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Saturday, October 31, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="31" width="119"> Port Authority Unanimously Approves $10 Billion Plan to Replace Bus Terminal

A Siff, Oct 22 "The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has unanimously approved an estimated $10 billion plan to replace the existing 65-year-old bus terminal.
The plan approved Thursday includes an international design competition. The final design will be picked in September."  See Video
Hmmm... This is great, but since it will not be finished for 15 years, it better be designed with SmartDrivingBuses in mind.  In fact, 20 years ago, Lou Pignataro and I envisioned that today's longitudinal and lateral control systems could readily allow a 50% increase in the capacity (from a current max of 700  to 1,050 buses/hr) of the Counter-flow Exclusive Bus (XBL) lane/Lincoln Tunnel if only the PA Bus Terminal could accommodate the additional buses.  This enable an additional 17,500 seated passengers per hour to commute from NJ to NYC, a volume that is essentially equivalent to what a new rail tunnel would provide.  Hopefully, the PANY&NJ accommodate such a service improvement when they design and build this new bus terminal.  Alain
 

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="30" width="134"> Autonomous Car Sets Record in Mexico

J. Hsu  Oct 26, "An experimental self-driving car has set a record for an autonomous road trip in Mexico. The trip from the U.S.-Mexico border to Mexico City provided the opportunity to collect data and prepare for an even longer upcoming road trip from Reno, Nevada to Mexico City.

The autonomous car in this case was a 2010 Volkswagen Passat Variant named Autonomos. The modified, self-driving vehicle can automatically control speed, direction, and braking without human driver intervention, but it also relies upon GPS to safely follow preset routes. Researchers prepared special maps containing terabytes of data detailing the number of lanes, highway markings, exits, intersections and traffic lights..."  Read more Hmmmm... Excellent.  Alain

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="28" width="136"> The Autonomous Winter Is Coming

A. Roy, Oct 15 "Winter is coming for car manufacturers. An Autonomous Winter, without end. If you’ve seen what Tesla is doing with Autopilot, and all they plan to do with it, you’ve already seen the future. Now it’s up to automakers to figure out what they want to be in this new world as quickly as possible.

Don’t think so? It’s because no one can remember anything that happened before the VW emissions scandal. While everyone is talking about the future of diesel and the consequences for VW, two big announcements were made around the Frankfurt Auto Show have been mostly forgotten: Google’s hiring of former head of Hyundai Motors America John Krafcik as CEO of their Self-Driving Car Project, and Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche’s claim that “we do not plan to become the Foxconn of Apple.”...."  Read more

Hmmm... The "70% reduction of cars on the road" is a stretch.  (That implies each car carries a little more than 3 people rather than today's one (Average Vehicle Occupancy (AVO) go from today's 1.0 to better than 3.0)  This will be a challenge in the peak-hour, peak-direction; all-day no-way!  Plus, enhanced mobility will engender greater Person-Miles Traveled (PMT), which in itself puts more cars on the road, were it not for ride-sharing taking them off.  So net-net-asymptotic best AVO is unlikely to be greater than 2.0 meaning that at most 50% reduction of cars on the road.  (Sorry to quibble about 70% v 50%, when 50% would be an enormous achievement in the light of all of the additional mobility that would be afforded to so many while decreasing the overall impact on EnergyConsumption, Pollution and GreenHouseGases/ClimateChange  by 50%!  Alain

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="35" width="106"> Vehicle-to-Infrastructure Technologies Expected to Offer Benefits, but Deployment Challenges Exist

GAO-15-775, Sept 2015 "...p35: Although V2I applications are being developed for the purpose of providing safety, mobility, operational, and environmental benefits, the extent to which V2I benefits will be realized is currently unclear because of the limited data available and the limited deployment of V2I technologies. To date, only small research deployments have occurred to test connected vehicle technologies. However, DOT has commissioned or conducted some studies to estimate potential V2I benefits, particularly with respect to safety and the environment. ..."  Read more  Hmmm... A 53 page report that says very little beyond "expert" opinions on various issues.  Appendix II: Expert Ratings of Potential Challenges Facing Deployment of Vehicle-to-Infrastructure Technologies and its Table 3 is the most interesting.  Alain

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="29" width="118"> How Soon Will Tesla Know If Autopilot Use Decreases Auto Accident Rates?

J. Ayres, Oct 31  "How soon will Tesla know if use of the new autopilot feature reduces overall auto accident rates amongst users? Given the greatly detailed information that Tesla gathers regarding driving patterns and events, one would presume… not that long from now.

