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NTSB Calls For Wireless Tech To Enable Vehicles To Talk To Each Other

Posted by samzenpus on from the KITT-car dept.

Lucas123 writes "In the aftermath of a school bus accident last year, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) this week called for cars, trucks and buses to be equipped with machine-to-machine communications technology that could help vehicles avoid accidents by knowing what other vehicles are doing. In the bus accident, a Mack truck sped through an intersection slamming into the rear of the bus, killing one and injuring more than a dozen others. 'Systems such as connected vehicle technology could have provided an active warning to the school bus driver of the approaching truck as he began to cross the intersection,' the NTSB stated in its report. Among others, Intel is working with National Taiwan University on M2M technology that would allow vehicles the exchange of data, allowing each to know what's going on around them. 'We're even imagining that in the future cars would be able to ask other cars, "Hey, can I cut into your lane?" Then the other car would let you in,' said Jennifer Healey, a research scientist with Intel."

6 of 153 comments (clear)

  1. "Hey, can I cut into your lane?" by dtmos · · Score: 4, Insightful

    'We're even imagining that in the future cars would be able to ask other cars, "Hey, can I cut into your lane?" Then the other car would let you in,' said Jennifer Healey, a research scientist with Intel.

    No cars that I know. The cars I know would speed up to tailgate the car in front of them, and then honk their horn in indignant aggression at the thought of someone trying to merge in front of them.

    1. Re:"Hey, can I cut into your lane?" by girlintraining · · Score: 4, Insightful

      No cars that I know. The cars I know would speed up to tailgate the car in front of them, and then honk their horn in indignant aggression at the thought of someone trying to merge in front of them.

      I think this illustrates the problem quite well. The NTSB is trying to create accident avoidance systems like those on commercial aircraft. What they're failing to understand is that you'll never get the average person to exhibit that level of professionalism or achieve that level of training. We do not have a culture of safety surrounding the use of motor vehicles, and without it, things like this will only wind up having motorists smash the little boxes to pieces the moment they try to keep someone from "cutting them off" while their car tries a "I'm sorry, I can't let you do that, Dave."

      --
      #fuckbeta #iamslashdot #dicemustdie
  2. Nope by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Here's why it won't work.

    1) It won't work on cars that aren't fitted with the devices
    2) Like hell are you going to retrofit the entire fleet with the devices

    Hey, you know what else is really good at avoiding collisions? Trains. Let's replace our highway system with railroad tracks!

    or, if you like

    1a) If this thing doesn't have a manual override, software bugs will kill thousands.
    1b) If this thing does have manual override, manual overrides will kill thousands.
    2) Nobody wants to write software that will kill thousands.

    And, last but not least
    "Why are all these modern cars so expensive? I'll just buy a used one instead"

  3. hmmm... by Charliemopps · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Let's see... what are the first things we'll see this used for?
    1. Automated speeding tickets.
    2. Insurance company logging of all your activity as an excuse to jack your rates up.
    3. Data subpenaed in lawsuits.
    4. NSA will be all over it. Reporters will be plowing into palm trees all over the place.
    5. Highschool kids rip the devices out of cars in junkyards and drop them from freeway overpasses during a busy holiday for fun.
    6. Law enforcement can remotely turn off your car... a few months later criminals will have the same ability...

    It doesn't sound like a fair trade to me.

  4. First step on a long road by naff89 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I think it would be great to start equipping all motor vehicles with (well-designed, forwards-compatible) systems like this so that in 20-30 years when driverless cars are a viable option on the road, there's the infrastructure in place to support it.

  5. Why not just fix car design? by loony · · Score: 4, Informative

    I drove a 99 corolla until recently... After I got hit this January by a stoner, I got a 2013 corolla... The enhancements are awesome: I can no longer see cars in my blindspot by simply turning my head - they moved the side support forward by about an inch and a half... The mirrors are an annoying cut-off shape that means I can no longer see the car 2 lanes over in the lower corner of my mirror... For no apparent reason, they raised the plastic in front of the wind screen so I can no longer comfortably see the front of my vehicle when parking... They also raised the trunk lid to the point that the windscreen is substantially smaller and I have poor rear visibility... And my favorite, they moved the cup holders behind the gear shift rather than keeping it in front, so I can't properly shift anymore if I have anything larger than a can in my car... so I can either drive de-hydrated or keep the drink between my legs, both sounds really safe. Oh, and my favorite, they also put a lid on top of the center console storage space just in the right place that I hit my funny bone when shifting into 4th gear.

    So explain to me, why do I need to have a wireless car-to-car system if the manufacturer of the vehicle seems hell bent on making the vehicle as hard to drive as possible (they call it modern styling)? It adds to the cost of the car, increases the weight (my car, despite 8 more horses, is almost a second slower 0-60) and the end effect is questionable. There are so many cheaper and better ways to make cars safer...

    Peter.