Many Americans may not realize that they’ve already turned over much of their driving to machines, but technology is moving fast.
“I believe the industry will experience more change in the next five years than it has in the last 50 years,” General Motors Chief Executive Mary Barra said during a recent speech to the Chicago Economic Club.
Some car models can already slam on the brakes, stay in their lanes or parallel park themselves. At home, while the owner sleeps, some cars can update software with a wireless connection.
Over the next few years, more cars will be sold with those features, and many other changes are on the way, according to speakers at a technology conference recently held at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute in College Station.
For example, later this year GM plans to begin selling cars with computer systems that can “talk” to each other and, using artificial intelligence, work together to avoid trouble on the road. Many of those features will be on high-end models, but experts say the automakers fully intend to make them standard equipment — and very soon.
Whether you’re terrified at the thought of robots taking over the task of driving, or you look forward to a day when human mistakes are eliminated — potentially saving up to 32,000-plus lives per year on American roads — car manufacturers are installing autonomous features as quickly as they can.
Why? Mainly, because a growing number of customers want them.
Here are five signs that driverless cars are here to stay:
1. Cars update themselves
While Tesla owners sleep, their cars (not unlike their phones) can update software using a simple wireless connection. And not just audio and navigation systems. The company says Teslas regularly upload software improvements to the electrical motors and other components that can immediately improve driving performance.The unorthodox California company, which doesn’t sell its cars through traditional dealerships, has had problems with Texas legislators. To this day, if you want to be among the first 300,000-plus Americans to own the more affordable Tesla Model 3 next year (expected to carry a base price of $35,000), you’ll have to order it from out of state.
However, the company has earned the respect of business owners, including Texas Transportation Commission member Victor Vandergriff of Arlington, whose family started car dealerships that still sell Chevrolets, Hondas, Hyundais and other makes throughout North Texas.
Vandergriff told guests at the A&M conference that Tesla’s computer proficiency is an example of “disruptive technology that works.”
Trucks can save 10.5 percent of their fuel by tailgating, which reduces air drag and resistance. New technology makes it safe for trucks to “platoon” without crashing into each other.
2. Cars that ‘talk’
Later this year, GM will begin selling cars that can “talk” to each other. Vehicle-to-vehicle communication will be featured on the 2017 model Cadillac CTS, said Allie Medack, GM’s chief of staff for global public policy.The cars will have on-board computers that send signals to other cars with similar capabilities, and share data such as location, speed, steering and braking. If the vehicles sense danger, they can warn other cars, which can then alert drivers by flashing lights on the dashboard, vibrating seats or even automatically braking.
It’s a major example of what high-tech experts call the “Internet of things” — a sub-universe of data created and used by inanimate objects that exists outside the phone apps and search engines normally used by humans.
An estimated 250 million cars will be sharing data online by 2020, according to the technology research firm Gartner.
3. Driverless fleets
When you’re ready to take your technology from the controlled environment, the campus of Texas A&M is available for real-world experience.John Sharp, Texas A&M system chancellor, on possible testing of driverless cars
While many improvements are known as “driver assistance” — such as reverse cameras that allow drivers to see what’s behind them before backing up — companies such as Google are developing cars that will require no human help.
GM and ride-sharing company Lyft are entering into a partnership to build a fleet of driverless cars that would operate in an as-yet-unidentified city.
Some officials in Texas want College Station to be that test city, including Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp. A planned new autonomous car research center at the university’s Riverside Campus will include a “grid street system for large-scale testing,” Sharp noted.
“When you’re ready to take your technology from the controlled environment, the campus of Texas A&M is available for real-world experience,” Sharp told attendees at the A&M technology conference.
Google also is testing self-driving cars in several cities including Austin — although those cars still have a human test driver behind the wheel.
Manufacturers believe ride-sharing fleets are a good way for consumers to warm up to the driverless car concept.
4. Trucks that tailgate (safely)
Remember when your driver’s ed instructor warned about the dangers of tailgating? Well, it turns out that if two big rigs can follow close together without crashing, both can save 4.5 to 10.5 percent of their fuel by reducing aerodynamic drag.Several companies and research organizations are working on software that makes it possible for trucks to safely “platoon.” Among them is California-based Peloton Technology. Trucks in seven states — including Texas — are already equipped with Peloton’s technology and practicing this form of tailgating, both in controlled research environments and on public roads.
Here’s how it works: Two trucks link up electronically and, by pressing a few buttons, the lead driver can control acceleration and brakes for both vehicles. The driver in the rear truck is following too closely to see the road ahead, but can stay in touch with the lead driver by radio. Sensors on the front, sides and rear of the trucks help detect nearby traffic and apply automatic braking if needed.
Even though the driver in the front truck is doing most of the work, the rear driver must remain ready, in case the platooning is cut off by a sudden stop, a car cutting between the trucks or some other unexpected event.
The amount of fuel saved varies, but if two trucks are traveling only 36 feet apart, the rear truck consumes 10.5 percent less fuel, and the front truck reduces its consumption by 4.5 percent, company founder Steven Boyd said.
Boyd says the company hopes to quickly expand to other states, although some laws will have to change. In some states, vehicles are required to keep back a specific number of feet from other vehicles. In addition to Texas, Peloton is already doing demonstrations or tests in Alabama, Florida, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio and Utah.
5. It’s what people want
The biggest challenge will be the public agencies, which tend to be risk-averse.Consumer demand is pushing the auto industry to driverless cars, experts say. People want to be able to take their hands off the wheel, and later this year they will be able to do that under certain highway conditions if they buy a Cadillac with “Super Cruise” — a form of cruise control that keeps the car in its lane.
Consumer Reports, which publishes an annual car-buying guide, this year began giving higher grades to models with advanced driver-assistance features such as automatic braking as standard equipment.
Several speakers at the A&M conference warned that government agencies likely will attempt to slow down the development of driverless cars, especially if there are crashes or other incidents that raise questions about the technology.
“The biggest challenge will be the public agencies, which tend to be risk-averse,” Jeff Lindley associate administrator for operations at the Federal Highway Administration, told guests at the A&M conference.
But if driverless cars are what people want, the marketplace will find a way to deliver the products to them.
“It’s coming,” Vandergriff said. “It wants to make money here, and we are ready for it.”
©2016 the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
