Google has been in the news for its pioneering work in driverless vehicle technology in recent months.
In May, Google unveiled a prototype of its self-driving vehicle, a two-passenger electric car with buttons that turn the vehicle on or off. However, there is no accelerator pedal, steering wheel, brake pedal, or steering wheel. The car’s driving direction is determined by the light detection and range (LIDAR), rotating sensor mounted on the roof. This scans the surrounding area to detect pedestrians and cyclists as well as other obstacles.
Google is widely considered to be the leader in developing advanced automation technology. But, automakers like Ford and Honda are also joining the race. Although they are moving at a slower pace, they are adding automated features to their cars that perform specific tasks, such as adaptive cruise control and lane departure warning.
Lux Research has recently released a report that these cars are “the future of automobiles.” “Level 2″By 2030, features will account for 92 per cent of the global $87 billion-per year autonomous car market. Only 8% will make it to the top. “Level 3″cars that could be driven autonomously but which would give drivers the ability to regain control in an emergency.
The research firm does not expect fully automated vehicles to be on the roads by 2030. “We consider that ultimate level, Level 4, to be full autonomy, where you just get in and you don’t interact with the car at all,”Cosmin Laslau is the lead analyst at Lux Research. “And we don’t think that’s coming by 2030. The biggest opportunity that we see will be actually from the Level 2 features, which are the more conventional advances that we’re already starting to see come onto the market from higher-end developers.”
Hermann Winner, director of and professor in automotive engineering at Germany’s Technische Universit?t Darmstadt agreed. “We will start with a partially automated car, then a highly automated one,”He said that he didn’t anticipate a fully autonomous car, one without any specific limitations in terms of traffic environment or driving speed, on the market over the next 40 years. “The big challenge to total automation is getting safety approval. Even if you assume the system is ready by 2020, approval is going to be problematic.”
Panel session: Winner will discuss the challenges in the development of the driverless vehicle. “IT Meets the Automobile: Interactive Advanced Vehicle Technologies and Self-Driving Cars”The ASMEAdvanced Design and Manufacturing Impact Forum, Buffalo, New York. Visit www.asme.orgFor more information, please visit
