Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Tesla CEO Elon Musk likes autonomous driving cars, but prefers term 'autopilot'

Looks like Tesla might be hiding more in its software than blind spot detection and adaptive cruise control. According to Bloomberg, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is "discussing" autonomous cars with Google, specifically the Lidar laser tracking system. Oh, and if you're going to have a self-driving future Tesla vehicle, then you shouldn't call it autonomous. Instead, Musk prefers the term autopilot. As he told Bloomberg, "Self-driving sounds like it's going to do something you don't want it to do. Autopilot is a good thing to have in planes, and we should have it in cars."

Any Tesla robot chauffeur is a ways away – Musk Tweeted it is "still a few years from production," but Google has been working hard on driverless cars (with green cred, too, since the test mules are mostly Toyota Prius hybrids). In fact, the search company says the technology could be ready for prime time in as little as three to five years – though safety regulations and other logistical questions will likely push that back, perhaps a decade. The government's work on self-driving vehicles is mostly the purview of DARPA and its Urban Challenge and Grand Challenge test courses.

Musk says – surprise – that Tesla's system is better than what's come before, telling Bloomberg, "The problem with Google's current approach is that the sensor system is too expensive. Its better to have an optical system, basically cameras with software that is able to figure out what's going on just by looking at things." He did try to quell excitement about the idea of a driverless Telsa by Tweeting, "Am a fan of Larry, Sergey & Google in general, but self-driving cars comments to Bloomberg were just off-the-cuff. No big announcement here."

Source and Video:
http://green.autoblog.com/2013/05/07...ut-prefers-te/

BNR34

iTrader: (1)

I can't wait for Autopilot............so tired of driving back and forth to work

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

As long as I still have the option of control, this would be a nice/fun feature. I'd get a lot of work done on a commute. I'd still have a problem relinquishing control though, too many crazies and variables on the road. This past Sunday on Cinco De Mayo I witnessed a terrible drunk driving accident that claimed an innocent victim. A drunk woman in her 50's in a highlander was in the fast lane and started weaving through traffic. To avoid getting side swiped a car moved out of the way and in order to avoid that car a Jeep Liberty did a 90 degree turn up a embankment (hill about a 60% grade). I was in the slow lane and as I'm watching this Jeep go up the hill and exploded with debris, I can see a wheel through my moonroof coming down on my windshield/A pillar. I have to swerve into the 3rd lane to avoid it and in my rearview mirror see the Jeep roll back down about 6-8 times and land on it's roof. The victim was a 20 year old girl, and the Highlander had driven off. Thankfully an Acura two cars ahead of me had called 911 on the drunk driver a mile before the accident but it was too late. They got the drunks plate number so I hope they catch her soon. The Acura, my buddy in his Civic ahead of me and myself gave our statements to the CHP. Long story short, I don't think an autonomous car could have detected that wheel bearing down on me. Scary stuff.

BNR34

iTrader: (1)

Yup safety regulations and other logistical questions will be a nightmare, I honestly think it will never be fully autonomous, when accident happens, who is at fault? The human or the robot? If the robot is at fault, then who is to blame?