The other day I opined that automated cars would arrive sooner than expected, but not for the reason most people expect: advances in technology. This was not to say that the accelerating pace of technology won’t play an integral role in the creation of self-driving cars. It will. In fact, today’s news highlights the startling advances being made in the area. Researchers at Lockheed Martin and the Rochester Institute of Technology are experimenting with sophisticated algorithms which are expected to use the bevy of sensors now embedded in automobiles to help predict “future failures.” In other words, your car will soon know that it is about to fail before it actually fails.
This begs the question: If all of these sensors can communicate with you, why can’t they communicate with the sensors in other cars? As older, non-sensor-embedded cars are replaced with new sensor laden automobiles (a process which will take up to 15 years) this scenario becomes feasible. And as cars begin to communicate with one another we will have taken a huge step toward the vision of automated cars. In the meantime, all of the sensors will also be used to better understand traffic patterns and habits and thus, hopefully, alleviate some congestion.
Alas, I don’t think that every driver will need to wait a decade-and-a-half before enjoying the direct benefits of smart cars. According to this informative article, Volvo will begin selling a new car (the XC60) which will be able to avoid fender-benders. Follow-up versions will be able to slow down the vehicle when it gets too close to another or even nudge the car back into a lane if you begin to drift.
Ironically, the technology is already good enough to do these things but the manufacturers are reluctant to deploy it because they fear people will become overly reliant on the technology and thus become even more inattentive drivers!
To this end, at some point in the future, I can envision the insurance industry becoming the major promoter of self-driving vehicles. Why? Because they will be much safer than us human drivers!
Related posts by America’s most renowned global futurist, Jack Uldrich:
Why Automated Cars Will Arrive Sooner Than Expected
Self-Driving Cars
Elderly-Friendly Cars, Sweet!
General Motors Jumps the Curve with Smart Materials
Dude, Where’s My Flying Car?
