How comfortable are you about "Autonomous Cars"

[gweilgi]

12 hours ago, Fugu said:

Great perspective, when all the elderly and kids will also drive individually in their own cars. What a crazy idea. Additonal traffic in the cities and even elementary schools will need large parking lots. There will be chaos when all those kids arrive at school at the same time. Even worse as it's now with all those heli-parents blocking the streets in front of schools when chauffeuring their (single) kid.

Single occupancy could be addressed by variable pricing: the more people in the car, the lower the charge per passenger.  

To my mind, if this futuristic scheme has any chance of being adopted, it will have to come as part of an overall plan which takes into account and plans for all forms of road usage: from road haulage to public transport to bicycles to pedestrians, all road users will have to be planned for and accommodated.  But that would require seriously joined-up thinking from government ... not exactly their strong suit.  

[Fuzz]

7 hours ago, Fugu said:

So autonomous driving would mean then, we couldn't freely choose our travel speed anymore... Is that really what you all are looking for? Why then stick with the system "car" at all, I have to ask again?!!

If there were indeed a best safe-speed route taken, as you say (there is a tradeoff between safety and velocity - how will that decision be made, and - by whom?!!), then a major part of road users would try and push it at the same maximum travel speed, creating additional traffic problems. But if that were meant to be avoided, certain means will have to be installed to "stretch" traffic. Which algorithms will be set in to decide on who's coming first? Size/value of your car? "importance" of driver/passenger(s)?, first-come-first-served whether you'd be in need of it or not, or perhaps some future "road-velocity"-fee to be paid...?

Haha, and what if there was blocked traffic on the cruise and I want to make good for it. Let's remain realistic! We won't live in a sudden perfect world just because of the appearence of autonomous driving.

 

Autonomous offroad driving - military, yes, but in fact excellent example. Of course, it's there already, that's not the point. Hell, we are rovering the Mars, in completely unknown terrain - with a 9-min signal delay in remote control on top! For special applications, certainly a viable or even necessary approach. But why all this technical overkill for a bit of my simple off the road driving?! Necessary??! - Practicable? - Adequate for the task? For my brief cutting-short across a small patch of meadow or barren land? Or take even a simple backing up off the road onto the side-strip for a turn or for parking....?!! So I will really be forced to get a kind of 'Terra Max' equipment to do it in the bright future to come? Mind you, it will have to be at least as powerful as a human conductor, thus would come with a huge technical effort - while I am a so much simpler and more effective "sensoric" means for scanning my track for 'moleholes' or overgrown mud ground.... 

Really looking forward to that!

 

In a simple word. Yes. Autonomous driving does mean having to give up choosing the speed at which you travel. The system would have already decided (based on programmed factors) what the maximum safe speed is and travel at that speed, so there shouldn't be a need to push it. Routes would be dynamic to ensure that traffic is avoided and eased, whilst still maintaining optimum travel time. Yes, the calculations would be enormous and the computer system a power hungry monster, but it can be done in time.

Explain how if there is traffic ahead, you want to "make good for it"?

Terra Max is an overkill system for military use. Of course a civilian version would not need to be so robust, unless the consumer wanted a fully autonomous 4x4. In areas where autonomous driving is impractical, manual driving would be the norm.

[Dimmers]

Uber starting driverless services this month:

http://www.smh.com.au/business/world-business/selfdriving-cars-how-uber-plans-to-put-its-own-drivers-out-of-business-20160818-gqw3s3

Its al happening and soon folks !

I welcome our neural AI net-based overlords with open arms!