Volvo Completes First Successful Test of Road Train Technology on Public Roads in Spain. Like many automakers, safe-car maven Volvo has introduced some semi-autonomous technology in its cars in the past few years—City Safety being the big one.
But it also has been working on a little side project called SARTRE. The clunky acronym stands for “Safe Road Trains for the Environment,” and it is a collaborative effort between Volvo and engineering firm Ricardo, as well as several universities and research institutions. Calif. Regulations for Self-Driving Vehicles Nearing Passage. The California Senate passed a bill on Monday, May 21, that would “establish safety and performance standards” for operating autonomous (driverless) vehicles on the state’s public roads.
The bill will now be considered by the State Assembly. To date, California has not authorized the use of autonomous vehicles on the state’s public roads even though companies like Google had already begun privately testing the technology in the state. State Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Pacoima, introduced the bill — Senate Bill 1298 —on March 1 during a press conference at the state’s Capitol, where he said, “I imagine a lot of people think a self-driving car as science fiction or something out of the Jetsons, but this may not be something that happens for a long time. But we’re living in an era of Moore’s Law, where every two years we double our computer processing speeds. Techno-Phobic California Politicians “NHTSA” Google’s Driverless Car. AdruPilot Mega 2.0: Your Affordable Autopilot Drone.
Source: AdruPilot Mega 2.0/ DIY Drones Autonomous vehicle makers are in for some good news, as 3D Robotics released its AdruPilot Mega 2.0.
Seen at this year’s Bay Area Maker Faire, the APM2 is a complete open source autopilot system. AdruPilot Mega 2.0 Features The AdruPilot Mega 2.0 chip features MediaTek 3329 chip system, serial interface Dataflash memory, digital compass, motion-tracking system, barometric pressure sensor, and many more. Self-Driving Car Bill Passes Calif. State Senate. The California State Senate unanimously passed a bill Monday that would establish safety and performance standards for self-driving cars in California.
The bill, S. 1298, will now move to the state Assembly for consideration after passing 37-0 within the Senate. The bill was authored by state Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), an MIT graduate with a degree in mechanical engineering. "Thousands of Californians tragically die in auto accidents each year," Padilla said in a statement. California and New Jersey Bills Address Autonomous Vehicle Regulation - News - Automotive Fleet. May 21, 2012 SACRAMENTO, CA – State legislators in both California and New Jersey are now addressing regulatory issues associated with the testing and operation of so-called autonomous, or self-driving, vehicles on public roads.
The California Senate on May 21 approved a bill authorizing operation of autonomous vehicles on public roads by licensed drivers. Plan for, autonomous, or self-driving cars passes California senate hurdle. A bill that allows for the use of self-driving cars on California’s roads passed the California State Senate.
SB1298 by State Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima) would establish guidelines for such "autonomous vehicles" to be tested and operated in California. The bill now goes to the Assembly for consideration next month. Tech giant Google Inc., Caltech and other organizations have been working to develop such vehicles, which use radar, video cameras and lasers to navigate roads and stay safe in traffic without human assistance. Google has said that computer-controlled cars should eventually drive more safely than humans, who, after all, get sleepy and distracted and can't see in every direction at once. Padilla said his bill passed without objection, a demonstration of the bipartisan support the technology has engendered. A number of lawmakers test drove Google’s prototype autonomous Prius and “came away convinced that fostering this technology is the right direction for California.”
California Senate votes to allow self-driving cars. May 21, 2012|Mary Slosson | Reuters SACRAMENTO (Reuters) - California took a step toward becoming the second state in the nation to allow self-driven cars on its roads on Monday, as the state Senate unanimously agreed to allow autonomously driven vehicles such as those pioneered by Google.
Google's self-driving cars have already crossed the Golden Gate Bridge and driven along the picturesque Pacific Coast Highway, according to the company, which has taken California lawmakers on test drives. "I had the pleasure of going out for a drive on the autonomous vehicle," California state Senator Alan Lowenthal said before the unopposed vote. "I have to say that there are some still issues with it, but it's a better driver than I am. " The California bill, which passed in a 37-0 vote, will now go to the state Assembly for consideration before heading to the desk of Governor Jerry Brown. ArduPilot Mega 2.0 Does Drone Autopilot on the Cheap. This one is for all those autonomous vehicle makers out there who need a cheap autopilot system to make it go.
