2014-12-12
12, 2014
2014 Florida Automated Vehicle Summit
Florida DOT is blazing the trail for the integration of automated vehicles into existing traffic operations and leading by example with pilot projects, research projects, and open dialogue to ensure that Florida serves as a fertile proving ground for these exciting new technologies. Agenda Register
N.J. could become hub for driver-less car development, pols
Larry Higgs Dec. 08, 2014 “A bill to regulate the self-driving cars that may take you to work someday was cleared Monday for a future vote by the full senate and could lead to reuse of dormant facilities at the former Fort Monmouth Army base.
Before a four wheeled R2-D2 or C-3PO can back out of the driveway, state lawmakers want to put regulations in place. The bill was approved by all 13 members of the senate budget and appropriations committee to go to a vote of the full senate.
Before voting, State Senator Jennifer Beck, R-Monmouth said she supported the bill and hoped it would help with the redevelopment of the former Army base at Fort Monmouth.” Read more Progress :-) Also My Testimony Alain
Driverless cars set to be tested in four English cities
3 December 2014 “The four English locations picked to test driverless cars have been named.
Greenwich, in south-east London, and Bristol will each host a project of their own, while Coventry and Milton Keynes will share a third.
The decision was announced by the quango Innovate UK, after George Osborne’s Autumn Statement….” Read more
Talking to Your Car is Often Distracting
Oct. 7, 2014 (sorry that I am so late with this one.) “Apple’s Siri, Chevy’s MyLink and Others Divert Attention from Driving… – In the other new study, using Apple iPhone’s Siri to send and receive texts, post to Facebook and Twitter and use a calendar was more distracting than any other voice-activated technology – even when it was modified for use as a hands-free, eyes-free device so drivers kept their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road….” Read more
Hmmm…
Please do read more!! and watch the video As I’ve been saying Apple CarPlay and others are part of the problem, not the solution. The solution is to relieve us of the task of driving as much as possible. Give us choice… to drive or not to drive as often as possible. Alain
Apple Responds To Study That Called Siri A Dangerous Distraction To Drivers
Chris Gayomali “… Apple responded to the study, claiming that the researchers didn’t use Siri’s Eyes Free or CarPlay systems, which are designed specifically for driving. “CarPlay and Siri Eyes Free intuitively use your vehicle’s native controls so you don’t need to pick-up and look at your phone while driving,” Apple told the Wall Street Journal. “These experiences are tailored so you only have access to iPhone apps that are optimized for the car and make sense for an in-vehicle experience.”
It’s a fair point. Critics so far seem to like CarPlay, at least when they can get their hands on it. “CarPlay seems pretty cool,” wrote Jim Travers at Consumer Reports, after taking CarPlay out for a spin. “More importantly, its simple menus, easy navigation, and excellent Siri voice command integration can reduce driver distraction.”
The downside is that, at least as of October, CarPlay is only built into select new Ferraris. Other carmakers with CarPlay integration—like Honda, Hyndai, and Volvo—are said to be on the way. But for now, looks like you’ll need a spare $300,000 or so for the Ferrari FF.” C’mon Man!! Alain
The Hassle of ‘Hands Free’ Car Tech
Joseph White “…Voice-Activated Systems Often Don’t Work Right, Can Add to Driver Distraction. Someday, cars may drive themselves. But first car makers must convince consumers their automobiles can handle simpler tasks on their own—like changing the radio station or making a phone call….” Read more
Hmmm, of course I disagree. Why waste time dealing with changing the radio. Address the real [problem… driving the car. Give us the technology so that we don’t have to drive the car. We can then handle changing the radio. :-) Alain
Automated driving part of the plan at extended R&D center
MAYUKO TANI Nov. 28, 2014 “German autoparts titan Continental opened an extension of its R&D center in Singapore Thursday. The bigger center will speed up development of intelligent systems for cars, which is crucial in developing automated vehicles.
Singapore is one of three R&D centers Continental operates in Asia. The other two are in Shanghai and Bangalore. Singapore does not have a major automobile industry, unlike China and India. However, it was chosen because of its good access to engineering talent, a company official said.
