Autonomous Vehicles

[doug]

I thought this was worth sharing:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnR1fluXqec

[TEG]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpFryWnPCxU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqCVejz1CR0
http://media.vw.com/press_releases/volkswagens-fully-autonomous-passat-wagon-junior-claims-second-place-at-darpa-urban-challenge

[AnOutsider]

Bring it on, I'm ready. If (relatively) perfected, it would mean MUCH safer roads and likely faster travel as well. Maybe something where on interstates you have to go autonomous and on local roads you can drive (ala I, Robot)

[doug]

This is some weeks old but relevant here. About the autonomous Google cars that have been driving around these parts:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgTc4Np9YX4

Report: Google quietly logs over 140k on autonomous cars in U.S. city traffic - Autoblog (http://www.autoblog.com/2010/10/10/report-google-quietly-logs-over-140k-on-autonomous-cars-in-u-s/)

[TEG]

Report: Google quietly logs over 140k on autonomous cars in U.S. city traffic - Autoblog (http://www.autoblog.com/2010/10/10/report-google-quietly-logs-over-140k-on-autonomous-cars-in-u-s/)


Just a thought: "Coming soon - autonomous street view camera cars!"
The real drivers on the current ones just have to drive a pre-programmed course.

[vfx]

Saw this driving down PCH in Santa Monica a few months ago. The guy in the right passenger seat had a giant laptop he was intent on and I did not notice the driver doing anything unusual (like not driving). I snapped a photo of the car thinking it was a street view car.

[Doug_G]

http://www.gizmag.com/audis-autonomous-audi-tt-conquers-pikes-peak-how-long-before-it-betters-a-human-driver/17001/

[doug]

Video: Google's Self-Driving Car Hits An Autocross Course At Speed (http://www.allcartech.com/blog/1056323_video-googles-self-driving-car-hits-an-autocross-course-at-speed)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=-3ulKUJtZ3o


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=S_eVE6KQ4Jg

[doug]

VW Adds An Autopilot, But Says Keep Your Eyes On The Road | Autopia | Wired.com (http://www.wired.com/autopia/2011/06/vw-adds-an-autopilot-but-says-keep-your-eyes-on-the-road/)

[Mycroft]

Google gets green light - Nevada changes law to allow driver-less cars. (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2007725/Google-gets-green-light-changes-law-make-driver-cars-legal.html)

How many years 'til human drivers will only be allowed to drive on specific roadways because it would be too dangerous to let them drive on the main highways?

[doug]

How many years 'til human drivers will only be allowed to drive on specific roadways because it would be too dangerous to let them drive on the main highways?
How many years 'til human drivers are hunted down and run over by their cars, making it too dangerous to approach the main highways, or even your own driveway?

Just kidding. Started reading Robopocalyse last night and that's a major plot point.
Bad 'Bots, Bad 'Bots, Whatcha Gonna Do? : NPR (http://www.npr.org/2011/06/08/136999399/bad-bots-bad-bots-whatcha-gonna-do)
http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2011/06/06/978-0-385-53385-0-1-_custom.jpg?t=1307387927&s=12

[TEG]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3YYT8FezS4

[Mycroft]

Doug, you would love, love, LOVE "Daemon" (http://www.amazon.com/Daemon-Daniel-Suarez/dp/B003L1ZXCU/) and its sequel, "Freedom (TM)" (http://www.amazon.com/Freedom-TM-Daniel-Suarez/dp/B003MAJNUS/) by Daniel Suarez. Science fiction doesn't get more current, topical, and scary than that!

[SByer]

Maybe we'll need to have another level of driver's licenses for those that are capable of handling a car without succumbing to phone calls or IMs. I'd sure bet that Google's project already drives better than 80% of the people I encounter on my morning commute:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3ulKUJtZ3o

[doug]

Here are some pics I took a couple months ago:

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6007/5868194515_307c5f6ef3_b.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5238/5868718476_5ae3052bf5_b.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5077/5868719954_9d6c626ffc_b.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3038/5868171713_1aa755b3ed_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3165/5868725648_d52f574659_b.jpg

[TEG]

I think I saw that blue VW show up at Refuel Races last year. It came late in the day, and I don't think it went on the track. I wonder if they had it drive autonomously down 101 on the way there.

[dpeilow]

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5077/5868719954_9d6c626ffc_b.jpg

Is the large silhouette near the car you taking the picture? It seems like it missed registering you.