Among the bits of awesome seen at the 2012 Bay Area Maker Faire, was the ArduPilot Mega 2.0 (APM2) from 3D Robotics, a complete open source autopilot system. The APM2 board is equipped with the MediaTek 3329 system on a chip, Dataflash (a serial interface for flash memory), a digital compass, a motion-tracking system, a barometric pressure sensor, and more. According to 3D Robotics, the APM2 can be used "to turn any fixed, rotary wing or multirotor vehicle (even cars and boats) into a fully autonomous vehicle; capable of performing programmed GPS missions with waypoints.
" This board is also compatible with the Arduino microcontroller, and we all know how much everyone loves Arduino! The APM2 will set you back $199.95, which is certainly not bad at all since other systems like the GPS Module Shield for Arduino--which includes only the GPS module--will set you back $117. Reimer speaks at Autonomous Vehicle Conference, in Boston Herald.
MIT AgeLab research scientist Bryan Reimer spoke at the NEMPA Autonomous Vehicle Conference at MIT on May 11.
Dr. Reimer’s talk was entitled Automated Vehicles: A Safety Enhancement or Threat? The talk addressed some of the potential pitfalls in our current view of vehicle automoation. He illustrated how trust in technology, driver experience, and driver education are three of the many limiting factors in our strive towards autonomy. In the lecture, Dr. Video: Google's self-driving car goes to DC. Google's self-driving car made the rounds this week in DC as Mountain View lobbied lawmakers and interest groups to endorse its autonomous vehicle technology.
A driver-free Prius, equipped with an advanced spinning laser sensor, successfully navigated busy streets near the Capitol, as Google rep Anthony Levandowski explained how the car could ultimately help make driving safer. "We think it has tremendous benefits, for society and America at large," Levandowski told Politico. "We don't think the technology is ready yet, but we're in the stages of where we're proving out and learning how the car behaves in the real world, and where the creases are that need to be improved. " Indeed, the self-driving car is currently capable of reacting and adapting when it senses errant movements by other vehicles or pedestrians in crosswalks. In addition, says Levandowski, a Google car doesn't run the risk of driving drunk and obviously can't text behind the wheel.
Driverless cars are go at BMW. Google can put away its experimental car, claims BMW, because driverless vehicles are already here. According to the outgoing director of development at BMW, Dr Klaus Draeger, self-driving technology has been around for years. “In some situations that are favourable, a car can drive itself today. There’s no technological problem with that,” said Draeger, the new head of supply and purchasing at BMW. NEMPA Autonomous Vehicle Conference at MIT : The autonomous car is coming.
(Photo Caption:Audi TT with autonomous capabilities) Boston, MA Google is at the forefront on the autonomous car topic with the new Prius cab car they are unleashing on the NYC public in the near future. NYC party goers will now be able to cruise in a futuristic economical fashion while heading to the next club or burger joint. Sounds like fun to me but this is just the beginning of a new form of experiencing an automobile. Where does the future lie though for autonomous cars? California Senate votes to bring autonomous cars closer to reality. Robocars and electrification. One of my first rules of robocars is “you don’t change the infrastructure.”
Changing infrastructure is very hard, very expensive, requires buy-in from all sorts of parties who are slow to make decisions, and even if you do change it, you then have a functionality that only works in the places you have managed to change it. New infrastructure takes many decades — even centuries, to become truly ubiquitous. That’s why robocar enthusiasts have been skeptical of things like ITS plans for roadside to vehicle and vehicle to vehicle communications, plans for dedicated highway lanes with special markers, and for PRT which needs newly built guideways.
You have to work with what you have. There are some ways to bend this rule. Driverless Car Fatalities – What Will They Look Like? - Driverless Car HQ. After my tongue-in-cheek post yesterday about Autonomous Vehicle deaths, there was a small discussion on our Facebook wall about more serious causes. Having read hundreds of articles going into the pros and cons of Driverless Cars while scrummaging around for content for this blog, I can say that I’ve definitely seen it all when it comes to wild speculation about how these things are going to cause accidents. So, here it is – realistic visions of what may potentially cause accidents when Driverless Cars are on the road.