Tesla Auto Pilot cars

Clarky

Sporky said:

But if that's on a packet of peanuts, which aren't nuts, it has informational value.

You know it's not just peanuts in there.

you're just out to confuse me

Sporky

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peanuts

chillidoggy

I was being ironic about the tech killing the driver, sad though it is.

There are any number of these kind of stories like the one with the RV where the bloke stuck it in cruise control, went aft to make a cup of coffee, and wondered why the crash happened. Then the woman who put her poodle in the microwave to dry it, because it never said you couldn't in the instructions, and ended up frying the thing.

not_the_dj

WezV said:

I was in a new car with my boss the other day and it did the whole automatic distance control thing when in cruise control

Worked great when a car in front changed its speed, but gave us a scary moment when a van pulled out in front and it took just a bit too long to decide to brake, and broke way too hard when it did.

i guess the real point to highlight is that he decided not to brake because he wanted to see what the car would do.   Wonder how many other idiots will take a similar approach when trying out new driving technology

I've got auto braking on my car, but I've no idea if it really works, I tried to try it, but I just had to hit the brake pedal myself.

stickyfiddle

I only have cruise control in mine. I like to think that it lets me plan highway driving a little better in terms of keeping a clear lane in front and not getting into trouble. Whether it actually makes me better I doubt, though I'm sure it makes long drives less tiring.

I am massively looking forward to driverless cars being everywhere. Lower chance of someone causing accidents is fine by me. Hopefully they'll get to the point of not needing a qualified driver onboard as MrsF doesn't drive at all and it'd be brilliant!

strtdv

I've heard reports he was watching Harry Potter at the time of the crash

JezWynd

It's a tech that makes more sense on USA highways with their vast distances than on our overcrowded transport system. I can't imagine it being much use on the M25 for instance.

stickyfiddle

The movie-watching thing is looking likely. I'd previously heard the guy was keen on audiobooks but if he was watching a movie my ability to have sympathy will certainly be tempered.

http://gizmodo.com/it-looks-like-the-tesla-driver-was-watching-harry-potte-1782980532

Steffo

The guy was watching a movie and apparently going at over 85mph when the trailer crossed the road with sun at a particularly bad angle blinding the nav system. Technology can help only so much if the person is hell bent of winning the Darwin Award.

Chalky

Steffo;1135899" said:

The guy was watching a movie and apparently going at over 85mph when the trailer crossed the road with sun at a particularly bad angle blinding the nav system. Technology can help only so much if the person is hell bent of winning the Darwin Award.

It can't deal with an utterly predictable and computable event such as where the bloody sun is and therefore brake the car hard because it is now completely blind?! Crap system design. Ever heard the term "fail safe"?

Sporky

Is braking hard always safe?

Chalky

Sporky;1136314" said:

Is braking hard always safe?

My point it that it has a known state in which its safety is lost - it should handle that in the safest manner it can and loss of kinteic energy appears to be the common choice on these systems.

octatonic

Steffo said:

The guy was watching a movie and apparently going at over 85mph

Reminds me of this:

Chalky

Its ok. Elon Musk says ""The driver cannot abdicate responsibility". So you sell me a car with functions that I can use but must not trust.

New paradigm? This kettle can boil water but it must be watched at all times because you cannot abdicate your responsibility and trust it to boil water and turn itself off?

octatonic

It is bleeding edge technology.

If you can't deal with that then keep driving a regular car until the kinks are worked out.

That might take 10-20 years but it will happen.

I'm not buying an autonomous vehicle because I like driving/riding, but I can see the advantage to it when they perfect the tech.

stickyfiddle

Chalky said:

Sporky;1136314" said:

Is braking hard always safe?

My point it that it has a known state in which its safety is lost - it should handle that in the safest manner it can and loss of kinteic energy appears to be the common choice on these systems.

I think the point, at the moment, is that it's not yet clear whether the car was at fault, save for a handful of commenters on news articles claiming the car has a blind spot.

Chalky

stickyfiddle;1136408" said:

Chalky said:

Sporky;1136314" said:Is braking hard always safe?

My point it that it has a known state in which its safety is lost - it should handle that in the safest manner it can and loss of kinteic energy appears to be the common choice on these systems.





I think the point, at the moment, is that it's not yet clear whether the car was at fault, save for a handful of commenters on news articles claiming the car has a blind spot.

No, Tesla themselves have made a statement of what they believe happened and why their system didn't see the truck.

BBC News: US opens investigation into Tesla after fatal crash
US opens investigation into Tesla after fatal crash - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-36680043

Chalky

octatonic;1136328" said:

It is bleeding edge technology.If you can't deal with that then keep driving a regular car until the kinks are worked out.That might take 10-20 years but it will happen.

I'm not buying an autonomous vehicle because I like driving/riding, but I can see the advantage to it when they perfect the tech.

Agreed, but there are laws that prevent car manufacturers using their customers as risk evaluations

Sporky

Chalky said:

Sporky;1136314" said:

Is braking hard always safe?

My point it that it has a known state in which its safety is lost - it should handle that in the safest manner it can and loss of kinteic energy appears to be the common choice on these systems.

Having worked on some real-time systems I can assure you it's a lot more complex than that.

Emergency braking when data is incomplete is ludicrous. What if the rear sensors fail? Should the car slam on the brakes then?

stratosonic

Personally I enjoy driving too much to want it automated to the point of being a passenger? 

One thing I've wondered about is the legal/insurance issues about who pays out if the technology makes a mistake and causes an accident. E.g many cars now have automated parking, you take your hands off the wheel and let the car park itself, what if it has a software glitch and reverses into the expensive car behind. It wasn't the drivers fault, the car was parking itself?