[JRod0802]

Bill Ford just gave a really good TED Talk on autonomous vehicles about a week ago:

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsLuQM5V3FA


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsLuQM5V3FA

[doug]

Is the large silhouette near the car you taking the picture? It seems like it missed registering you.
The environment was a bit noisy, but it had registered me before. I think it already had me marked for deletion. This guy started suspiciously following me around:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5031/5868757504_84256eb70e_z.jpg



Doug, you would love, love, LOVE "Daemon" (http://www.amazon.com/Daemon-Daniel-Suarez/dp/B003L1ZXCU/) and its sequel, "Freedom (TM)" (http://www.amazon.com/Freedom-TM-Daniel-Suarez/dp/B003MAJNUS/) by Daniel Suarez. Science fiction doesn't get more current, topical, and scary than that!
Thanks for the recommendations. I'll check them out when I get a chance. I finished Robopocalypse shortly after posting about it. Ultimately I think it will make for a better summer popcorn flick than it did as a novel. It left me wishing it had more depth. The ideas, characters, and writing style were all a bit thin. What disappointed me most was that the author, an engineer and Ph.D. expert in robotics at CMU, got some of his physics wrong.

[TEG]

"It wasn't the robot's fault"... honest:

This is Google's first self-driving car crash (http://jalopnik.com/5828101)
Robot Car Involved In Crash; Google Blames Human - Forbes (http://www.forbes.com/sites/briancaulfield/2011/08/05/robot-car-involved-in-crash-google-blames-human-error/)
Google driverless car causes five-car crash - NewsPlurk (http://technology.newsplurk.com/2011/08/google-driverless-car-causes-five-car.html)

[markwj]

"It wasn't the robot's fault"... honest:

The robot should have taken over to avoid the crash - first law 'inaction' clause ;)

[jcstp]

Driverless Pod Cars Transport Passengers Around Londons Heathrow Airport | Popular Science (http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-08/driverless-pod-cars-transport-passengers-around-londons-heathrow-airport)

[TEG]

How Google's Self-Driving Car Works - IEEE Spectrum (http://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/artificial-intelligence/how-google-self-driving-car-works)

[AnOutsider]

How Google's Self-Driving Car Works - IEEE Spectrum (http://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/artificial-intelligence/how-google-self-driving-car-works)

Very cool. Should these become mainstream, I see it being the next medical debate: does all the signals these things emit cause cancer? Find out at 11!

[jcstp]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zzKMALsXsA

does this also apply for this thread?
automated public transit

[doug]

BBC News - Driverless car: Google awarded US patent for technology (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16197664)

[Robert.Boston]

I really like the idea, described in that BBC article, about supplementing GPS systems with QR blocks at "landing strips". My car's GPS never knows where I am when I leave from my parking spot in the big garage by my office; if the car could "look" at a QR square at the front of the parking spot, it would know just where I am even though shielded from the GPS satellites.

[doug]

Google's Autonomous Vehicles Draw Skepticism at Legal Symposium - NYTimes.com (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/24/technology/googles-autonomous-vehicles-draw-skepticism-at-legal-symposium.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all)

[AnOutsider]

Can't copy on the iPad for some reason, but the one comment re: "why would you even put money into it?" irks me. The same people that enjoy things brought about by technological innovations are the first ones shooting down something new. Do these h humans just lack imagination?

[AnOutsider]

SARTRE autonomous road-train enters final phase with trio of Volvos [w/video] (http://www.autoblog.com/2012/01/24/sartre-autonomous-road-train-enters-final-phase-with-trio-of-vol/)


Utilizing a combination of cameras and radar-based sensors, the vehicles in the platoon can travel up to 55 miles per hour while maintaining a 20-foot gap between each other. An electronics-packed truck takes the lead and handles driving for all the vehicles in the group, meaning there's still at least one driver in control.

[jcstp]

let's hope the truckdriver does not fall asleep


These 3 companys make autonomous public transit!
home | Ultra Global PRT (http://www.ultraglobalprt.com/) and VECTUS Intelligent Transit (http://www.vectusprt.com/) are on a seperate from the street guideway! So no possible collision with cars or pedestrians!

http://www.2getthere.eu/ Does the same, but at streetlevel

There are more companys who are in developing-stage, but above 3 have functioning systems, or are building one!

Sites where you can find a lot more info are
Get On Board|PRT NewsCenter (http://kinetic.seattle.wa.us/newsprt.html)
Personal Rapid Transit News (PRT or Podcars)
(http://www.prtconsulting.com/news.html)
Personal Rapid Transit Brokering, Political Outreach, Consulting Services (http://www.prtstrategies.com/)

[Robert.Boston]

These scholars are over-thinking the problem, at least in the short run. Isn't the simple solution to require that a licensed driver be awake in the driver's seat at all times? This "designated driver" has responsibility for the safe operation of the car.

This situation is really no different than, say, auto-pilots on modern airplanes. These devices handle all operation of the airplane, and in principle both pilots could get up and chit-chat with customers, or take naps, or whatever. One, at least, doesn't, precisely because you never know what unusual situation could develop at a moment's notice.

