News - Google develops cars that drive themselves

[HEXUS]

Search giant has its sights set on "fundamentally changing" road use through the introduction of automated cars.

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[neonplanet40]

How much is it to insure one? Or do you even need insurance as technically you arent driving!!

[Flash477]

I can't see this being anytime soon - relying just on the car itself is always going to fail in my oppinion, you'd need things on or by the road to rely information.

I mean, how does it handle traffic works where the speed limit has been reduced, or when a new roadabout, stop sign or anything else changes? especially things like snow and ice.

I'd like to see it follow behind a gritter for a short while and then see how well it performs with a layer of salt over it's sensors.

*edit* If it's anything like GPS they'll be a lot of cars driving over cliffs

[usxhe190]

Skynet!

[Lanky123]

I think ideally you'd have multiple cars like this on the road all sharing information with each other either via google's servers or directly. With several sensors per car it would then be hard to imagine a couple of dodgy sensors messing up a collective picture of what's going on. This way roadworks or extreme road conditions up ahead could be relayed to your car long before you even got there. Cars communicating with each other could probably also drive in much closer formation safely and traffic jams could be sorted out in the most mathematically efficient way automatically.

I can dream.

[cameronlite]

Ive been considering the idea of this for years. The problem as always is mass adoption. It will work amazingly if all of the cars are upgraded at the same time. However, it's a bit like public transport:

Govenment: use the transport!
Public: it doesn't run on time/there isn't enough!

They cant use those cars unless all of the cars are converted.


It would save a tonne of time. Consider when you are at traffic lights, if everybody moved off at the same time...

[Shooty*]

You forgot:

Public:
It's full of borderline psychotics and genuine crazies, and smells of urine.

[cameronlite]

I think a hybrid would be a pretty good idea.

Cars could be controlled on the large, fast roads and then manual mode could switch on when you enter populated areas...

[Andeh13]

Oh how I hate that car so much!