Though I suppose that perhaps there may be advantages to waiting awhile to publicly reveal what’s known (presuming that the company does end up sharing publicly)?..." Read more

Hmmm...While this is the $64,000. Question!   They should know within a couple of million vehicle miles:  DaysSinceOct15 = 2Million/(NumberAutoPilotTeslas*MilesPerDay).  Teslas on-average, may be driven as much as 100 MilesPerDay (although it may actually be only ~10 :-(  ) =20,000/NumberAutoPilotTeslas.  Since we should be able to assume that there are at least 10,000 of these out there, then they should know a lot by now!!  This is the real power of crowd sourcing, even a small fleet (Mercedes, why haven't you been doing it???? Shame on you!!)  Sure hope they release the info.  They know already! Alain

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="28" width="141"> The Autopilot is learning fast: Model S owners are already reporting that Tesla’s Autopilot is self-improving

F. Lambert, Oct. 30 oet"...He said that the system should improve every day, but that improvements might only become noticeable every week or so by adding up. Just a few weeks after the release, Model S owners are already taking to the Tesla Motors Club forum to describe how the Autopilot is improving…Musk said that Model S owners could add ~1 million miles of new data every day, which is helping the company create “high precision maps”:..." Read more

[log in to unmask]" alt=""> Meet the Companies Building Self-Driving Cars for Google and Tesla (And Maybe Apple)

M. Bergen, Oct 27 "The list below is not exhaustive. Yet after conversations with nearly a dozen manufacturers, industry experts and tech companies involved in the world of self-driving cars, Re/code assembled a portrait of the leading, innovative companies and critical dynamics in the autonomous industry.

You know the iPhone teardown. Welcome to the self-driving car industry teardown:..."  Read more   Hmmm... Very interesting!  Alain

Some other thoughts that deserve your

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="30" width="127"> Future cars drift into the present at Tokyo Motor Show

S. Byford, Oct 29 "...From sleek, electronic vehicles that feel more like gadgets than cars, to roaring, muscular love letters to the concept of driving itself, it was all here this year. .." Read more (see Pictures See Also Cars of the Future on Display at Auto Show and Meet Mercedes-Benz's Vision Tokyo, a self-driving car for the megacity

Various Tesla AutoPilot Videos (Some irresponsible) :

[log in to unmask]" alt=""> Your AutoPilot Has Arrived....Oct 14, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="28" width="141"> Crazy Russian AutoPilot Videos

[log in to unmask]" alt="">Tesla AutoPilot Video

[log in to unmask]" alt="">  Driving a Tesla on Autopilot

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="30" width="170"> Imagining the Driverless City

P. Kiger, Oct 2 "...Perhaps the most profound effect of driverless vehicles would be to drastically reduce the need for parking structures and surface lots, which today take up a third of land inside cities, according to Rowe. Some of the garages and underground structures could be converted into storage spaces for urban dwellers who live in micro units, while the unneeded surface lots would be available for commercial or residential development or green space.?..." Read more Hmmm... A lot of this is rehash and nothing is said about the transition from today to whatever marvelous future that is being envisioned.  However, implications on land-use is so fundamentally important and we have barely begun to think about it.  So anything written at this stage is important.  See Also: Redesigning Roads: Taking a Look at the ‘Complete Streets’ Movement  Alain

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="33" width="69"> 4 Cars Approaching an Intersection

acomik.tumblr.com, Oct 2015 "Robo-cars, are they too dangerous?  See moreHmmm... Just a little fun.  Alain


Recompiled Old News :


Half-baked stuff that probably doesn't deserve your time:

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="25" width="101"> The Case for the Steering Wheel (and Against Truly Driverless Cars)

B. Guarino, Oct 27 " The appeals of the driverless car are multiple, but the argument in favor of letting Robo-Jesus take the wheel gaining traction is the simplest of the bunch: Human drivers are bad...." Read more Hmmmm... No!  the appeal to the driverless car is the opportunity to provide elevator-like horizontal mobility to everyone without incurring essentially any labor costs.   Alain

[log in to unmask]" alt="">How the 'hoverboards' took off - in spite of laws against them

E Ailes, Oct 13, "They're known variously as "hoverboards" or "rideables" and are the latest must-have at the feet of celebrities - but the Crown Prosecution Service says riding them on public UK roads is illegal. What is this futuristic new breed of transportation - and how practical is it?..." Read more Hmmm... more Segways???Alain


C'mon Man!  (These folks didn't get/read the memo)


Calendar of Upcoming Events:

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November 4-6, 2015 http://www.podcarcity.org/siliconvalley


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[log in to unmask]" alt="">

Technix 2016
Envision Automated Transit (EAT)
Saturday, January 9th, 2016

9:30 am – 4:00 pm
Kim Engineering Building, University of Maryland
8228 Paint Branch Dr., College Park, MD 20742
Open to the public
http://www.advancedtransit.org/library/news/technix-2016-envision-automated-transit-eat/



Recent Versions of:

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Friday, October 23, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt=""> Should Autopilot Cars Be Required To Pass Driving Tests?

