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Smart Cars Tell You About Road Signs
Roland Piquepaille writes "There are many systems designed to help car drivers and to improve safety. In this article, New Scientist focuses on a system developed by the National ICT Australia lab (NICTA). This new driver assistance system uses three cameras, one to look at road signs ahead and two to check what the driver is looking at. The images are transmitted to a computer which decodes the road signs and the driver's reactions to them. If you're driving above speed limits, you will be alerted. Same thing if you're about to pass a stop sign without reducing speed. You still can choose to ignore the warnings, but if you're caught speeding, you'll have to tell the police officer why you refused to slow down. This system is currently being tested and appears to perform well especially in poor lighting conditions. Read more for other references about similar helping systems and to see how the road signs are analyzed."
...my mother already does this when I drive her anywhere... do I really need the car to do it as well?
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does it also read the secret markings on the back of the signs used for tactical planning in the case of a UN invasion?
Officer: You were doing 100 in a 50. Do you have anything to say for yourself?
Speeder: The voices in my head. I was trying to get away from the voices...the voices...make it stop.
Car: I see that you are stopped on the side of the highway. Do you want me to call the highway patrol and alert them?
Speeder: Ahhhhhhhhh!
Once this becomes a standard feature in cars, I can see the future youth hacking it and customizing it to say things like "woman with child, 50 points".
Meh.
I like the idea. I like it more if you can give it a familiar voice like, say, your Dad when he taught you how to drive.
.... STOP!!! Jesus Christ, what the hell are you doing?"
"stop... stop
If Nalgene water bottles are outlawed, only outlaws will have Nalgene water bottles.
I don't want anything I use to be "smart" or smarter than me, or approaching as smart as me.
It's just too easy...
Seriously though, why do you have a problem with stuff you use being smarter then you or nearly as smart as you? Are you that insecure?
How freaking hard is it to learn to drive yourself anyways?
"You know how it is, it's quite easy to accidently speed"
"What stop sign? I was too busy watching that jack-ass in front of me."
"I got lost. I forgot which road I'm suppose to turn down, hey give me a break, I've never been here before."
"What's the speed limit again?"
All those are close approximations to actual quotes I've heard from numerous drivers. This technology or other technology helps in making sure those situations don't happen. If everyone was such a perfect driver as yourself must be, there obviously wouldn't be any speeding cameras, people wouldn't get booked for going through a stop sign, etc. But seeings how not everyone is as perfect as you it does happen on a regular basis. This technology helps curb that.