[ExI] Google Cars Drive Themselves, in Traffic

spike spike66 at att.net
Sun Oct 10 01:41:59 UTC 2010


 

> ...On Behalf Of BillK
> Subject: [ExI] Google Cars Drive Themselves, in Traffic
> 
> October 9, 2010
> 
>   MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. - Anyone driving the twists of 
> Highway 1 between San Francisco and Los Angeles recently may 
> have glimpsed a Toyota Prius with a curious funnel-like 
> cylinder on the roof. Harder to notice was that the person at 
> the wheel was not actually driving.
> 
> <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/10/science/10google.html>
> 
> The car is a project of Google... BillK

I saw this thing!  It was a few weeks ago, when I was on a motorcycle ride
over on the coast.  Wondered what the heck it was, didn't notice that the
prole behind the wheel wasn't steering.  {8^D  Agreed this is wicked cool.
Hope they get it working soon, for a reason completely unrelated to having a
robo-designated driver.

If a car runs itself with no human input, we proles would be much more
tolerant of lower acceleration rates.  You don't even notice that an
elevator accelerates slowly, or a bus.  But if you are at the wheel
personally, it makes you crazy if the detroit responds only leisurely to
your command to go.

If we increase our tolerance of lower acceleration, it allows smaller and
less thirsty IC engines, allows hybrids to carry fewer batteries, making it
lighter.  Lower acceleration results in lower torque requirements on the
frame, which makes it still lighter.  We can build a car which will get 100
mpg (2.3 liters per 100 km) if we tolerate low acceleration which would be
OK if a computer is driving.

If the computer is driving, you can be napping or reading a book, and would
scarcely notice the enraged proles stacking up behind you with murderous
looks on their faces.  We need to also develop robo-return-fire.

spike






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