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Ford Touts Self-driving Car, Launches Global Mobility Experiments
An anonymous reader writes in with news about Ford's latest automobile technology unveiled at CES. "Ford showcased the semi-autonomous vehicles it has on the road at CES and gave attendees a glimpse into fully autonomous vehicles now in development. The carmaker also announced a series of experiments with drivers around the globe to test its vehicle-to-vehicle connectivity, autonomous cars and the use of big data collected from vehicles. The company said a fully autonomous Ford Fusion Hybrid research vehicle is undergoing road testing now. The vehicle relies on the same semi-autonomous technology used in Ford vehicles today, while adding four LiDAR (light, radar) sensors to generate a real-time 3D map of the surrounding environment."
Surely you are joking?
hmm... i don't know... perhaps:
1. Automate the entire long haul transport industry ... seriously do I need to keep going?:
2. Cars spend 95% of the time parked. Wouldn't you like the ability to be earning the income of a taxi for the 8 hours+ your car is currently parked at work each day
3. Eventually less accidents (take out the emotional / distracted / drug influenced drivers).
4. Will change entire transport industry, as companies can combine the public transport efficiencies of mass transit and the flexibility of taxis to get you the last mile, so not everyone feels the need to drive an empty car everywhere.
5
You sir are either a troll or an idiot.
Now bring me my autonomous car!
Why does anyone need a self-driving car?
1. They are likely to be far safer.
2. They use road space much more efficiently, increasing the carrying capacity by a factor of five.
3. Many people, due to age or disability, can't drive.
4. They decrease costs for companies that pay people to drive.
5. They make public transportation much more affordable and accessible, by replacing big fix-route buses with small flex-route vans
6. Some people just don't like to drive, and would rather snooze or catch up on email.
This is all about rich people creating playthings
The first generation will certainly be for evil "rich people", but with mass production the cost should fall so they are similar in price to other cars. Sensors and actuators are not particularly expensive. Once you factor in insurance premiums, SDCs are likely to be cheaper than HDCs.