Autonomous cars have emerged from science fiction into our modern day lives in what seems like a short amount of time. When in fact they have been developed from innovations across both aviation and car technologies like autopilot, cruise control and brake assist software. Radio controlled robotics and improved camera/sensor technologies have helped spur ever more advanced types of autonomous craft. Challenges sponsored by groups like DARPA and other tech companies have also contributed towards where we are today.
Many tech companies have either teamed up or started their own autonomous car division in an effort to be the first to commercialize it for the general public. Computer chip makers like Intel, Qualcomm and Nvidia have partnered with many major car manufacturers to help with the development of hardware that can be integrated into future models. Many startup companies have been founded with the purpose of developing their own unique takes on what an autonomous car should be.
There are 5 levels of autonomy that companies today are developing towards. Newer models tend to come with improved safety features that can apply brakes or alert a driver to hazards on the road, this is considered low level autonomy. The goal for many of these companies is to reach full autonomy of the vehicle, allowing the driver to become a rider while the vehicle preforms the actions itself. More advanced radar and lidar systems provide sensor data of the world for current prototypes. With improved connectivity between all the parts of the car the software and algorithms can interpret the data faster than a human, allowing for faster reactions to hazards.
The impact autonomous cars will have on our society depends on many factors that are still ahead of us. The level of autonomy that companies are able to achieve will have the greatest influence on the impact autonomous cars will have on society. For example in this video many of our common traffic problems could be solved by fully automating cars removing humans, and our reaction times, from the equation.
The future of the car industry itself is one of ever increasing autonomy in cars and many car makers are already thinking ahead to a driverless future. At many auto shows both luxury and normal consumer level car makers are presenting concepts of what cars in the future could look like. The designs present a new way of thinking about what a car is and how travel will change for us. If you could let go of the wheel and trust that your car will get you to your destination safely, how much more would you be able to do between locations?