J. Gorzelany Oct 22, "Every state in the union requires motorists to pass a battery of tests in order to be licensed, so why not self-driving vehicles? That’s a notion recently discussed in a white paper written by Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoettle of the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute..."  Read moreHmmmm... See the UofM white paper: Should We Require Licensing ...  .  Of course!  The question is now, what should that test be?  Should it simply be the same test as administered today, but with the car doing it as opposed to the human (that means the automated car is empty except the examiner riding shotgun barking out instructions) or is it a progressive exam coupled with a well defined set of conditions under which the automated functionalities are "engage-able" (For example: NJ Turnpike Southbound between mileposts X and Y, in lanes 2 and 3 of the "truck barrel" between sunrise and sunset, without heavy rain, sleet, snow or fog; etc.)  or ??? as in the report.   Alain

Monday, October 19, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="55" width="61"> Self-Driving Cars Are Coming Right For Us

Stephen C. Oct 16 "... It seems like every billionaire with a tech company is working on a self-driving car, so they're coming whether you like it or not..." See Video  Hmmmm.... Well worth watching.  As well as Video1, Video2,  Video 3, Video4, Video@night :-)  Alain
Special...Thursday, October 08, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="51" width="63"> US urged to establish nationwide Federal guidelines for autonomous driving

Oct 7 "The US risks losing its leading global position in the development of self-driving cars if it allows a patchwork of varying state laws and regulations to develop, according to Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive of Volvo Cars.
 
In a speech to be delivered Thursday at a high level seminar on self-driving cars organized by Volvo Cars and the Embassy of Sweden in Washington DC, Mr Samuelsson will say...

He will urge regulators to work closely with car makers to solve controversial outstanding issues such as questions over legal liability in the event that a self-driving car is involved in a crash or hacked by a criminal third party.
 
Mr Samuelsson will clearly state Volvo’s position on both of these contentious issues.
 
He will say Volvo will accept full liability whenever one if its cars is in autonomous mode, making it one of the first car makers in the world to make such a promise.
 
He will add that Volvo regards the hacking of a car as a criminal offense. ...." Read more

Hmmmm...   Fantastic!!!  This will really "shake 'em up".  I'll be on a panel at this meeting later this morning.  Can't wait!!!  This is FANTASTIC!!!Alain See also

Friday, October 02, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt=""> "60 Minutes" test-rides Mercedes-Benz self-driving car

Oct 2 "As Google’s driverless cars have logged more then a million miles in the past six years, the rest of the auto industry is racing to keep up. Computer scientist Ralf Herrtwich hits the road with "60 Minutes" correspondent Bill Whitaker to demonstrate Mercedes-Benz's most advanced self-driving prototype. Watch the full story Sunday on "60 Minutes."  Watch video and watch 60 minutes on Sunday Oct 4. This is really becoming mainstream.  Congratulations Ralf! Alain

Saturday, September 26, 2015

[log in to unmask]" border="0" height="44" width="50">As Volkswagen Pushed to Be No. 1, Ambitions Fueled a Scandal

D. Hakim, Sept 26 "...It is not Volkswagen’s first run-in with regulators over emissions. When the United States began regulating tailpipe pollutants in the 1970s, Volkswagen was one of the first companies caught cheating. It was fined $120,000 in 1973 for installing what became known as a “defeat device,” technology to shut down a vehicle’s pollution control systems. This time, it equipped its vehicles with software that was programmed to fake test results, an action the E.P.A. rebuked in 1998, when it reached a $1 billion settlement with truck-engine manufacturers for doing the same thing.....
Cheating on emissions tests solved several issues at once. Not only were drivers rewarded with better mileage and performance, but the automaker also avoided more expensive and cumbersome pollution-control systems.  While Volkswagen cheated behind the scenes, it publicly espoused virtue. This, after all, is the company that used one of the largest advertising arenas in the world, the Super Bowl, to run a commercial showing its engineers sprouting angel’s wings.
...Confronted again, Volkswagen continued to maintain that there was a problem with the testers, not the vehicles...Government officials then increased the pressure on the company, threatening to withhold approval for its 2016 Volkswagen and Audi diesel models. According to the E.P.A., that is what forced Volkswagen’s hand. On Sept. 3, a group of senior engineers admitted what the regulators had suspected: .... " Read more      Hmmm...So UGLY!!! Alain

