Tesla autopilot - driver killed

unkel

Article

Now the driver was not at fault. It was a truck that didn't give right of way. The driver of the car did not brake so he either did not spot the white trailer (it was a bright day) or he was watching a movie, relying on autopilot. Humans make mistakes

What is very worrying though is that autopilot didn't spot the trailer either :eek:

We're not there yet, so it seems, with self driving cars...

(apologies if this was posted before, a quick search didn't bring it up)

stesaurus

unkel wrote: »

Article

Now the driver was not at fault. It was a truck that didn't give right of way. The driver of the car did not brake so he either did not spot the white trailer (it was a bright day) or he was watching a movie, relying on autopilot. Humans make mistakes

What is very worrying though is that autopilot didn't spot the trailer either :eek:

We're not there yet, so it seems, with self driving cars...

(apologies if this was posted before, a quick search didn't bring it up)

Think there's a thread up in the main motors section for it.
This was the guy watching harry potter, allegedly, right? His own fault really. Its not a driverless car and he should have been more alert to what was happening.

moc moc a moc

unkel wrote: »

We're not there yet, so it seems, with self driving cars...

Nobody with an ounce of common sense believed we were.

stesaurus

This is the other thread http://touch.boards.ie/thread/2057616538/

Del2005

unkel wrote: »

Article

Now the driver was not at fault.

The driver was at fault as they are supposed to be able to take control when the system makes a mistake.

DivingDuck

This sort of "autopilot that needs supervision" is going to get a lot of people killed.

Fully automated? Fine (in time). Fully driver controlled? Fine (mostly).

However, anything in between is, IMO, more dangerous than both combined, because it will only mean drivers not paying attention and trusting in a system that was not designed to operate unsupervised.

Sad story-- I feel sorry for those involved, but I doubt this is the last tale like this that we'll hear.

Dardania

DivingDuck wrote: »

This sort of "autopilot that needs supervision" is going to get a lot of people killed.

Fully automated? Fine (in time). Fully driver controlled? Fine (mostly).

However, anything in between is, IMO, more dangerous than both combined, because it will only mean drivers not paying attention and trusting in a system that was not designed to operate unsupervised.

Sad story-- I feel sorry for those involved, but I doubt this is the last tale like this that we'll hear.

AGreed - Volvo came out and made a similar statement a few months ago that was similar:

http://www.theverge.com/2016/4/27/11518826/volvo-tesla-autopilot-autonomous-self-driving-car

cros13

unkel wrote: »

What is very worrying though is that autopilot didn't spot the trailer either :eek:

Actually it did, the issue was that it thought what it detected of the trailer was an overhead sign.

Still, fatalities in autonomous vehicles are inevitable. They are still statistically safer than human drivers, and getting better every day.

People get hysterical about imagined risks of new technology and implicitly accept the issues with current technology as if it was unavoidable.
1.25 million people die in road traffic accidents every year, mainly attributable to human error.

A similar nonsense are the alarmist stories about EVs going on fire when it's statistically 6 times more likely that combustion vehicles will go up in flames.

BoatMad

In my view the issue of the assignment of liability will keep autonomous cars off the roads for decades. We have the technology in railways and airlines for well over a ðecade and yet we have humans in the driving seat.

grogi

unkel wrote: »

We're not there yet, so it seems, with self driving cars...

(apologies if this was posted before, a quick search didn't bring it up)

The accidents with autonomous vehicles will always for the foreseeable future get into the front pages...
What does not get there are the accidents that not happened because the car was driving on its own.

I honestly don't know what the balance is...

KeithTS

BoatMad wrote: »

In my view the issue of the assignment of liability will keep autonomous cars off the roads for decades. We have the technology in railways and airlines for well over a ðecade and yet we have humans in the driving seat.

There is a big difference here though.
Aircraft and trains have a lot of people (trained and alert) looking at what's going on, ready to take charge.

Everyday drivers are not trained to near the same standard and they're all interacting on a massive scale. There are a lot more hazards to watch out for on a road for any computer to avoid and people often have to make judgement calls such as "do I swerve to miss a child and hit an elderly man or do I drive into a wall?". Obviously an extreme example but would you want your car making that choice, and if so, how would you feel with the consequences?

It's unlikely a child will stroll out from behind a cloud in front of a plane, or some lunatic will hurl a breeze block off a bridge onto a motorway (which happened to me only last week). Of course there are hundreds of factors involved in aircraft navigation too but the equipment can be more expensive and there are people on the ground and in the air making certain calls all the time too, if need be.

BoatMad

KeithTS wrote: »

There is a big difference here though.
Aircraft and trains have a lot of people (trained and alert) looking at what's going on, ready to take charge.

Everyday drivers are not trained to near the same standard and they're all interacting on a massive scale. There are a lot more hazards to watch out for on a road for any computer to avoid and people often have to make judgement calls such as "do I swerve to miss a child and hit an elderly man or do I drive into a wall?". Obviously an extreme example but would you want your car making that choice, and if so, how would you feel with the consequences?

It's unlikely a child will stroll out from behind a cloud in front of a plane, or some lunatic will hurl a breeze block off a bridge onto a motorway (which happened to me only last week). Of course there are hundreds of factors involved in aircraft navigation too but the equipment can be more expensive and there are people on the ground and in the air making certain calls all the time too, if need be.

Your argument reinforces mine. We have both an extreme technical challenge , one that may never be overcome as well as considerable legal issues.