Autonomous Vehicles

[jigger]

You would notice fuel on the road , in the dark, just round a corner, really?
Its those sorts of situations its more of an issue, and where it normally happens, round a corner as lorries have overfilled tanks

Yeah I've had my eyes polished and can bend light to my will. I've also got a great sense of smell and sense a drop of diesel at thousand years.

I can notice things like a car sized hole in a wall just on a bend or head lights pointing up in the trees.

 

[Mercenary Keyboard Warrior]

How do you teach AI to deal with a cow in the road or fallen tree? A blowout thats left the remains of the tyre sat 2 feet into the first lane of a motor way.

For example of what they are already doing, look at this
So its function today is to look at cars and measure the distance and speed and adjust accordingly, I bet it does that many many times better than you would.
http://www.nissan-global.com/EN/TECHNOLOGY/OVERVIEW/dcas.html

We don't know the resolution of the radar, but its probably already of a level that it could detect your cow, and the tree, maybe the tyre. But if that became a requirement then I am sure its a minor improvement.
Do we need to know its a cow, a tree, another car or a blow up sheep, its an obstacle that needs avoiding in the safest manner.

However, if your distance and speed calculating skills are not great thats a much harder improvement to make. Plus you have lots of other things to do, such as check other lanes, so I would put my house on the fact the computer is way way way better at maintaining a safe distance than you are

 

[andicole0]

Yes I can notice fuel on the road a lot of times. Not always of course. I could probably react better than most computers and probably in ways nobody would program for.

Ha, some sort of overconfident driver here.
Andi.

 

[jigger]

For example of what they are already doing, look at this
So its function today is to look at cars and measure the distance and speed and adjust accordingly, I bet it does that many many times better than you would.
http://www.nissan-global.com/EN/TECHNOLOGY/OVERVIEW/dcas.html

We don't know the resolution of the radar, but its probably already of a level that it could detect your cow, and the tree, maybe the tyre. But if that became a requirement then I am sure its a minor improvement.
Do we need to know its a cow, a tree, another car or a blow up sheep, its an obstacle that needs avoiding in the safest manner.

However, if your distance and speed calculating skills are not great thats a much harder improvement to make. Plus you have lots of other things to do, such as check other lanes, so I would put my house on the fact the computer is way way way better at maintaining a safe distance than you are

You somewhat missed the point. AI detects thing in road. AI is smart and has cow in database. Al stops. AI detects thing in road AI is smart and has cow in database. Another AI thing comes along and detects thing in road AI is smart so pulls out to overtake. AI detects cow in road and stops on wrong side of road. Other AI thing come along heading in other direction.... AI things have successfully contained cow.

 

[Mercenary Keyboard Warrior]

You somewhat missed the point. AI detects thing in road. AI is smart and has cow in database. Al stops. AI detects thing in road AI is smart and has cow in database. Another AI thing comes along and detects thing in road AI is smart so pulls out to overtake. AI detects cow in road and stops on wrong side of road. Other AI thing come along heading in other direction.... AI things have successfully contained cow.

What are you jibbering on about. The Ai doesnt care if its a cow, its an obstruction, it will decide if its moving, if not it will go round it if its safe or stop if its not, and go when its safe.
So you believe a cow will create a permanent block thats going to fool ai?
2nd vehicle will make the same choice. If 2nd is stopped by first it will wait on first. I guess if the first for some reason never went, ie decided to park at that point, when clear second would move to overtake both.

Its not like I have never been in a position where 2 iditotic drivers have both blocked the traffic with queues behind them both trying to turn across the opposite carriageway. The second having not paid attention and just driving up to the point they cause both sets of traffic to have to stop.

 

[jigger]

So you understand the problem just choose to ignore it.

 

[Mercenary Keyboard Warrior]

So you understand the problem just choose to ignore it.

Its not a problem, replace cow with cyclist.
You think the whole road network is going to grind to a halt the first time one of these cars comes across a cyclist?

I think you really need to look at how some of these things are working in the trials, because shock horror they are managing to cope with cyclists, pedestrians, parked cars etc
Admittedly I haven't seen any facing up to rogue marauding cows, but equally nor I have a seen them trying to deal with a rogue t-rex so we can only assume they will not just drop to some random code black hole where they lose their normal ability to take the correct action based on their programming (check its safe to overtake and if so, do so)

 

[jigger]

Cool AI should be able to deal with a fallen tree or a bullock no problem then.