Monday, September 14, 2015

[log in to unmask]" border="0" height="44" width="50">Automakers Will Make Automatic Braking Systems Standard in New Cars

B. Vlasic, Sept 11 " Federal regulators said on Friday that 10 automakers had agreed to install automatic braking systems, which use sensors to detect potential collisions, as standard equipment in new vehicles.

But the automakers have not set a timetable for the introduction of the systems, ...Anthony Foxx, the transportation secretary, said in a prepared statement that emergency braking technology could reduce traffic deaths and injuries.

“We are entering a new era of vehicle safety, focusing on preventing crashes from ever occurring, rather than just protecting occupants when crashes happen,” Mr. Foxx said....

The 10 companies “will work with I.I.H.S. and N.H.T.S.A. in the coming months on the details of implementing their historic commitment,” the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a statement (Same as the DoT Statement.)  Read more  Hmmm... This is major because the automakers "had agreed..." rather than "the regulators had required..."  (although  there seems to be a little push-back in that "...had not set a timetable..."  We do know that many are now offering these systems at a modest up-sell.  So there may actually be substance in the announcement.)  What is clear now is that we should all Invest in insurance companies that are creative in insuring these new vehicles!!!  They are going to become so profitable!  Insurance gets the cash benefit of the technology without having to pay for it!!! Wow!!!Congratulations Warren Buffett.  He must have played a role in this.  He stands to benefit so much.  :-)  While trucks are mentioned, (amazing that buses aren't; DoT is SO BAD!!), they seem very much the stepchild.  SO unfortunate! :-(   Alain

Friday, August 28, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="38" width="95"> Truck Safety Out of the Box from Autonobox

B Simpson, July 19, 2015 "The premise is promising. Develop and market a plug-and-play, forward-avoidance braking system for the heavy vehicle market that can be installed quickly, upgraded regularly, and even transferred from vehicle to vehicle if necessary.

The Autonobox System essentially is a second braking system for heavy-duty vehicles that addresses the long-standing problem of brakes that overheat after intense use like a panic-stop or sustained use while going downhill.... Read more  Hmmm...A viable after-market retro-fit opportunity.  Alain

Monday, August 10, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="41" width="176">Self-Driving Cars Could Destroy Fine-Based City Government. What’s the Downside?

S. Shackford, July 15 "One of the propelling concepts behind self-driving cars isn't just innovation for the sake of innovation, leading us to our sci-fi Jetsons future. If successfully implemented, it will make ground travel safer, ...Local governments have become increasingly dependent on human screw-ups as a way to raise money. Speeding tickets. DUI citations. Parking violations. Those are all big money-makers for municipalities that could very well go away under a regime of self-driving cars....On top of that, if the theory that self-driving cars will lead people to own fewer cars holds up, revenue from registration fees will drop as well.... Read more    Hmmm...  No downside here!  These have to be one of the most regressive tax systems, just behind lotteries and gambling.  Governments deserve it, but will save because they will need way police police who now waste way too much of their time enforcing traffic laws.  Police have much better things to do. Wins all around; No Downside! Alain

Friday, July 31, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="35" width="160"> Lipinski Continues Efforts to Keep Cars and Other Transportation Safe from Cyber Attacks in Wake of Fiat Chrysler Recall

July 28  "...These vulnerabilities pose great risks and the federal government must do more to help protect Americans from these risks.”

