[log in to unmask]" _mf_state="1" title="null" src="cid:[log in to unmask]" width="44" height="44" border="0"> The SmartDrivingCars eLetter, Pod-Casts, Zoom-Casts and Zoom-inars are made possible in part by support from the Smart Transportation and Technology ETF, symbol MOTO. For more information: www.motoetf.com. Most funding is supplied by Princeton University's Department of Operations Research & Financial Engineering and Princeton Autonomous Vehicle Engineering (PAVE) research laboratory as part of its research dissemination initiatives.
A. Ciceu,
April 28, "The
Princeton
Dinky, the
shortest
scheduled
commuter rail
line in the
nation, might
have its days
numbered. NJ
Transit
recently
commenced a
year-long
study of the
Princeton
transit
system, with
an emphasis on
the Princeton
Branch transit
corridor that
unites
Princeton with
Princeton
Junction.
The study’s
ultimate
objective is
to examine
potential
alternatives
for the
weathered
Dinky in
accordance
with the
transit
system’s
future
population
demand and
certain
planned
developments,
including the
expansion of
the
University’s
campus. In
addition to
these
considerations,
emergent modes
of
transportation
are constantly
changing the
way many
people imagine
travel.
According to
NJ Transit,
the avenues
for
alternative
transportation
currently
under
consideration
include “a
roadway with
embedded rail
that can
support rail
and
rubber-tired
transit
vehicles; a
stand-alone
rail corridor
with a
parallel
roadway for
rubber-tired
tram and/or
bus service”
and “a roadway
with a
guideway that
could support
a rubber-tired
tram and
buses.”
Another
option, also
outlined in
the NJ Transit
study’s plans,
extends the
possibility of
the Dinky
ultimately
remaining a
fixture of
Princeton
transit: “A
no-build
option that
continues to
use the
existing Arrow
III cars or
similar rail
vehicle.”
However, this
latter
possibility
seems unlikely
to some
involved in
the
decision-making
process
because of the
desire to
implement
transit
technology
that is more
accessible and
of higher
quality than
the current
Dinky....
“Any future
service that
.. is more
accessible by
walk ...
whether future
transit
vehicles have
rubber tires,
steel wheels,
magnetic
cushions, or
something
else,”
Bottigheimer
wrote...". Read more Hmmmm... I offered a guest
opinion:
"If
the University
was really
interested in
"... more
accessible by
walk..." it
would never
have fought so
intensely a
few years ago
to move the
Dink to its
current
location. It
might instead
say..."Sorry,
what were we
thinking???
We'll put it
back where it
was." A study
wouldn't be
needed.
But no...
There is a
purpose to
this study.
It is the
first move in
the end-game
of the
University's
long run
"land-grab" of
property that
is
deed-restricted
to be used
exclusively
for
transportation
purposes.
The first
land-grab
moved the
Dinky from
Blair Arch in
order to
create a
"rail-crossing-less"
dormitory
complex. The
latest move
was to create
a
rail-crossing-less
secondary
access road to
a parking
garage. The
purpose of
this study is
to finally
create an
entirely
rail-crossing-less
campus. Thus
the ultimate
land grab.
In the
interest of
full
disclosure: I
am and have
been part of
an initiative
to acquire the
Dinky from NJ
Transit and
operate it in
perpetuity
starting with
this
rail equipment.
Signed:
For more information see "Tiger Train: A Community-Based Transit Solution For Princeton Township"
Press
Release, April
2021, "Pop-Up
Metro is an
initiative
intended to
expand the
size of the
rail transit
market by
allowing
metropolitan
areas with
existing
light-density
rail freight
lines to
establish
demonstration
operations of
a rail transit
system on a
rapid timeline
and for the
cost that they
might
otherwise pay
for a
consulting
study.
Pop-Up Metro
will lease
trains,
platforms,
battery
charging kit
and an
integration
package,
including
operating and
maintenance
regimes.
A Pop-Up Metro
demonstration
operation,
based on
Vivarail
battery
trains, is in
the process of
being
established in
the USA and
will be
operational
and available
to demonstrate
proof-of-concept in early 2021.
An additional
benefit of
Pop-Up Metro
is
proof-of-market
in addition to
proof-of-concept, thus substantially reducing the risk of the
traditional
approach of
building the
system first
and then
seeing if the
market
exists...."Read
more Hmmmm... Affordable approach to do
"Proof-of-Market", going well beyond "Proof-of-Concept". Alain
H. Posner'77, Sept 13, 2020. "Creating Value for Light Density Urban Rail Lines" . See slides, See video Hmmmm... Simply Brilliant. Alain
K. Hayes,
April 30, "
bill that
would set the
course for
driverless
delivery in
Florida glided
through the
House
Thursday.
