[ExI] self driving cars again

Charlie Stross charlie.stross at gmail.com
Sun Aug 12 15:58:23 UTC 2012


On 12 Aug 2012, at 16:49, david <deimtee at optusnet.com.au> wrote:
> 
> 
> With a smart enough despatching system covering the area, you could use
> a fleet of electric cars. You could even make cross country trips,
> meeting and transferring to a new car each time the battery gets low.
> They monitor their charge (as does the system), and if there isn't
> enough left to make the trip, a charged car meets you on the
> way. Lots of potential for a smart system.

Actually, if we're talking self-driving and electric, then for long-haul trips the best solution seems to me to be able to hire a self-driving electric car with a tow bar and trailer hitch ... and to rent a trailer with a bunch of extra batteries or a compact fuel-burning generator pack. Let the car software handle reversing and steering with a trailer (software to do that is a logical requirement for self-driving cargo trucks), and don't bother carrying with the parasitic weight of a hybrid power train unless you're actually going further than the built-in batteries will allow.


-- Charlie



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