Tag: self driving cars

Self-Driving Cars Could Prevent Up To 90% Of Accidents

A new study by the consulting firm McKinsey & Company suggests that widespread acceptance of self-driving cars could reduce traffic accidents by up to 90 percent.

The study suggests that mass adoption of self-driving vehicles will occur in about 15 years, and this could be bad news for collision centers. According to the study, mass adoption of auto-piloted vehicles would:

  • Reduce traffic crashes by up to 90 percent.
  • Prevent up to $190 billion annually in damages and health-related costs.
  • Save thousands of lives.

Hans-Werner Kaas, a senior partner at McKiney’s automotive division, said automotive producers have already shifted their focus to autonomous or semiautonomous vehicles.

“Autonomous vehicles and the path toward them is one of the most shaping trends in the auto industry today,” said Kaas.

autonomous car

Interestingly, since the vehicles would rely on such sophisticated technology, McKiney and Company believes the whole dynamic of the automotive industry would change. Instead of owning your own self-driving car, the firm believes we’ll shift to a pay-per-ride model.

Sophisticated Technologies

According to data published on WardsAuto.com, cars are already being equipped with more sophisticated safety measures. In the 2014 model year, 1.4 percent of new vehicles had adaptive cruise control, an increase from 1.1 percent in 2013. Lane-departure prevention technology and blind-spot alert controls also increased in the 2014 models, rising 5.0 percent and 3.8 percent respectively.

Despite the increasing technology, there’s still plenty of hurdles to clear before we see mass production of self-drivign vehicles. Ryan Eustice, a robotics professor at the University of Michigan, said companies need to account for a myriad of potential pitfalls, like a constantly updating maps system and the ability to drive on less-than-ideal weather conditions.

“The idea has been a little bit oversold in terms of having the problems solved.”

Related source: Wall Street Journal

U.S. Moving Forward to Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications

v2vNot too long ago, we wrote a blog post supposing that car-to-car communications could be coming to an intersection near you in the not so distant future, and it appears the U.S. is moving forward with the idea.

According to a report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the U.S. is preparing a report that will examine security concerns, technological issues, costs and safety benefits of vehicle-to-vehicle communications. Previous research by the U.S. Department of Transportation suggests that inter-vehicle communications would significantly reduce the number of annual automobile accidents.

The DoT’s report includes two interesting points of research. The findings suggest that two key features of vehicle-to-vehicle communications – Left Turn Assist and Intersection Movement Assist – could help prevent more than a half million crashes each year and save an estimated 1,083 lives each year.

As the name implies, Left Turn Assist prevents drivers from turning across traffic if another vehicle is approaching from the opposite lane, while Intersection Movement Assist helps drivers navigate intersections with heavy traffic.

“Safety is our top priority, and V2V technology represents the next great advance in saving lives,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “This technology could move us from helping people survive crashes to helping them avoid crashes altogether – saving lives, saving money and even saving fuel thanks to the widespread benefits it offers.”

In addition to the above technologies, the DoT are also studying:

  • Forward collision monitors
  • Blind spot monitors
  • Stop light warnings
  • “Do not pass” warnings 

The department believes the report as well as a commission on proposed rules will be ready by 2016. Once V2V technologies have been perfected, the DoT plans to focus their attention on personal driverless cars.

Related source: Motor Trend