Toyota Black Box Data Is More Closed Than Others'

wjr writes "Many cars these days contain black boxes that record information (speed, accelerator position, etc) and can preserve information in the case of an accident. Ford and Chrysler say that they use 'open systems' so anyone can read out the data; General Motors has licensed Bosch to produce a device capable of reading its cars' black boxes. On the other hand, Toyota has only a single laptop in the US capable of reading its cars' black boxes, and generally won't allow the data to be read without a court order. Honda seems to have a similar policy. This is emerging as an issue in the investigation into unintended acceleration."

Comments

East versus West

[reporter]

plover (150551) wrote, "Wouldn't it be grand if the guys who hacked Ubisoft's latest game took on this challenge instead?"

You would not need to hack the black box if Toyota -- and, for that matter, Japanese society -- put more value on openness and humanity. Though Japan is mostly a Western nation, the Japanese still retain some distinctly Asian features. They include secrecy, devaluing human life, etc.

So, the Japanese engineers at both Toyota and Honda naturally created a closed black box that only their engineers can read and decode. So, naturally, given the same kinds of defects, the Japanese government is less likely to demand a recall than the American government. So, naturally, Toyota works their engineers to death: "death by overwork" killed numerous engineers and salesmen during the 1980s and 1990s.

Yet, unlike other Asians, the Japanese do try to be Western. So, Tokyo -- following the lead of Washington -- has now toughened its language against Toyota. Tokyo, like Washington, is investigating the problems in both the braking system and the throttle system.

Closer to home for most of the techies on Slashdot is the initiative for the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS). RoHS is an idea that was first promoted and enforced by the European Union. RoHS is a requirement that electronics manufacturers must minimize or eliminate use of some dangerous substances like lead.

The EU did the courageous step of enhancing the value of human life. Japan followed the lead of the Europeans and now also abides by RoHS rules.

Japan is Western but still must learn from the rest of the West.

Re:A challenge...

[Nutria]

Wouldn't it be grand if the guys who hacked Ubisoft's latest game took on this challenge instead?

If Alberto Gonzales' Justice Dept were trying to prosecute accused terrorists, most of /. (and, for that matter, the EFF and Huffington Post) would be applauding Toyota for respecting people's privacy.

Hypocritical bastards.