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Consumer Reports Calls For Tesla To Disable Autopilot (consumerreports.org)
Reader parallel_prankster writes: Consumer Reports is calling on Tesla to disable its "Autopilot" feature that enables hands-free operation. Citing the recent fatal accident involving a car with Autopilot engaged, Consumer Reports labels the feature as "Too Much Autonomy Too Soon." In an extensive article posted at the top of its website Thursday morning, Consumer Reports said Tesla should "disable hands-free operation until its system can be made safer." "By marketing their feature as 'Autopilot,' Tesla gives consumers a false sense of security," said Laura MacCleery, vice president of consumer policy and mobilization for Consumer Reports, in the article. "In the long run, advanced active safety technologies in vehicles could make our roads safer. But today, we're deeply concerned that consumers are being sold a pile of promises about unproven technology. 'Autopilot' can't actually drive the car, yet it allows consumers to have their hands off the steering wheel for minutes at a time. Tesla should disable automatic steering in its cars until it updates the program to verify that the driver's hands are on the wheel."
Tesla says it will continue development of Autopilot, insisting that drivers supported by Autopilot "remain safer than those operating without assistance."
Tesla says it will continue development of Autopilot, insisting that drivers supported by Autopilot "remain safer than those operating without assistance."
So do you expect "Automatic Pilot" on Airplanes to mean land/take off, deal with adverse weather, etc ?
Why do drivers of cars take automatic pilot to mean complete robotic control, "I can not pay attention"?
A car still requires a humans to intervention. No where have I seen automatic pilot to be advanced to complete automatic control/driving.
Only lawyers and the those in the general populace that are trying to elevate auto pilot as responsible, seem to not have the clue. And for lawyers
they have the clue, but they ignore it and exploit the notion that auto pilot means you as the human can rely 100% on the computer.
Lets rename the mode. Even though for 50 years Auto pilot meant do the easy, mundane things. Not complete autonomous control.
If I recall correctly, Consumer Reports was the same organization that demerited cars for having electric power windows because they said something to the effect that you'd be trapped in the event your car sank in a body of water.
It is sad that someone died while using Tesla's "autopilot" feature. But 1) evidence suggests the driver contributed to his own demise by ignoring or circumventing the warnings and safety features of the product 2) the product is only improved by the knowledge gained from this incident making future trips safer for everyone. 3) it is already evident that the rate of fatalities using this mode is already a 35% improvement over non-autopilot users. (1 fatality in 130 million miles driven vs. 1 in 96 million)
Everything I've read about the auto pilot feature states that you need to have your hands on the wheel at all times.
This. Even with auto pilot on a commercial jet liner, someone has to be in the cockpit at all times, monitoring and ready to take control. Why? In case shit happens. Which is always does, at the most unexpected times. If you want to get from A to B without having to interact with the vehicle in any capacity, ride a bus or call an Uber. Please don't tell me you're so stupid as to honestly claim you didn't know the car really wouldn't drive itself with 0% action on your part. If you are this stupid.. please ride a bus or call an Uber.
Do you expect an "Automatic Transmission" to operate your transmission for you? Do you expect "Automatic Sprinklers" to water your yard for you? Automatic means what it means and comes with certain connotations. If you want to use the aircraft argument, will you agree then that Tesla should require a several hundred hour certification course before you're allowed to take ownership of your vehicle like is done with commercial aircraft to explain all the nuances of the systems and ensure the pilots know how everything works?
Unfortunately, what didn't happen doesn't matter in law.
Let's say you're driving drunk one day. You hit a car and kill all 4 occupants. You will be thrown in jail and sued in civil court. And you will lose. No court has ever said, "Well, he was such a good driver before. He even actively prevented some collisions with a wise use of horn and blinkers!" Nope. You're still at fault for the collision you cause.
And this is going to be the MASSIVE legal battle that anyone building autonomous vehicles will have to face. Even if their autonomous drive mode prevents 2/3 of would-be collisions in those vehicles, their other 1/3 of those collisions will be the fault and liability of the manufacturer.
*this*
I've driven a tesla with autopilot for a week, and thought it was an undercooked dangerous feature. The number of times it gave up auto steering because it got confused and the only warning you get is a subtle bong with sometimes sub second reaction times to stop an indecent made turn it off altogether.
I agree with consumer reports. It should be disabled.
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