First Self-Driving Semi Hits American Roads
Self-driving cars seem likely enough; theres still several tech and legal hurdles to clear, not to mention the question of how much theyll cost, but most experts inside and out of the auto industry see them as inevitable given enough time. Now, Daimlers Freightliner unit wants to push long-haul trucking in the same direction.
Unveiled atop the Hoover Dam, the Freightliner Inspiration Truck is the first semi granted a license in the United States for autonomous driving, for tests on Nevada highways (note the special license plate in the photos below.) Equipped with arrays of cameras and radars, along with extensive software controls, the two Inspiration Trucks built by Freightliner can steer in a lane, maintain speeds and brake without human intervention at highway speeds. It also has to know when to alert the driver to take control; that driver of course has to handle all non-highway duties as well.
Read the rest at: https://www.yahoo.com/autos/first-self-driving-semi-hits-american-roads-118281496057.html
dixiegrrrrl
(60,010 posts)upaloopa
(11,417 posts)there still is a driver
justhanginon
(3,290 posts)and he hits the snooze alarm. Why in the hell would you spend all that money on complex systems to drive the vehicle and pay the driver to simply sit there just in case? If he is not actually driving the vehicle what does that do to his reaction time in an emergency?
Maybe it would be better to fix the damn potholes and upgrade the deteriorating highway system for safety.
ruffburr
(1,190 posts)There will be no more manual labor jobs, The corporate dream, No wages, No pensions ,Few people, just 90%profit.
If one believes that the wealthy will be magnanimous and care for their fellow man all I can say is, Good Luck with that.
Bill USA
(6,436 posts)KittyWampus
(55,894 posts)denbot
(9,899 posts)Steer tire blowout!
As a Class A driver, I do not feel threatened in the least by self driving technology. The liability from one incident in traffic will deep six the tech as the company won't have a sacrificial driver to hide behind.
MBS
(9,688 posts)PoliticAverse
(26,366 posts)Mopar151
(9,980 posts)There is enough associated paperwork with many cargoes, that the bosses can shift a lot of it to the driver in his "psuedo-drive" time