The House took
up the revised
version of the
bill (HB
1289)
after the
Senate hitched
on a pair of
amendments to
the original,
House-approved
proposal. The
bill, which
once again
passed
unanimously in
the lower
chamber, was
presented by
sponsor Rep.
Fiona
McFarland, a
Sarasota
Republican.
The bill
authorizes the
operation of
low-speed
autonomous
delivery
vehicles as
defined by the
federal
government.
The empty
vehicles would
be limited to
roads with
speed limits
of 45 mph or
less, though
the vehicles
will only move
at speeds of
35 mph or
less.
The bill also
provides
minimum
insurance
requirements —
at least $1
million — the
same as those
currently in
law for
autonomous
vehicles.
The bill also
changes other
regulations
that don’t
make sense for
driverless
cars. The way
St. Petersburg
Republican
Sen. Jeff
Brandes, the
Senate
sponsor,
described the
statute, the
driverless
vehicles might
not even look
like regular
cars...." Read more Hmmmm... This is really good
legislation.
Congratulations Jeff! Great leadership. Alain
Press release, April 12, "— Mobileye, an Intel Company, today announced that its self-driving system has reached commercial availability. Purpose-built for the future of autonomy, the full-stack solution —branded Mobileye Drive™ — is designed to drive a range of autonomous vehicle (AV) applications, including robotaxis, consumer passenger cars and commercial delivery vehicles..." Read more Hmmmm... There are more buzz words in this press release than Carter has little liver pills. It is very much a "Self-driving" meaning that it requires continuous human oversight and humans capable of taking over without crashing whenever this system is not able to drive safely. Comfort & Convenience only.
Like
the Musk
systems, this
system should
carry a
warning:
"Intel's
Mobile Drive
will NOT
accept
responsibility
or liability
should a crash
occur on a
vehicle using
the Mobileye
Drive
System." For
SAE fans, this
is a "Level 2"
system. Alain
Staff,
April 30,
"Volkswagen
plans to
design and
develop its
own
high-powered
chips for
autonomous
vehicles,
along with the
required
software,
Chief
Executive
Herbert Diess
told a German
newspaper.
“To achieve
optimal
performance in
light of the
high demands
that exist for
cars, software
and hardware
have to come
out of one
hand,” Diess
told
Handelsblatt.
Volkswagen did
not plan to
build
semiconductors
but wanted to
own patents if
possible,
Diess said,
adding that
the group’s
software unit
Cariad would
develop the
expertise and
expand..." Read more Hmmmm... Just because Henry Ford
and Elon Musk
did/do
everything for
themselves
doesn't
necessarily
mean everybody
should. The
takeoff is
focus v scale
economies.
There are a
lot of gamers,
Machine
Learning and
Crypto gals
and guys
around that
can underwrite
vast sums to
be spent at
nVidias of
this world.
Can one really
make a VW-specific
chip better
and cheaper
than an nVIDIA
chip? Alain
N. Gupta,
"April 30,
"Baidu (BIDU)
has set May 2,
2021 as the
date it will
launch its
fully
autonomous
robotaxi
services,
called Apollo
Go Robotaxi,
in Shougang
Park, Beijing.
The first of
its kind, the
autonomous
vehicle
service will
allow users to
enjoy a ride
without a
driver behind
the wheel. The
robotaxis
should come in
handy for
people
commuting
across the
city and will
be used to
transport
athletes
during the
upcoming
Winter
Olympics.
Baidu is to
become the
first Chinese
company
offering fully
driverless
robotaxi
service for
commercial
operations.
The service
will allow
users of the
Apollo Go App
to book a
robotaxi
through a
system of
unmanned
self-service
processes...."
Read more Hmmmm... Not to be picky here, but
will it have
an attendant
on board with
a joy stick?
I hope they do
and I can't
wait until
they announce
that the
attendant is
no longer
needed because
there were no
"disengagements" for more than a month and all but a few could have
disengaged
safely. Then
this will be a
big thing.
See
also, T. Lee's
"A
Chinese
company has
started
charging for
fully
driverless
rides".
Alain
R.
