A 1 July 2016 article at the Institution of Electrical and Electronic Engineers
(IEEE) Spectrum magazine web site by Evan Ackerman entitled
"Fatal Tesla Self-Driving Car Crash Reminds Us That Robots Aren't Perfect"
details the 7th May Tesla Model S crash with the tractor-trailer.
See
http://spectrum.ieee.org/cars-that-t...-arent-perfect
A 6 July 2016 article by Mark Harris also at the IEEE web site entitled
"Tesla Autopilot Crash Exposes Industry Divide" exposes a
philosophical design fault-line running through the self-driving car industry.
See
http://spectrum.ieee.org/cars-that-t...slas-autopilot
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Mark Harris IEEE
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) classifies automation systems from Level 1, sporting basic lane-keeping or anti-lock brakes, through to Level 4, where humans need never touch the wheel (if there is one).
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The Telsla's Autopilot is a beta-test of a Level 2 automation system which
requires driver oversight.
Early on, Google decided that they would aim for a Level 4 system which
does not require or allow for any human input at all. This decision came
about during an early trial when an employee who was in the
driver's position was caught rummaging around in the back-seat looking
for a notebook computer. Google engineers then decided that Level 4
should be a mandatory design goal as a human driver could not be trusted.
The Google cars employ more sophisticated sensors such as LIDAR
mounted on the roof which take 360 degree measurements at up
to 1.3 million readings per second. RADAR is employed in the front
and rear bumpers and in some test cars SONAR is also employed
along with stereo cameras. The Google test cars also pack more compute
power than the Tesla S production cars.
Since the fatal accident, some commentators have questioned whether
Elon Musk, who had been dismissive of LIDAR, might re-consider its
adoption into future Tesla models.
See
https://www.theguardian.com/technolo...rash-elon-musk
In the U.K. back in the 1890's, "horseless carriages" were, by law, limited
to a speed limit of 4 mph (2mph in towns) and a red flag had to
be carried by a man walking in front.
A group of motoring enthusiasts set up the Self Propelled Traffic Association
and lobbied hard to have these restrictions overturned.
In November 1896 the Locomotives on Highways Act (alias the Red
Flag Act) was passed and the speed limit was raised to 14mph.
Level 4 self-driving cars have already reached a very high level of
sophistication and reading the professional engineering press it is
clear that they are inevitable and will become ubiquitous in
the near-future.
In our lifetimes they will probably be our first and most common form
of interaction with a class of robots.
