1) Cybersecurity and privacy protection: Maybe this can't be solved until there are thousands of pilot vehicles on our roads, but last week Wired magazine writer Andy Greenberg wrote about two cybersecurity experts who accessed a newer Jeep Cherokee's computer brain through its Uconnect infotainment system and rewrote the firmware to plant their malicious code. The result: Hip-hop began blasting through the stereo system, and the AC turned to maximum force. Then the hacker's code killed the transmission and brakes. We know autonomous cars will have even more software coding. One major attack and consumer confidence in the technology could be severely damaged.
2) How much will these vehicles cost? Established automakers are introducing progressively more advanced autonomous features in their most expensive models. Ride-hailing or other fleet-based services such as Uber or Lyft will try to deliver their service at a lower price than competing options.
3) Ethical considerations: How do software developers write code that distinguishes between the value of a child's life and the value of a soccer ball when both suddenly dart out from between parked cars? Or do you program the vehicle to stop as suddenly as possible in a way that could injure the driver ?
4) Motor vehicle safety codes vary: In certain states, vehicles can cross a double yellow line if it necessary to get around another vehicle blocking traffic. In other states it is illegal.
5) How do established automakers market vehicles designed to deliver convenience more than performance? As former McKinsey and Co. consultant Glenn Mercer said Tuesday, "Think about BMW. When you're making the 'Ultimate Driving Machine,' how do you market that you don't need to drive?"
6) How does LIDAR (the remote sensing technology that guides autonomous cars) overcome the weather restrictions that limit its performance in snow and hard rain? The best answer appears to be practice and better mapping technology, but the technology isn't there yet.
©2015 the Detroit Free Press Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
