Google has announced that it is to start building its own self-driving cars. A progression from the vehicles already modified to self-drive by Google, a common site around the headquarter campus, the tech giant says it expects its self-drive cars to be on the road ‘within a year’.
Google recently announced that its existing fleet of self-drive cars had recorded 700,000 miles of public roads use in autonomous mode – busy metropolitan areas are currently a work in progress.
The electric car will seat two people and has been designed with a “friendly” face to encourage acceptance of self-driving technology. To begin with, the car will be limited to speeds of 25mph (40km/h) and has a bumper made of foam-like material and a more flexible windscreen to help ensure both driver and pedestrian safety.
The vehicle will depend on Google’s road maps, built specifically for the programme, and will use a combination of laser and radar sensors along with camera data to drive autonomously. The company plans to build a fleet of approximately 200 of the cars in Detroit.
But where are these cars actually legal to drive? Again, emerging technology is forcing a shift in both the urban landscape and the laws underpinning it. The fact that the vehicle does not have any controls, apart from a stop/go button is not preventing Google pushing ahead with manufacturing the prototypes. For early acceptance testing, they plan to fit extra controls so one of Google’s test drivers, two test-drivers must be present at all times, can take over if there is a problem. The controls will simply plug in.
Advocates believe that the autonomous car is revolutionary. They believe that it may be the most important safety technology ever introduced to the auto industry and, on the one hand, it is easy to see how the self-drive car could impact on road safety statistics as it practically eliminates the potential for driver error.
The question remains though, is this a death knell to driving as we know and love it or an exciting glimpse into the future of urban motoring?