Now, if we progress to a world where I put my kids into a self-driving car to take them to school, then we're off in a different paradigm.

[jcstp]

auto-pilots in airplanes, and auto-pilots in cars are not comparable!

no flying pedestrians or bicycles on an airplanes's way

[doug]

Nice comprehensive article here:
Autonomous Cars Through the Ages | Autopia | Wired.com (http://www.wired.com/autopia/2012/02/autonomous-vehicle-history/?pid=1580&viewall=true)

http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/autopia/2012/02/Volkswagen-Junior-autonomous-Passat.jpg

[doug]

Mapping the Road Ahead for Autonomous Cars | Autopia | Wired.com (http://www.wired.com/autopia/2012/02/autonomous-vehicles-q-and-a/)

http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/autopia/2012/01/Audi-Autonomous-TTS-660x406.jpg

[doug]

Wired has had a whole series of articles regarding autonomous vehicles recently. Here's another:

Navigating the Legality of Autonomous Vehicles | Autopia | Wired.com (http://www.wired.com/autopia/2012/02/autonomous-vehicle-legality/)

http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/autopia/2012/02/google-autonomous-prius.jpg

[TEG]

Nevada approves regulations for self-driving cars - CBS News (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505245_162-57379271/nevada-approves-regulations-for-self-driving-cars/)

[JohnTeigh]

I always remember when I saw the Mercedes auto brake fail. Ever since I haven't really trusted the concept. URL below
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYY7OfQ4-5A

[bonnie1194]

Google's self-driving car video here. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdgQpa1pUUE&feature=relmfu)

"We announced our self-driving car project in 2010 to make driving safer, more enjoyable, and more efficient. Having safely completed over 200,000 miles of computer-led driving, we wanted to share one of our favorite moments. Here's Steve, who joined us for a special drive on a carefully programmed route to experience being behind the wheel in a whole new way. We organized this test as a technical experiment, but we think it's also a promising look at what autonomous technology may one day deliver if rigorous technology and safety standards can be met."

[AnOutsider]

Now that's pretty cool -- I'd wondered why it chose that spot. As someone pointed out though, it didn't signal, and I'd like to know just how they programmed it to navigate not only the Taco Bell parking lot, but the drive through as well (including where to stop and for how long). I'm thinking there was some driver intervention at those points.

[vfx]

A town for testing driverless vehicles
http://realestate.msn.com/why-does-a-tech-company-want-to-build-ghost-town-in-new-mexico

[vfx]

Soon to be legal in Nevada

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-02-21/how-to-get-a-permit-for-your-driverless-car#r=related-rail (http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-02-21/how-to-get-a-permit-for-your-driverless-car#r=related-rail)


An application costs only $100, but companies have to put up a cash bond of anywhere from $1 million to $3 million, depending on how many cars they want to put on the road. There will be no “Student Driver” banner to let others know no one’s behind the wheel. The big clue will be the license plate, which will be dark red. Instead of the Nevada sunset over a snow-covered mountain, the logo will be one Breslow designed himself.

[Doug_G]

Can't wait for the court case on the first DUI charge...

[vfx]

Can't wait for the court case on the first DUI charge...
Driving User Interface?

[doug]

Google's Self-Driving Cars: 300,000 Miles Logged, Not a Single Accident Under Computer Control - Rebecca J. Rosen - The Atlantic (http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/08/googles-self-driving-cars-300-000-miles-logged-not-a-single-accident-under-computer-control/260926/)


For comparison, in the United States in 2009 there were 10.8 million traffic collisions, according to the Census Bureau (http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012/tables/12s1103.pdf). That same year, American cars logged some 2.954 trillion miles, for a collision rate of about .366 per 100,000 vehicle miles traveled. Now, you can't directly compare the two figures. Google's cars have been tested in pretty hospitable conditions, not facing, for example, the rigors of a New England winter. And, as Google engineer Chris Urmson, writes (http://googleblog.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/the-self-driving-car-logs-more-miles-on.html), they still "need to master snow-covered roadways, interpret temporary construction signals and handle other tricky situations that many drivers encounter." Additionally, the cars are still driving with "occasional (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/10/science/10google.html)" human control. But at the very least, the Google cars are slowly building a pretty good-looking driving record.

[jerry33]

The really interesting part in this is that no one is expecting the major automobile manufacturers to advance technology. Tesla and Google are examples.

[Mycroft]

Seattle Times: Self-driving cars: Are humans headed for obsolescence? (http://seattletimes.com/html/opinion/2019291374_pittscolumnautonomouscarsxml.html)


Leonard Pitts Jr. was going to rant against driverless cars and the loss of the human touch in our technology-driven lives. But how do you rant against fewer traffic jams, greater mobility, less pollution and more safety?