 

[Mercenary Keyboard Warrior]

Cool AI should be able to deal with a fallen tree or a bullock no problem then.

yes, has that really come as some complete shock to you?

have you never watched any footage of the google cars for example.

The Ai will deal with a completely blocked road the same way as I would (and do), turn around and go around in a different direction.

Its not really Ai, though, or certainly its not envisioned that way currently. The point of AI is to learn, we really want them all working to the same programmed standards.

 

[jigger]

yes, has that really come as some complete shock to you?

have you never watched any footage of the google cars for example.

The Ai will deal with a completely blocked road the same way as I would (and do), turn around and go around in a different direction.

Its not really Ai, though, or certainly its not envisioned that way currently. The point of AI is to learn, we really want them all working to the same programmed standards.

I'll love to see an AI truck pull a tree from a road or pick up a blown out super single from a carriageway. Even if It's not real AI.

 

[Mercenary Keyboard Warrior]

I'll love to see an AI truck pull a tree from a road or pick up a blown out super single from a carriageway.

I never did either as part of my driving test.
In around 30 years driving I have never done either, I bet 99.999% of drivers would be the same
I think we can probably accept if thats the biggest issue we face then thats acceptable as a trade off for the reduced accidents, emmissions, etc that self driving will give us

BUT, if they become such a terrible issue we can probably get them coded to allow the passenger to attach a rope, because we all carry a 10,000kg breaking strain rope around and the car to have a "pull tree setting", would that make you happy?

 

[Mercenary Keyboard Warrior]

What would be more interesting would be the far more likely issue of standing water.
How would the computer deal with this?
Would it be :
1) an impassable object, could be just 2cms deep, and covering all 3 lanes of a motorway
2) undetected, ok if 2cm, not so good if 75cms, or if your travelling at 70mph and its 6cms deep so aquaplane time probably
3) about the same as a human, a bit sketchy and unreliable
4) it actually can tell how deep it is within reason and make an informed choice to reduce speed by x, and proceed to maneuver

The way of dealing with them could change based on location and speed as well, if its detectable to a reasonable tolerance.

To this I have literally no idea, the main testing I have seen has been in warmer areas and normal hazards. (No cows, bullocks, T-rex or flooded carriageways)

 

[VincentHanna]

I never use my cruise control in heavy rain anyway, I'm not sure at the moment how good Tesla's are in the rain as it can confuse/obscure cameras anyway.

 

[Mercenary Keyboard Warrior]

I never use my cruise control in heavy rain anyway, I'm not sure at the moment how good Tesla's are in the rain as it can confuse/obscure cameras anyway.

Yeah deffo safer to be in "manual mode"

Of course you would expect one of these to already to have slowed to a safer speed according to the conditions, where as seemingly for most drivers if its pouring with rain and standing water, driving to the conditions means ensuring the fog lights are on *god mode enabled*

 

[jigger]

I think a full risk assessment will have to be carried out first. Pretty sure someone will link an article where the AI dealt with that too though.

 

[jigger]

Yeah deffo safer to be in "manual mode"

Of course you would expect one of these to already to have slowed to a safer speed according to the conditions, where as seemingly for most drivers if its pouring with rain and standing water, driving to the conditions means ensuring the fog lights are on *god mode enabled*

I'm always like oh **** it's raining fog, map, hazards, 20mph and 999 on speed dial.

 

[kinobestew123]

I'm all for automated cars (although I don't consider them to be proper AI) as it would make my more standard drives (such as to work and back) much more relaxing.

I do love driving manually though and so I wonder how manual driving is going to change over the years.

I wonder if a time ever come when driving manually is completely banned? That would be a shame as it's a fantastic pastime.

 

[jigger]

I'm all for automated cars (although I don't consider them to be proper AI) as it would make my more standard drives (such as to work and back) much more relaxing.

I do love driving manually though and so I wonder how manual driving is going to change over the years.

I wonder if a time ever come when driving manually is completely banned? That would be a shame as it's a fantastic pastime.

Well the danger is the less people drive the worse they will become just like what is happening with the aviation industry.

Will we then get to a point that we consider ourselves to dangerous and ban everyone?

 

[Joe T]

Well the danger is the less people drive the worse they will become just like what is happening with the aviation industry.

You've said this a few times - does it actually affect passenger safety in the real world? Is there empirical evidence on that subject?

 

[jigger]

You've said this a few times - does it actually affect passenger safety in the real world? Is there empirical evidence on that subject?

Well the more you practice something the better you get. Lots of hearings and investigations into crashes and near misses have pointed at the over use of assisted flying and lack of hands on flight time.