Autonomous Vehicles, AVs Innovation! A Plus Or Minus To The Transport Sector?

A self-driving vehicle sounds really cool! Like, we get to sit back and watch the computer do the turning, pointing, speeding, parking and lots. But in reality, there’s more to it.

The transportation industry is taking a new turn as news of driverless cars innovation looks like a dream turning reality. As a matter of fact, in some parts of the country like Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania, San Francisco in California and, North America, major automobile manufacturers like Google and Uber are already testing autonomous vehicles on public roads. While other automobiles are already taking appropriate measures to mark this future.

Also, a research by Boston Consulting Group reveals that by 2035, 12 million fully automated vehicles and 18 million partially autonomous cars are expected to be sold annually across the globe. Meanwhile, the market for partially and fully autonomous vehicles is expected to boom from about 42 billion US dollars in 2025 to approximately 77 billion dollars in 2035.

Driverless cars are, sure, on the way. But the fact remains that there are still some major threats these computer-drivers need to overcome before it’s total acceptance into the transportation system.

First, however, is the social resistance, corporate cyber attacks, liability issues, just to mention only but a few.

Below, therefore, are the general threats facing the innovation of Autonomous Vehicle (AVs)

#1. Heavy rain interferes with the laser and radar sensors:

Autonomous vehicles, have a laser mounted on the car’s roof and radar sensors are placed in the four corners of the vehicle’s body. The computer uses this to calculate the distance between the car and other vehicles/ objects to know the next action that is required.

During heavy rainfall, radio waves tend to get mixed up and precipitation begin to appear in different places. The action of this heavy rain on objects like mountains, house structures, trees and, insect throngs, may appear to be precipitation echoes.

As a result, the radar sensor of autonomous vehicles gets interfered and begins to decide what is not.

#2. Winter driving conditions:

Winter driving condition is yet another threat to the innovation of autonomous vehicles. One of the major winter driving condition that poses threat to AVs is the abundance of snow.

Ryan Eustice, a well known associate engineer and professor at the University of Michigan, on a discussion with Bloomberg about snow testing quoted strongly that, “irrespective of the importance of AVs technology a whopping 70 percent of the U.S population would never purchase a vehicle that can not satisfyingly drive in the snow.”

Driverless vehicles use camera and lidar (a remote light detector) to calculate and observe its environment while on a motion. However, during winter heavy snow covers the camera of autonomous vehicles — thereby rendering the lidar ineffective.

Although some vehicle transport companies, automobile experts, and car shipping carriers are already seeking for a solution to this. Ford Automobile, for example, proffered a solution to scan and create 3D maps — so the car already knows, to a certain distance, where the lines are in advance. But what happens if the vehicle exhausts its already read map and the snow is still stuck in the cameras? Are the cars supposed to create its own lines?

This is another threat AVs must overcome before it gets wide acceptance.

#3. The notion that drivers should be ready to take over the wheel if the system fails:

This is yet another significant threat facing the innovation of AVs.

Since one of the key purposes of this technology is to improve productivity, people seated in the car would not pay attention to most of the driving. Drivers would rather get something else doing in other not to defeat the purpose of this innovation.

According to Teletrac, even though the computer would take over once the vehicle is operational, the driver is still required to maintain focus as to how to operate it safely in case the system betrays.

When the car is fully under the driver’s control, the driver knows he has to remain attentive at all times and must be prepared to take accident avoidance measures. But when AVs fails, the driver will not be prepared to avoid an accident.

In addition, this technology would give room to people who have no driving skills at all to operate these robotic cars making it difficult for them to know how to handle the wheel if or when the system fails.

#4. Inability to interpret human signals:

What happens in situations where the normal traffic light fails or if an accident just occurred at a specific location and traffic wardens are being placed at some spots to direct the traffic? Then the inability of these autonomous cars to read human signals would definitely lead to another accident.

#5. Confusion of justice:

Although the innovation of autonomous vehicles reduces the likelihood of an accident, it doesn’t totally eliminate it. As a matter of fact a very fatal accident was recorded by Tesla Motors on the 7th day of May 2016. When both Joshua Brown (the driver seated in this robotic vehicle) and Tesla technology, failed to notice a turning trailer that was already out of its way.

Meanwhile, there has not been any legal precedent as to how this case would be handled it the future.

Now the question is, if the slim chance of accident happens, who would be held responsible for damages? The person in the vehicle, the manufacturer, the government, the software developer or “Mr. Computer??”

#6. Corporate Cyber Attacks:

The innovation of AVs would be a major point of interest to hackers and cyber thieves.

Since AVs is set to work with a collection of networked computers and sensors — wirelessly connected to the outside world, one major attack on one of its system would result in many systems being affected.

#7. The cars cannot reliably react to human traffic direction signals:

One of the major challenges facing autonomous vehicles (AVs) is the fact that these cars cannot reliably react to traffic signals.

The most part of it, these cars have been programmed to detect traffic lights and signs at some specific location. This means if an autonomous vehicle comes across a new signal or meets a road sign in an area where it wasn’t programmed to be, the car would just ignore the signs and keep moving.

The innovation of these driverless cars thereby calls for a transformation of traffic and roadside signals.

#8. The HIGH cost of the technology:

In the case of autonomous vehicles, one of the biggest threats that would slow down its quick innovation is the high cost of technology. The fact remains that, “no matter how plausible a technology may be, it is useless if it’s not affordable!”

At the beginning of the 20th century, a car was a thing for the rich, and only a few cars were recorded on the streets. Until a young man came up with this:

“I would build a motor car for the great multitude. It would be large enough for the family but small enough for the individual to run and care for. It would be constructed of the best materials, by the best men to be hired, after the simplest design that modern engineers can devise. But it would be so low in price that no man making a good salary would be unable to buy one and enjoy with his family the blessing of hours of pleasure in God’s open space.” (Ford. Page 73)

Henry Ford produced an automobile that was within the economic reach of an average American. And cars doubled up on the street.

The cost of the technology of AVs is a major threat to its innovation. If the goal is to eliminate human-driven vehicles in the society and replace them with robotic ones, the question is, “how many persons/firms can afford one, two or three of this technology?
 

In Conclusion:

No doubt, autonomous vehicles brings awesome benefits! But the fact remains that if it fails to overcome the threats listed above, it’s innovation might not become a reality.