products such as office programmes and enterprise resource planning systems, since the beginning of the 21st century, disruptive technologies and innovative business models as well as autonomising, flexibilisation and individualisation have been at the heart of digitalisation. The process has taken a new direction and is entering into the fourth industrial revolution, referred to for its part by the term “Industry 4.0” (or “Enterprise 4.0”).