The new 5000 sq.meter building cost 29.7 million Singapore dollars ($24 million). It is an extension of the original 11,000 sq. meter R&D center that Continental opened two years ago. At that time 650 staff worked at the center, now 900 are employed, of whom 70% are engineers. The number of workers is expected to grow to 1300 in four years’ time. …” Read more Hmmm…
Think Fort Monmouth. Alain
Bern Grush, John Niles, Intertraffic World Annual Showcase 2015: The end of driving
Some other thoughts that deserve your time:
Hand Gesture Recognition in Real Time for Automotive Interfaces: A Multimodal Vision-Based Approach and Evaluations
“Develop is a vision-based system that employs a combined RGB and depth descriptor to classify hand gestures. The method is studied for a human–machine interface application in the car. Two interconnected modules are employed: one that detects a hand in the region of interaction and performs user classification, and another that performs gesture recognition. The feasibility of the system is demonstrated using a challenging RGBD hand gesture data set collected under settings of common illumination variation and occlusion.
Published in: Intelligent Transportation Systems, IEEE Transactions on (Volume:15, Issue: 6) Read more. Hmmm… This is for inside the car; however, it should be extended to recognize gestures by individuals outside the car. For example when the car is stopped or going very slowly in or near an intersect to better understand the intentions of pedestrians, other motorist and traffic policemen. These are gestures that we each understand. they allow us to safely and efficiently negotiate complex intersections with pedestrians and other human drivers. Automated vehicles are going to need the same capabilities. Alain
Adept Technology Lynx Autonomous Intelligent Vehicles (AIVs)
“…Ideal for conveying goods throughout warehouses, distribution centers and factories, Lynx AIVs’ payload capacity is up to 220 pounds, depending on the model. Unlike traditional AGVs, no facility modifications are necessary, so no need for the magnets, tape or other facility adaptations typically associated with classic AGV deployment. Lynx systems also complement traditional automation, such as conveyors, and provide traceable movement of goods.
Lynx vehicles can self-navigate to accomplish tasks even where there’s constant movement of people, pallets, carts and forklifts, and shelves being emptied and restocked. They’re equipped with the on-board intelligence to avoid obstacles and choose the best path to complete a task. This intelligent movement also makes them safe to operate alongside people as collaborative machines. The vehicles interact as a fleet and simply run in conjunction with the user’s existing enterprise software…” Read more A little easier to do without Mother Nature being around, but still very interesting! Alain
Half-baked stuff that probably doesn’t deserve your time:
Self-driving trucks: How the road ahead may shape up
Dec 2, 2014 David Cullen “Proponents of so-called “self-driving trucks” contend that their enabling technologies will work in concert to cut fuel consumption, reduce emissions and ensure highway safety much more effectively than today’s commercial vehicles….While Kar conceded that “the jury is still out” on the technology’s potential to improve highway safety, he said that “our initial research indicates that highway safety may actually increase overall since most accidents can be attributed to human error and driver drowsiness/fatigue.” … Read more Hmmm…“Half Baked” because of the order of the perspective that is presented. First, the focus should not be on “self-driving” because that has the implications that the driver is being removed. The perspective should be that the human in the truck is providing high-level management supervision on commodities as they are being transported. The menial task of keeping a truck in the center of a lane and not crashing into anything ahead is in fact a very demeaning task that can and should be relegated to and conducted by computers and not humans. In fact, those that perform that function today should insist that their job titles be changed from the demeaning term “driver”. That person is the agent of the transport company personally supervising the safe and efficient transport of commodities whose value is substantially enhanced because that agent has successfully carried out his/her assigned mission. Fuel savings are infinitesimal compared to the enhanced value created, (and that is before the collapse of energy prices which are making this value even more infinitesimal.) Enhanced safety is critical, else the value is not delivered. Plus this has real implications on the balance sheet and can be accomplished without talk of “driver-less” I simply don’t understand why Kar and others don’t seem to “get it”. Alain
Cohda Wireless and u-blox to collaborate on V2X development
– Posted on Dec 8, 2014 “… Cohda’s DSRC (Dedicated Short-Range Communications) based V2X system uses accurate satellite positioning with embedded dead reckoning technology provided by u-blox. The system enables, for example, early warning of an imminent collision, oncoming traffic, presence of road workers and unsafe speed based on vehicles in the vicinity. V2X will be a key technology for the next generation of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) as well as autonomous vehicles….” Read more Hmmm Unfortunately, even low precision GPS is too unreliable to reliably determine real-world “imminent collisions”. Their image below tells it all. No collision in that scene is imminent. Alain
Toyota to introduce V2X communications on 2015 Japanese models
“Starting next year, some of Toyota’s new models will be compatible with advanced vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) cooperative systems that use a wireless frequency reserved for Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). The new models will also be equipped with vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications technology to allow them to ‘speak’ to similarly equipped vehicles. The two packages, designated C for mid-size and P for larger vehicles, bring together several of Toyota’s existing active safety technologies, including the Pre-Crash Safety system, Lane Keep Assist and automatic high beam. The C package uses a laser radar and the P package a millimeter-wave radar, each combined with a camera to secure high performance and reliability. The two Safety Sense packages will initially be offered in Japan and subsequently in the USA and Europe, by the end of 2017….” Read more Hmmm More..”stating next year”! Really?? Aren’t there better things that Toyota could “start introducing”??? Alain
Delphi Automotive ties up with Ottomatika to develop automated driving software
ET Bureau 22 Nov, 2014, “Leading component maker Delphi Automotive has joined hands with Ottomatika to develop a technology that will help accelerate automated driving like human. Delphi, the company that first introduced automotive radar systems, will integrate its active safety technologies with Ottomatika’s automated driving software.