Mitchell,
April 29,
"It’s a 21st
century riddt
review without
a legal
order..Full
self-driving
cars are
taking longer
to arrive than
techno-optimists predicted a few years ago. In fact, in a financial
filing
Wednesday,
Tesla
acknowledged
it may never
be able to
deliver a full
self-driving
car at all.
But with
features such
as automated
cruise
control,
steering
assist and
automatic
highway lane
changing, new
cars come
loaded with
driver-assist
options. As
they
proliferate,
the task of a
human driver
is beginning
to shift from
operating the
vehicle to
supervising
the systems
that do so..."
Read more Hmmmm... OK, As long as you are
watching
acarefully.
Alain
These
editions are
sponsored by
the SmartETFs
Smart
Transportation
and Technology
ETF, symbol
MOTO. For more
information
head to www.motoetf.com
F. Fishkin,
Nov 25, "What
you should
know about
electric cars,
climate change
and more. The
Dispatcher
publisher
Michael Sena
joins
Princeton's
Alain
Kornhauser and
co-host Fred
Fishkin in an
eye opening
edition of
Smart Driving
Cars.."
F. Fishkin, Nov 24, "When it comes to active driver assistance systems, what works and what needs improvement? Some answers from Kelly Funkhouser… program manager for vehicle interface, head of connected and automated vehicles at Consumer Reports. She joins Princeton's Alain Kornhauser and co-host Fred Fishkin for episode 186 of Smart Driving Cars."
F. Fishkin, July 20, "Is Driverless home delivery the fastest route to Affordable Mobility for the Mobility Disadvantaged? ... "
F. Fishkin,
July 2,
"Transportation,
racial
injustices and
changing the
thinking
around the
future of
mobility. NYU
McSilver
Institute for
Poverty Policy
& Research
fellow Henry
Greenidge
joins
Princeton's
Alain
Kornhauser and
co-host Fred
Fishkin in an
eye and mind
opening
episode of
Smart Driving
Cars. Plus
Amazon, Zoox,
Waymo, Tesla
& more.
."
F. Fishkin,
June 2, "But
the debate is
not really
about
technology nor
is it about
who delivers
the best value
for the money
or the most
privacy. It is
about ..."
T.
Krisher, Feb
19, "The fiery
crash of a
Tesla near
Houston with
no one behind
the wheel is
drawing
scrutiny from
two federal
agencies that
could bring
new regulation
of electronic
systems that
take on some
driving tasks.
The National
Highway
Traffic Safety
Administration
and the
National
Transportation
Safety board
said Monday
they would
send teams to
investigate
the Saturday
night crash on
a residential
road that
killed two men
in a Tesla
Model S.
Local
authorities
said one man
was found in
the passenger
seat, while
another was in
the back.
They’re
issuing search
warrants in
the probe,
which will
determine
whether the
Tesla’s
Autopilot
partially
automated
system was in
use. Autopilot
can keep a car
centered in
its lane, keep
a distance
from cars in
front of it,
and can even
change lanes
automatically
in some
circumstances.
On Twitter
Monday, Tesla
CEO Elon Musk
wrote that
data logs
“recovered so
far” show
Autopilot
wasn’t turned
on, and “Full
Self-Driving”
was not
purchased for
the vehicle.
He didn’t
answer
reporters’
questions
posed on
Twitter...."
Read
more Hmmmm... I'll stand by my
quote... "...“Elon’s
been totally
irresponsible,”
said Alain
Kornhauser,
faculty chair
of autonomous
vehicle
engineering at
Princeton
University.
Musk, he said,
has sold the
dream that the
cars can drive
themselves
even though in
the fine print
Tesla says
they’re not
ready. “It’s
not a game.
This is
serious
stuff.”..."
... even
though it
isn't the most
critical
comment.
What is more concerning.... "Why didn't Tesla's Automated Emergency Braking System prevent the Tesla from hitting the tree?" The common theme in the Joshua Brown, Elaine Herzberg, Walter Huang, Firetruck/Derrick Monet, 2nd_Firetruck_Tesla crash ..., Teslas seem to disregard stationary objects directly ahead, or certainly doesn't avoid hitting them enough of the time. The Tesla code must assume that it can pass underneath them. Can such an egregious oversight in Tesla's AEB computer code really exist? Is the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) involved in this oversight because it has made Tesla and maybe others so adverse to false positives that they simply assume that Teslas can pass under any and all stationary objects in the road ahead? Not a pretty situation. Alain
A.
