Tag: connected technology

To Autopilot or Not to Autopilot, that Is the Question

Autopilot Risks

A recent accident involving a Tesla Model S with its Autopilot function engaged cost the life of the car’s driver. Since then, there have been calls to disable the function or as least rename it.

Red TeslaWe have cautioned many times in these posts about the advance of technology in automobiles. The advances are racing ahead faster than motorists – and perhaps manufacturers – can keep up. We even came to the conclusion that reaching true self drive mode would resolve these issues by taking the car out of the hands of drivers and relieving them of the responsibility.

But the technology has not yet matured and it remains incumbent on motorists to remain alert and engaged. This goes for backing up with the assist of a camera and proximity sensors, changing lanes while a blind spot monitor is active, and certainly will remain the case with an autopilot engaged.

Nissan will reportedly enlist countermeasures to ensure that drivers remain alert as it rolls out its ProPilot system. A torque sensor on the steering column will determine whether a hand is in contact with the steering wheel. Moving from warning lights through beepers to system disengagement, ProPilot will require driver input, period.

We applaud this from a company that has frankly been irresponsible in its advertising of other driver assist systems.

Tesla cites the fact that in order to engage its Autopilot function, the vehicle operator must pass through and accept a warning that the system requires the driver’s attention. It is essentially the equivalent of reading a software license agreement, which we all skim at best, and is not enough.

Airline Pilots Get Confused Too

Pilot confusion with an engaged Autothrottle system was cited as the cause of the crash of Asiana Airlines flight 214 in San Francisco in July of 2013. Pilots with thousands of hours of experience and training still managed to fall on human error. Drivers will never be given training remotely equivalent to that of an airline pilot. Nissan has it right in this case.

To be completely fair, 100 people die on average every day on U.S. roadways and a single fatality after well over one million miles driven on Autopilot has everyone shouting to the rafters.

For the foreseeable future however, autonomous driving system designs need to keep the driver in his or her seat – unlike this early Tesla example from a year ago – as well as engaged in the driving process. It may defeat the spirit and purpose of autonomous operation from the driver’s perspective, but safety is the ultimate goal.

Perhaps as vehicles became more computerized, a second seat could be given the driving responsibility at times.

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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the  use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.

These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.

Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.

Permanent link to this article: https://dashboardsymbols.com/2016/07/to-autopilot-or-not-to-autopilot-that-is-the-question/

Technology vs Distraction: Technology Charges On

Technology vs Distraction

Two recent articles, one in the New York Times and another from Automotive News, have been on our minds of late. Both discuss the issues of the driver distractions caused by new technologies, primarily touch screens. We noticed that there are potential solutions in the mix.

One of the plusses that accompanies the knobs and levers now being replaced by touch screens is the very sense of touch that is conversely missing from ‘touch’ screens. A driver can reach for a knob with a single glance and know with its movement that an adjustment has been made. Unfortunately, auto makers are simply running out of real estate in the dashboard for new features, and a touch screen can accommodate the additions. The electronics can also receive software updates.

As we noted in an earlier article, The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has set voluntary guidelines for touch-screen systems that call for a drivers’ attention be drawn for no more than two seconds at a time and 12 seconds total, which can be an eternity at 60 miles per hour. Solutions are few and far between, but Cadillac is using touch sensitive areas for some functions on its screens that vibrate a bit when manipulated to combat the attention problem. It is a step in the right direction.

Former transportation secretary Ray LaHood was the subject of the New York Times article, which had him railing at the distraction problems being introduced by new technologies. He went so far as to suggest that new, connected devices that steal attention from the task of driving “can be as alluring as alcohol”. And of course, car companies advertise them as fashionable – who doesn’t want to know where the nearest Italian restaurant is when your significant other asks?

He also complained that one potential solution, voice-recognition systems, simply do not yet meet his standard for safety. They can produce errors that can then cause their set of distractions! Add in wind, occupant noise and simple driving noises and there becomes a mountain of problems to overcome.

We still think that instrument panel Warning Lights provide their own unique set of distractions, not to mention Dead Key FOBs so please keep our site bookmarked.

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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the  use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.

These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.

Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.

Permanent link to this article: https://dashboardsymbols.com/2013/08/technology-vs-distraction-technology-charges-on/