The combination of the two creates a technology platform that enables a vehicle to make human-like decisions when driving in the city or on the highway. The platform is flexible and can be expanded and upgraded as the software is updated. It will also support vehicle-to-environment (V2X) communications….” Read more Hmmm??? Alain
C’mon Man! (These folks didn’t get/read the memo)
Testimony provided in opposition to S-734 by Google and Honda
C’Mon Man Why do they think that we are so clueless in New Jersey??? Alain
Calendar of Upcoming Events:
2014 FLORIDA AUTOMATED VEHICLES SUMMIT
Walt Disney World; Coronado Springs Resort
December 15 -16, 2014
Call for Papers
Recent Versions of:
November 22, 2014
A Road Test of Alternative Fuel Visions
Hydrogen Cars Join Electric Models in Showrooms
By KENNETH CHANG NOV. 18, 2014 “… Hydrogen fuel cells readily scale up, even to trucks and buses.
A kilogram of hydrogen contains as much chemical energy as a gallon of gasoline, but fuel cells are more efficient than internal combustion engines, so fuel-cell cars like the Mirai have a 300-mile range, comparable to present-day gasoline cars. Filling up at a hydrogen pump takes about the same few minutes as filling a tank of gas, instead of hours plugged in to an outlet. Even Tesla’s high-powered superchargers need 20 minutes to give a Model S half a charge….
…Not surprisingly, the strategy has its critics, particularly from competing Tesla. Elon Musk, the billionaire chief executive of Tesla, mocks fuel cells as “fool cells” that will lose in the marketplace to battery electric cars like his. Battery electrics are more efficient than fuel cells and are cheaper to operate. And there are currently many more places to plug in than places to top off a tank of hydrogen….” Read more Looked into this in the 70’s. Is the “Hydrogen Economy” emerging from its “40 year” gestation in the desert”. :-) Alain
November 14, 2014
Tesla’s Autonomous Car Claims More Hype Than Reality
Maryanna Saenko “…Given the bold claims, it is likely that in 2015 Tesla will be backpedaling from its CEO’s comments. Perhaps Tesla has a partnership in the works and its ADAS features are being developed by outside developers, but nonetheless, Tesla has notoriously been delayed in product deployments. Still, marketing and PR are a true strength of Tesla, and conversations in our automotive network indicate frustration that Tesla is viewed as so advanced while in reality numerous OEMS have technologies equal to or more advanced than what Tesla is claiming. Clients should expect Tesla to continue to drive the conversation, but expect the rapid innovation in ADAS and autonomous vehicles to progress quickly – and much of it outside of Tesla’s walls.” Read more Hmmmm.. Amen! Alain
Fujitsu Laboratories develops lower-cost millimeter-wave radar for automobiles
Oct 08, Technology/Engineering “Fujitsu Laboratories today announced that it has produced a transceiver chip for millimeter-wave radar in a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) implementation, which is a semiconductor process that enables costs to be reduced, while at the same time successfully boosting the short-range detection performance of the transceiver….To make the driving experience safer and more pleasant, cars are increasingly being equipped with technologies that can detect obstacles nearby and even control the brakes or accelerator in response. Technologies used for obstacle-detection include millimeter-wave radar, LiDAR, and stereoscopic cameras. Compared to LiDAR and stereoscopic cameras, which both use the visible wavelengths of light, millimeter-wave radar is relatively unaffected by rain, fog, and reflections, giving it an important role to play as an onboard sensor. The value that sensors such as these bring to cars creates an impetus to develop technologies for implementing these sensors at lower costs. …”. Read more Hmmm… Very interesting. Do reads the whole article. Very promising, but not really available until 2018.