Ohnsman, April
2, "John
Krafcik, the
auto industry
veteran who’s
run Waymo for
over five
years, is
stepping down
as CEO of the
Alphabet Inc.
self-driving
tech giant and
is being
replaced by
two
high-ranking
company
executives.
J.
Gallagher,
March 24, "Two
prominent
labor unions
want the U.S.
Department of
Transportation
(DOT) to
reject the
Trump
administration’s
automated
vehicle (AV)
strategy for
relying too
much on the
viewpoint from
industry
without enough
attention paid
to potential
damage to
worker safety
and jobs.
The 38-page Automated
Vehicles
Comprehensive
Plan
(AVCP), one of
the last
documents
released for
public comment
by DOT under
Secretary
Elaine Chao
before she
left the
administration
in January,
laid out the
previous
administration’s
vision for
integrating
AVs – both
cars and heavy
trucks – into
the U.S.
transportation
system.
The plan received 23 comments before the comment period closed on Tuesday, with trucking technology companies generally supporting the strategy and labor rejecting it.
“This document doubles down on the previous administration’s irresponsible, hands-off approach to AV deployment and regulation and mostly boosts the agency’s role as cheerleader and enabler rather than safety regulator,” wrote John Samuelsen, international president of the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU), which represents transit workers...." Read more Hmmmm... One might suggest that TWU's position is enormously short sighted. Transit pre_Covid served 1% of the person-miles in the US. That is a niche of a niche. During Covid, almost anyone who could affords a car and didn't have one, bought one. Transit ridership took an enormous hit. Even with enormous subsidy, Transit, especially bus transit, is hardly ever the "mode of choice" for anyone because its level-of-service is fundamentally poor. It serves relatively few locations, loosely connected by a route which delivers service only at infrequent fixed times. Essentially no other consumer commodity today operates with so little regard to its customer's real-time needs and desires. Even network television has adapted to become demand-responsive as opposed to take-it-or-leave-it.
Conventional transit is labor
intensive
because it
needs a
chauffeur for
each vehicle
and that
chauffeur
deserves nice
working
conditions and
a living
wage.
Unfortunately,
the service
that a
chauffeur can
deliver can't
attract enough
customers to
make that
service a
going
concern.
However, an
automated
driver can
arguably
deliver
demand-responsive
service while
having the
total cost of
its working
conditions and
level-of-effort be substantially less than a TWU driver. This might let
a Transit
entity to
actually
develop a
going concern
that would
serve 10x or
more
person-miles
and create
better paying
and better
working
conditions for
all TWU
members.
M.
Hogan, March
19, "A beta
version of
Tesla's "Full
Self Driving"
Autopilot
update has
begun rolling
out to certain
users. And
man, if you
thought "Full
Self Driving"
was even close
to a reality,
this video
of the system
in action
will certainly
relieve you of
that notion.
It is perhaps
the best
comprehensive
video at
illustrating
just how
morally
dubious,
technologically
limited, and
potentially
dangerous
Autopilot's
"Full Self
Driving" beta
program
is...." Read
more Hmmmm... The Video
is
MUST watch.
This is what I
would call a "Semi-SelfDriving
Alpha"
product in
this
Operational
Design Domain
(non-dense
city/commercial
suburban
streets,
during
daylight, in
clear weather
with moderate
temperature
conditions).
Drivers have four (4)
"responsibilities".
1. Feet/foot
on/near the
pedals, 2.
Hand(s) on the
wheel, 3. Eyes
on the road,
and 4. Butt in
the driver's
seat (and
possibly 5....
Have
reasonable
cognitive
brain
functions).
If the
Operational
Design Domain
is a straight
lane with a
slight
downgrade and
nothing else
around, my "55
Chevy" can
"Self-drive"
and even be
"Driverless".
I don't even
have to be in
it. However,
we must all
agree, that we
can't call my
"55 Chevy" a
"Driverless"
car. We can't
even call it a
Self-driving
because I'm
going to need
to have my
butt is the
driver's seat
to do
something when
the ODD
changes (the
road turns ,
...) and it
is, at best,
Semi-Self
driving
because my
eyes will need
to be on the
road for me to
realize that
the "55 Chevy"
is about to
exit its ODD.
It is going to
need help from
me to not
crash.
So Elon's FSD is definitely Semi-SelfDriving because its ODD doesn't come close to including many of the situations that it found in its video journey above. It is Alpha because any potential user can be expected to have little if any idea what is required to use this product without getting hurt. So, please be very careful out there and don't stop paying attention to the road ahead!!! Alain