Driverless vehicles

[carrie]

So the gov is going to allow a convoy of three driverless lorries to take to the UK motorways. I can understand the advantages in countries like the USA and Australia where there are miles and miles of straight motorways but the UK? What happens if you are on the middle lane and one of these convoys come on the inside just as you are hoping to take a turn off on the motorway? Can't see it working. And before anyone says that the lorries are not driverless they do plan to have a driver on board to begin with they are in convoy and the followers depend on the lead vehicle. Should have tried it out here when the convoy system was operative.

[Horus]

Of course they are only trials to see if it works and test out the technology. In theory it could have some advantages as it could help traffic flow and reduce fuel usage. Looking beyond the natural objections to these sort of innovations I can see some advantages such as not having several lorries trying to pass each other on long inclines resulting in a knock on effect to all other lanes slowing up. Also they will travel closer together so should not be any more difficult to pass or to join into the lane they are travelling in than say three or more separate lorries close together and travelling at different speeds as happens now. I know that Carrie was only giving an example, but practically speaking you should never be in that position because you should already be in the left hand lane prior to leaving the motorway and not in the middle lane if the inside lane is moving faster than you are.

Having said that I am not convinced that our roads are really suitable as we have a lot more junctions and therefore more on and off ramps that will require a lot more lane changes by these so called ‘platoons’ in congested areas. Also what happens once they are on roads other than motorways as very often it is impossible to get more than one vehicle at a time into a roundabout traffic flow, the same for right turns at traffic lights, this must create gaps in the platoon convoy, does the technology just get switched off? I have a better idea What about keeping the one driver in control of speeds etc. then use a bar or a chain to join them all up so that they all stop and start together, that way we don’t need the other drivers. Then if we set up a dedicated lane for them so they are separated from the other traffic, then that will speed things up and make it safer for everyone and take goods traffic off the main road systems. Even better we could put some sort of grooves in this special lorry lane so that their wheels ran in them and this would help to keep them all going smoothly in the same direction, I am a genius! Now if only some forward thinking person would take up my idea, I will run it past my mates in the pub tonight, good old Stevenson and Trevithick are always messing with stuff like this in their sheds.

[John Landon]

I predict that autonomous vehicles will be with us in the mainstream within 20 years or so. Along with clean electric vehicles, and possibly no one owning any vehicle.
they will just be available when required, and people will subscribe to use them. As I mentioned in a previous post.
Modern cars like the VW Golf GTI cannot crash into the back of another car under normal driving conditions, and that has brought the insurance cost down considerably.
Tesla Model S can even avoid a collision if someone tries to drive into you from behind. The safety features are remarkable, and will get even better in time.

I have a lot of respect for Elon Musk.


Modern Passenger Airplanes are more or less autonomous these days, the pilot only needs to taxi, and even that process can be automated.
My mate was a Pilot with BA, and he was telling me how boring the job really is, infact so much so he ended up quitting and managing his fathers Garage.
he said that a plane these days can be automatically controlled, Take off's, following flight paths, and landings. ( all the controls are now "Fly by wire" which means the buttons and levers are not actually connected physically to the parts they control ).
A pilot and co pilot are only really there for passenger confidence. Even in the event of a catastrophic system failure, there is little a pilot could do anyway.

[HEPZIBAH]

Judging by some of the driving I witness when out and about, I think there are already driverless vehicles. There may be something that technically passes for a human at the wheel, but it's an illusion. They are brainless zombies.

[John Landon]

Monkeys Hepzibah ! Monkeys everywhere down here. Me and George Taylor are still trying to figure out what happened. ?
having said that, I have not seen him since he went into the forbidden Zone on a horse. The Girl he went off with was a mute, so he should be OK.....


I imagine they are Monkeys, so it makes it easier for me not to loose my temper with them anymore...

just imagine next time a black BMW cuts in front of you without indicating to take the exit he almost missed due to the excessive time spent in the middle lane, that it is a monkey behind the wheel.

All you can do is laugh....

BMW ? Bavarian Monkey wagon.....

[HEPZIBAH]

just imagine next time a black BMW cuts in front of you without indicating to take the exit he almost missed due to the excessive time spent in the middle lane, that it is a monkey behind the wheel.

All you can do is laugh....

BMW ? Bavarian Monkey wagon.....

Ah! You must have been the car behind me and witnessed the brainless moron.

Laugh! And pray, and brake enough, but not enough for the car behind to hit you.