October 31, 2014
N.J. Senate panel paves way for self-driving cars
Matt Friedman Oct 27 “…The bill (S734, which was approved by the state Senate Transportation Committee 5-0, would require the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission to establish a program to allow people to obtain endorsements on their driver’s licenses to operate and test “autonomous vehicles,” which aren’t on the consumer market yet but have been under research and development by tech companies and institutions for years.
“This legislation sends a strong message to innovators and job creators that New Jersey is not afraid of being the home to new thinking and the way of the future,” Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean, Jr. (R-Union), said in a statement. “…this legislation is essential to attract and retain new jobs, innovation and entrepreneurship in New Jersey, as driverless vehicle efforts here continue to progress.”..” Read more…and my lead testimony, that of Michael Scrudato of Munich Re ,Newsworks and CBS.com video interview.
Progress! (only negative testimony came from Honda which was so bad it ended up helping. C’mon Honda!) Alain
October 22, 2014
Request for Comment on Automotive Electronic Control Systems Safety and Security
Volume 79, Number 194 (Tuesday, October 7, 2014); FR Doc No: 2014-23805: ACTION: Request for comments:
SUMMARY: This notice presents the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s research program on vehicle electronics and our progress on examining the need for safety standards with regard to electronic systems in passenger motor vehicles. The agency undertook this examination pursuant to the requirements of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) Division C, Title I, Subtitle D, Section 31402, Subsection (a). In addition, and in accordance with MAP-21, we are seeking comment (through this document) on various components of our examination of the need for safety standards in this area. As MAP-21 also requires this agency to report to Congress on our findings pursuant to this examination, we intend to submit a report to Congress based in part on our findings from this examination and public comments received in response to this document.
DATES: You should submit your comments early enough to ensure that Docket Management receives them no later than December 8, 2014. Read more
October 10, 2014
Inaugural Automated Vehicle Summit @ Fort Monmouth
Press release. Oct 9, 2014 Princeton, NJ “New Jersey’s first summit meeting on creation of a center for research, certification, and commercialization of automated vehicle technology took place on October 3 at former Army base Fort Monmouth in Oceanport. The purpose of the meeting was to bring together stakeholders with a vested interest and the wherewithal to place New Jersey at the forefront of research into potentially life-saving technology.
More than 60 invited participants to the summit included representatives of: the insurance industry, automakers, wireless communications industry, motor vehicle regulators, public transit industry, and universities. State Senators Jennifer Beck, Thomas H. Kean, Jr., Joseph M. Kyrillos, Jr., and Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon, Jr. represented New Jersey’s legislative bodies…” Read more Hmmm..Progress! Alain
October 1, 2014
Mercedes-Benz sends autonomous automobiles onto the USA’s most extensive testing ground
Sunnyvale, Calif., Oct. 1, 2014 /PRNewswire/ – “As one of the first automobile manufacturers permitted to do so, Mercedes-Benz has been testing autonomously driving automobiles on public roads in the US state of California since September. In addition, the company will from now on also use Concord Naval Weapons Station (CNWS), the largest test bed site in the US, for further testing of its future technology.
“We can use the test site in Concord, California, to run simulation tests with self-driving vehicles in a secure way, including specific hazardous situations,” explained Dr Axel Gern, head of autonomous driving at Mercedes-Benz Research and Development North America, Inc. (MBRDNA). “Taken in conjunction with the results of our test drives on public roads, these tests will help us with the ongoing development of our autonomous cars.” The focus of research nevertheless continues to lie on the tests undertaken in a real-life environment, he emphasized….” Read more Hmmm
I’m learning that the concept of using “Fort Monmouth” to test automated vehicles is a common concept. Alain
October 1, 2014
Self-driving cars: California regulators probe insurance questions
Patrick Hoge Sep 15, 2014 “Self-driving cars are bearing down on California’s future, and state Department of Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones wants insurers and regulators to prepare now for their eventual arrival.
To that end, Jones hosted a public hearing at the Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose Monday morning to gather data about what automated vehicle technology will look like.
A variety of legal and insurance experts testified, as well as a consumer rights advocate. Alain Kornhauser, a Princeton University professor of operations research and financial engineering, was enthusiastic about the potential for automated driving technologies to improve safety, unburden drivers and lower insurance costs.
