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Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

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Re: Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

#51
post #6

http://jalopnik.com/volvo-engineer-calls-out-tesla-for-dange...

All he's saying is that the Tesla system requires an attentive driver, which is something that Tesla themselves have stressed. It's just a PR piece.

So that's why they called the feature "Autopilot"?

Re: Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

#52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is going to be a major morality issue with self driving cars. What if a deer crosses the road? Will the car hit the deer to save the life of the driver? Avoid the deer to avoid an accident? Or save the deer and run into the ditch, possibly harming the driver? Unfortunately, this technology is not capable of making those decisions and if ultimately the driver is responsible, then maybe we should just keep it that…

Rapidly apply brakes. Seems like the safest possible way to avoid the deer without causing injury to driver + possibly others.

That causes the front end of the car to pitch forwards, which can actually increase the severity of a collision with large animals.

Re: Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

#53

I wonder what the driver was doing when the vehicle crashed. Tesla says that the driver is ultimately responsible for controlling the vehicle but then provides a system that is likely result in the driver not paying attention--sleeping, reading, or otherwise being distracted. How can Tesla and the governments that license drivers resolve this situation?

Any concession means that the driver somehow isn't ultimately responsible, which is a situation noone wants to end up in. It's also ridiculous.

I'm not so sure that the driver being 100% responsible is ridiculous with this particular iteration of technology. I have not experienced the Telsa system. However, IF the following from the blog post is true:

>...Additionally, every time that Autopilot is engaged, the car reminds the driver to “Always keep your hands on the wheel. Be prepared to take over at any time.” The system also makes frequent checks to ensure that the driver's hands remain on the wheel and provides visual and audible alerts if hands-on is not detected. It then gradually slows down the car until hands-on is detected again.

THEN, this seems a design that both envisions and forces a driver to keep their hands on the wheel and stay focused. This does not seem to be a design that directs, encourages, or allows a driver to engage the system then take a nap.

At some point in the future, with fully autonomous driving, yes, there must be some legal framework wherein the car manufacturer is responsible. This piece of technology does not seem to fall within that framework.

Re: Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

#54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's probably very easy to say before you have a product on the market. Let's see if they change their tune afterwards. I also wonder if that would encourage more risky behaviour from users or less.

Have you seen a 2016 Mercedes E-class? It has autonomous systems on essentially the same level as a Tesla, just without the flashy "Autopilot" branding. The new S-class coming out next year is going to have a lot more autonomous features on top of that, including Lidar (which Tesla lacks).

> on essentially the same level as a Tesla

Actually, it appears to be nowhere near the level of a Tesla.

http://mashable.com/2016/06/16/2017-mercedes-benz-e-class-fi...

Re: Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

#55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All he's saying is that the Tesla system requires an attentive driver, which is something that Tesla themselves have stressed. It's just a PR piece.

So that's why they called the feature "Autopilot"?

Because, just like an airplane's autopilot feature requires an attentive pilot, this driver assistance feature requires an attentive driver.

Re: Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

#56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Presumably because the brakes weren't engaged.

It is possible he was expecting the Model S to auto-brake as it normally does, and possibly realized when it was too late and panicked/tried to swerve. But I'm just speculating, I'm waiting to hear the outcome of the NHTSA investigation.

I'd have thought the auto-brake would be expected to react faster than a human driver in that situation. So if you saw such an event and the car wasn't already braking you'd hit the brakes, not sit around waiting to find out if it handled it or not.

Re: Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

#57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's probably very easy to say before you have a product on the market. Let's see if they change their tune afterwards. I also wonder if that would encourage more risky behaviour from users or less.

Have you seen a 2016 Mercedes E-class? It has autonomous systems on essentially the same level as a Tesla, just without the flashy "Autopilot" branding. The new S-class coming out next year is going to have a lot more autonomous features on top of that, including Lidar (which Tesla lacks).

I think you mean the 2017 E-class, they just started appearing at dealers in CA, and I'm excited to go test-drive one and see how much better it is than my 2014 E-class.

That said, it's my understanding that DISTRONIC still disengages if you take your hands off the wheel for more than a short amount of time, same as the 2014 model, and I haven't seen Mercedes make any announcement that the 2017 model will be so good that they're gonna assume liability for accidents.

All bark, no bite. It's great that there's competition in the autonomous tech, but I'm very skeptical of either Mercedes or Volvo standing behind that promise any time soon now.

Re: Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

#58

Tesla's statement[1] provides some more details > What we know is that the vehicle was on a divided highway with Autopilot engaged when a tractor trailer drove across the highway perpendicular to the Model S. Neither Autopilot nor the driver noticed the white side of the tractor trailer against a brightly lit sky, so the brake was not applied. Failing to detect the white side of a tractor against a brightly lit sky i…

This is going to be a major morality issue with self driving cars. What if a deer crosses the road? Will the car hit the deer to save the life of the driver? Avoid the deer to avoid an accident? Or save the deer and run into the ditch, possibly harming the driver? Unfortunately, this technology is not capable of making those decisions and if ultimately the driver is responsible, then maybe we should just keep it that…

"Or save the deer and run into the ditch, possibly harming the driver?"

This is not even a slight morality issue. The person is more important than the deer.

"Unfortunately, this technology is not capable of making those decisions"

Of course it is. Program the machine so that its primary concern is protection of human life. Which should be its secondary concern (protection of property or protection of deer) is a more interesting question. But running into the ditch to save the deer while threatening harm to the driver is simply not an option.

Re: Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

#59
post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Rapidly apply brakes. Seems like the safest possible way to avoid the deer without causing injury to driver + possibly others.

That causes the front end of the car to pitch forwards, which can actually increase the severity of a collision with large animals.

Doesn't it also cause the car to stop?

Re: Tesla driver killed in crash with Autopilot active, NHTSA investigating

#60
post #22

"This is the first known fatality in just over 130 million miles where Autopilot was activated," states a post on Tesla's corporate website. "Among all vehicles in the U.S., there is a fatality every 94 million miles. Worldwide, there is a fatality approximately every 60 million miles. It is important to emphasize that the NHTSA action is simply a preliminary evaluation to determine whether the system worked accordin…

Are users running Autopilot during hazardous conditions such as heavy rain and snow? If not, comparing auto pilot deaths with average deaths per mile is disingenuous.

Yes. Apparently Autopilot sees lane markings better than humans in heavy rain.
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