I think that as early as 5 years from now, there will be at least one lane on a freeway somewhere that will be autonomous only. 10-20 years will see the first autonomous-only freeway. Safety will be the driving force. In 20-30 years, all freeways will be autonomous-only.

[VolkerP]

In 20-30 years, all freeways will be autonomous-only.

Enjoy driving until then. Hurry up, finalize your reservation! And don't be cheap on the performance option - driving it yourself will become liable to prosecution. :mad:

[vfx]

Google's Trillion-Dollar Driverless Car

3 Parts:

Fasten Your Seatbelts: Google’s Driverless Car Is Worth Trillions (http://www.forbes.com/sites/chunkamui/2013/01/22/fasten-your-seatbelts-googles-driverless-car-is-worth-trillions/)

Google’s Trillion-Dollar Driverless Car — Part 2: The Ripple Effects (http://www.forbes.com/sites/chunkamui/2013/01/24/googles-trillion-dollar-driverless-car-part-2-the-ripple-effects/)

Google’s Trillion-Dollar Driverless Car — Part 3: Sooner Than You Think (http://www.forbes.com/sites/chunkamui/2013/01/30/googles-trillion-dollar-driverless-car-part-3-sooner-than-you-think/)

Chunka Mui - Devils Advocate - Forbes (http://blogs.forbes.com/chunkamui/)

[JRod0802]

Google's Trillion-Dollar Driverless Car

3 Parts:

Fasten Your Seatbelts: Google’s Driverless Car Is Worth Trillions (http://www.forbes.com/sites/chunkamui/2013/01/22/fasten-your-seatbelts-googles-driverless-car-is-worth-trillions/)

Google’s Trillion-Dollar Driverless Car — Part 2: The Ripple Effects (http://www.forbes.com/sites/chunkamui/2013/01/24/googles-trillion-dollar-driverless-car-part-2-the-ripple-effects/)

Google’s Trillion-Dollar Driverless Car — Part 3: Sooner Than You Think (http://www.forbes.com/sites/chunkamui/2013/01/30/googles-trillion-dollar-driverless-car-part-3-sooner-than-you-think/)

Chunka Mui - Devils Advocate - Forbes (http://blogs.forbes.com/chunkamui/)

Those were very good articles. I look forward to parts 4, 5, and 6.

[cwerdna]

auto-pilots in airplanes, and auto-pilots in cars are not comparable!

no flying pedestrians or bicycles on an airplanes's way
Exactly! Not even close.

There are much stricter rules for flying. Besides the above, planes are spaced much further apart. The autopilot doesn't need to look for parallel lines that represent roads and distinguish them from the parallel lines of a pole or a tree. Planes don't need to look out for and recognize speed limit signs, traffic signs and traffic lights. The list goes on and on. Way before the DARPA Grand Challenge, I remember hearing about autonomous vehicle programs where the vehicles got stuck trying to climb trees because they thought its parallel lines were a better candidate for a road (which I believe had a curve in it, near the tree).

For anyone w/a computer science background or one who has worked w/vision in computers, autonomous cars present many very difficult problems to be solved and amazingly, they were pretty much solved.

How Google's Self-Driving Car Works - IEEE Spectrum (http://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/artificial-intelligence/how-google-self-driving-car-works) that was posted earlier was excellent.

For those who haven't watched it, The Great Robot Race - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoiJeIb0wBA) from 2009 was excellent. More info at NOVA | The Great Robot Race | PBS (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/darpa/).

This covered the DARPA Grand Challenge - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DARPA_Grand_Challenge), which was the predecessor to the event that involved driving in an urban environment and having to worry about traffic rules, other vehicles and pedestrians.

[AnOutsider]

cross posting:


Elon Musk, the California billionaire who leads Tesla Motors Inc. (TSLA), said the electric-car maker is considering adding driverless technology to its vehicles and discussing the prospects for such systems with Google Inc. (GOOG)

Musk, 41, said technologies that can take over for drivers are a logical step in the evolution of cars. He has talked with Google about the self-driving technology it’s been developing, though he prefers to think of applications that are more like an airplane’s autopilot system.

Tesla CEO Talking With Google About ‘Autopilot’ Systems - Bloomberg (http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-07/tesla-ceo-talking-with-google-about-autopilot-systems.html?cmpid=yhoo)

More interesting still:


“We’ve had some technical discussions with Google” about its Light Detection and Ranging, or Lidar, laser tracking system, Musk said last week, noting that it’s an expensive approach that may not prove feasible, Musk said.

“I think Tesla will most likely develop its own autopilot system for the car, as I think it should be camera-based, not Lidar-based,” Musk said yesterday in an e-mail. “However, it is also possible that we do something jointly with Google.”