Varying levels of the technology will be applied in different settings, he said. Commercial fleets, for example, could be more amenable for fully automated uses, while average drivers might use some sort of hybrid, that allows drivers to assume control when needed, he said.
Kornhauser pointed out that some automated technologies are already in widespread use, notably anti-locking brakes and stability controls that prevent drivers from turning too rapidly.
“What’s important is that these systems take over automatically and counter what I am doing wrong,” Kornhauser said. “They don’t warn. They don’t ask for permission. I can’t turn them off. They just do it.”…” Read more
Hmmm…
It was a really good session: Video of hearing; hearing’s agenda; background paper; my 5-minute prepared remarks; extended remarks by Prof. Robert Peterson. Alain
September 8, 2014
The New Commute
Mark Svenvold “…Tomorrow’s transportation solutions will be about learning to share…
“Cars arrived and waited for riders,” Minett wrote of the Oakland commuters he observed. “Riders came and got into their cars, usually two per car on a first-come first-served basis. I saw partners arrive with partners, kiss, and part. Some waited to make sure that their partners got off safely; others left without a backward glance.” He noted that more than half of the people commuting that morning were female. Two women were walking their dogs. “One got a ride, the other carried on with the dogs.” The scene he was describing, in other words, was completely quotidian: “I saw an original VW Beetle, and a lady who got into it with a huge suitcase, and they still took a second passenger.” Later on, in a coffee shop, Minett was able to conjure his quarry in greater relief. “I’d witnessed,” he says in a YouTube video about that moment, “a community of unconnected people who share a solution to their real need and are not afraid to share their trip with a different driver or rider each day.” It was, he says memorably, “a silent transit system that is based on trust.”… Read more
Hmmm… Our studies at Princeton suggest that autonomous taxis will empower high-quality demand-responsive service at a very low price to exist everywhere by facilitating the sharing of rides when and to where there exists a natural concentration of demand; else, lonesome, solitary service will be available to places, at times, when there simply isn’t anyone else around that wants to make that trip. Much like elevator service today, except horizontally from many places to essentially anywhere else. In our studies of spatial and temporal distributions of trip demand as exists today in New Jersey, such systems can double the productivity of today’s cars, yet offer essentially the same (or in the view of some, a better) level of service. This means that energy consumption is halved, as is pollution. Congestion is essentially eliminated. Alain
August 25, 2014
C’Mon Man! (These folks didn’t get/read the memo):
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards: Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) Communications
“This document initiates rulemaking that would propose to create a new Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS), FMVSS No. 150, to require vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication capability for light vehicles (passenger cars and light truck vehicles (LTVs)) and to create minimum performance requirements for V2V devices and messages.. “
Hmmm…
Fundamental problem is for V2V to have any chance of working of avoiding a crash between two vehicles is for both to have the communications. The probability that both vehicles have V2V doesn’t become greater than chance (0.5) until the technology is installed and working in greater than 70% of all vehicles. That level of market penetration will take at least 10 years after this is mandated for every new car that rolls off the assembly line. Moreover, even if both cars are equipped, the regulations require only that there be a warning given to the drivers. As if the drivers will know what to do if the warning is given soon enough. To give the warning soon enough, will invariably increase the false alarm rate, which in itself is likely to cause some accidents that would not have occurred and irritate some drivers to clip the wires as some have done with installed theft alarms. Furthermore, NHTSA recognizes that these systems will not be effective if drivers are impaired (page 266).
Given that 32% of driving fatalities involve alcohol-impaired driving, none of these will be saved.
So after more than 10 years of the mandate we will be at <68% non-impaired of the <50% of market penetration of the <??% that haven’t clipped their wires of the <???% that are properly working of the ????% drivers that perform the correct collision avoidance maneuver minus the number of additional accidents that have been caused by false alarms. This number may not even yet be above zero! I agree…
NHTSA believes that V2V capability will not develop absent regulation, because there would not be any immediate safety benefits for consumers who are early adopters of V2V”.
Yet, if NHTSA instead “mandated” or encouraged/focused-on automated collision avoidance and automated lane keeping systems, then each of these systems would deliver some immediate safety benefits to each consumer, irrespective of any other vehicle having the system. Some benefit would also be delivered if the driver became impaired. Moreover, insurance may be willing and able to pay for much of this technology. Seems that this is the low hanging fruit. What am I missing here? Why is the sunk investment in V2V seemingly all that is steering the NHTSA ship? Alain
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