Late last year, the Cybersecurity Enhancement Act, originally introduced by Congressmen Lipinski, was signed into law.  The Act increases the security of federal networks and information systems, improves the transfer of cybersecurity technologies to the marketplace, trains a cybersecurity workforce, and coordinates and prioritizes federal cybersecurity research and development efforts.  " Read morHmmm...  Besides protecting we must also prosecute.  There has to be bad consequences and not notoriety to those that do the nasty deed.  Alain

Monday, July 27, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="41" width="113">[log in to unmask]">Center for Automated Road Transportation Safety @ Fort Monmouth is Launched

Monday, July 20, 2015 – "After more than three (3) years of planning and several major meetings the substantive launch the Center for Automated Road Transportation Safety @ Fort Monmouth (CARTS@FM) occurred this week with the establishment of the not-for-profit. (501(c) (6)), New Jersey Corporation.  The mission of this Center is to substantially improve safety on our existing conventional roadway infrastructure through the use of inexpensive automated collision avoidance systems installed on individual vehicles operating harmoniously with conventional vehicles throughout most, if not all, existing roadways.   The scope of CARTS’s mission is across all modes that utilize the nation’s conventional road system: trucks, buses and cars. .." [log in to unmask]">Read more

Friday, July 3, 2015

[log in to unmask]" alt="" height="40" width="40"> Rep. Lipinski Introduces Future Transportation Research and Innovation Act

I. Sancken 03/29/15, "Congressman Dan Lipinski (IL-3) has introduced H.R. 2886, the Future Transportation Research and Innovation for Prosperity (TRIP) Act, to support innovative technologies that have the potential to fundamentally alter mobility in America and beyond.

"Surface transportation used to be rather staid and unimaginative, but today the very concept of 'mobility' is being reinvented through research, innovation, and entrepreneurship," said Rep. Lipinski. "Rapidly advancing automation, connectivity, and information technologies are creating incredible opportunities for transportation innovation. We need to develop innovative ways to improve safety, ease congestion, improve personal mobility, and cut energy use..."  Read more  Hmmm... Excellent!  Alain

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

 [log in to unmask]" alt="" height="40" width="112">NTSB Calls for Immediate Action on Collision Avoidance Systems for Vehicles; Cites Slow Progress as Major Safety Issue

6/8/15 " WASHINGTON – In a report released today, the National Transportation Safety Board outlined the life-saving benefits of currently available collision avoidance systems, and recommended that the technology become standard on all new passenger and commercial vehicles.

“You don’t pay extra for your seatbelt,” said Chairman Christopher A. Hart. “And you shouldn’t have to pay extra for technology that can help prevent a collision altogether.”... Read more   Hmmm   Yea!!!  Finally some semblance of sanity in Washington.  Alain

Friday, May 29, 2015

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[log in to unmask]" height="47" width="55">John F. Nash Jr., Math Genius Defined by a ‘Beautiful Mind,’ Dies at 86

E. Goodmay, May 24 "...Dr. Nash and his wife, Alicia, 82, were in a taxi on the New Jersey Turnpike in Monroe Township around 4:30 p.m. when the driver lost control while veering from the left lane to the right and hit a guardrail and another car, Sgt. Gregory Williams of the New Jersey State Police said.

The couple were ejected from the cab and pronounced dead at the scene. The State Police said it appeared that they had not been wearing seatbelts.... Read more
See also: [log in to unmask]" alt="" height="26" width="183"> John, Alicia Nash Remembered After Fatal Crash
A Beautiful Mind Mathematician John Nash and His Wife Killed in N.J. Car Crash ;

Hmmm... So tragic!!! What a crying shame!!! So preventable!!! We will miss them :-(

Unfortunately, the NYT and others tried but missed the fundamental point by following up with "Deaths of Math Genius John F. Nash Jr. and Wife Show Need to Use Seatbelts in Back, Experts Say ".  Why do we so easily put up with crashes in the first place?  It is as if it is OK to go around crashing, just put on a seat belt.   Technology is available to avoid crashes, but there isn't sufficient public policy focus on avoiding crashes to accelerate its adoption and enhancement.

The fundamental problem was that the taxi was not equipped with available automated stability control, lane keeping and collision avoidance systems.  This was not an accident, it was a failed public safety policy that refuses to move beyond crash mitigation and its challenged “V2x” initiatives to embrace forthright automated crash avoidance. 

Moreover, there is a failed Taxi regulatory structure that doesn’t even hint that taxis should have electronic stability control, automated lane keeping and collision avoidance.  What is the purpose of taxi regulation, to keep “Ubers” out of business? 

It is time for the nation's transportation policy to focus intelligence/automation on the vehicle in support of the driver.  Hopefully Congress will restructure the pending transportation legislation to focus automated vehicle technologies that actively assist drivers when they make driving mistakes.  We are not perfect.  We deserve a public safety policy that is more mindful of our imperfections. Policy that isn't aimed at just warning and scolding us but actively takes over and does the right thing.  We, not the infrastructure, are the cause of most of the the highway carnage.  It is the driver who needs help and our public policy should focus on delivering that help.      Alain

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