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I have a few points and questions on this:
  1. Why was a driver recording this? Talk about unsafe.
  2. I still maintain that self driving cars that have no way to override them will not become the norm for at least 2-3 generations, as we actually enjoy driving. I can see something akin to Tesla's Autopilot taking off and becoming feasible.
  3. With all of that equipment on the roof, what does it do to mileage?
  4. How are they going to make all of the equipment look nice and tidy? Because let's face it, no one will want a gar that looks like that.
I guess Applecar detected the unsafe MR driver next to it, providing preventive first aid and extra recording equipment for expected behavior ;)
 
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I wish all the boring cars become self-driving. Fortunately it seems that thing Apple and others have been testing is number one on the list.
 
I already clearly made that point in my post saying "Yes being human does not mean you are necessarily a responsible driver, there are plenty of rotten human drivers"
Actually, you didn't make the point, you wrongly dismissed it. The closest (and while it's closer than most, it isn't very close — yet) thing out there to autonomous driving is Autopilot on the Tesla S and X models. They announced last year that since they started deploying the early versions of it, their accident rate dropped by 40%, and their cars are driven in rain and snow. Does that mean we can expect no accidents with fully autonomous vehicles? No, but it does mean that they'll do much better than humans, so implying that humans need to be involved for safety reasons is disingenuous.
 
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Since the autonomous driving software works in the background I don't know where Apple is going with this unless they're going to make their own car to go with it. It's not like there's an open the standard for self driving cars were you can just plug-in any autonomous driving software you want. The hardware and software are deeply integrated.
 
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Self Driving cars are a long way off no matter how much everyone thinks and says they are almost here. The first uses will be drone-like functions like airport shuttles and long distance point-to-point trucking and its funny because you don't see that talked about much because its not as sexy as a 60 grand Tesla.
 
What happens if mud gets splashed on one of those cameras while underway, which I'm sure will only become smaller, or a big bug goes splat over one of them, or some kid just walks up at a stop light and puts a sticker over a camera or two? The Sun gets in my eyes when driving into it. These cameras?
 
How are they going to make all of the equipment look nice and tidy? Because let's face it, no one will want a gar that looks like that.

The current sensor configuration will be used to train/test the convolutional neural network (AI), substantial refinements, and reconfigurations will be done before the product reaches the consumer.

For example, have a look at Tesla conducting early training, and testing of their AI:
Tesla_Model-S-LiDAR_Palo_Alto.jpg
 
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(Whisper it) Don't tell,anyone. I've seen the future.

Self driving cars aren't going to happen. They're a liability that isn't practical. It was never meant to be.

A vanity project at best. Just like Amazon delivery drones. It's a risk to the public that nobody will,either insure or manage.

So. Let's get back to th R&D and ..
What's that? Not another AI droid to clean the house.

Come on. Out ... and don't come back til you've got something of foreseeable and realistic use.

Thanks.


Next!
 
Wow. I would have thought that on a computer related forum people would be more aware of where the technology is and how soon it will get here.

Self driving cars are generally closer than most people think, not further away. The $35,000 Tesla Model 3, which is due to begin production in July (less than 6 weeks from now) will have all the hardware necessary for self driving. Yes, the software will add to the cost but that's sure to drop soon, and it's really more a matter of legal concerns to enable fully autonomous driving at this point.

As for mud and snow, that's part of why there are multiple sensors. Naturally, if visibility drops the car will need to slow down or stop, just as with a human driver, but most of the time the car will have better situation "awareness" than a human can.
 
Self driving cars aren't going to happen. They're a liability that isn't practical. It was never meant to be.
<sarcasm>Yeah, that explains why Tesla's accident rate dropped by 40% after they introduced auto-pilot. And why Apple and virtually every car maker is rushing to build their own self-driving system.</scarcasm>

Claiming something is/isn't going to happen based on your own desires isn't going to change reality.
 
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For those curious, this "top-end Velodyne 64-channel lidar" costs about $75K. Obviously it can't be used in any production car. Google started with the same lidar too but then they invested into development of their own hardware (and now they are suing Uber for stealing the Lidar tech). This indicates that either Apple is just into the software side of the self-driving or they are still just in the early stage of hardware development.
 
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Good to know someone who's driving is recording a video as well. As far as I know, that's illegal in California not to mention unsafe to say the least. Was it worth it? Also, vertical??? You risked your life for a VERTICAL freaking video???
 
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Humans vs. computers or other way around, I don't care... I enjoy driving.
  1. If you really did you wouldn't be driving in the passing lane so you didn't have to think about driving as cars merge from the right.
  2. When self-driving insurance rates are 1% of what your rates will be if you aren't using it, you'll change your mind.
  3. When you're tired from a long day, or on a long trip, you're going to want it.
 
It won't, but texters will. So will drunk drivers.

You have to go with the probabilities, and they all heavily favor self-driving tech.
 
[QUOTE
Claiming something is/isn't going to happen based on your own desires isn't going to change reality.[/QUOTE]

Conversely believing everything you read from the manufacturers hype doesn't guarantee owt either. What does is reality. And in the real world a courtroom full of R2D2s charged with crap driving isn't going to materialise. Ever. Rendering these projects ultimately just a teensy weensy bit futile.


(Meanwhile. In another dimension: "Hang on readers, I didn't realise Tesla had cut their accident rate by 40% now. That's Boosted my confidence no end. Oh ok then. Strap me in. Right where are you taking me R2? What's that. The Crown Court buildings in Nottingham? Great. Off we go then ... right hand down a bit. Watch that tram ... whoah. Slow down. You're sure this is all legal? Ha ha - don't worry Officer .... it's not me driving. It's Andy, here. Andy Roid. Sorry. Can't stop. Got a driving rap to defend. Don't worry though. It's all perfectly safe. No. Really. Haven't you heard? Tesla have cut their accident rate down by forty .... argh .... lookout!!!!"
"Oh. I'm sorry, Sir. I didn't realise it was the car that was driving without due care. That's fine. Modern technology, eh? Be on your way!" )
 
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Conversely believing everything you read from the manufacturers hype doesn't guarantee owt either. What does is reality. And in the real world a courtroom full of R2D2s charged with crap driving isn't going to materialise. Ever. Rendering these projects ultimately just a teensy weensy bit futile.
You're welcome to your delusions, but the reality is that a 40% reduction in accidents from software that's practically beta compared to what's coming is very impressive and why tens (hundreds?) of billions of investment dollars say that you're wrong. And if you think there won't be huge demand for it, go take a look at all the youtube videos of happy Tesla owners loving their Autopilot (not yet Autonomous) enabled cars.

By the way, the: "don't worry Officer" has already happened with one of Google's self driving cars. The car did not get a ticket. :/
 
It sure doesn't look like an almighty Tesla which sports Autopilot 2.0. The production Tesla's sensors are a bit more concealed than this testbed vehicle's sensors. I'm sure Musk will claim Apple's autopilot system is quite antiquated compared to his own vehicles. I'm sure Musk must be laughing at Apple's feeble attempt to challenge his dominant empire.

I wouldn't feel very comfortable in a self-driving car in certain situations. Snow, rain, fog, heavy city traffic. If something goes wrong (someone gets seriously injured by my vehicle), I'd still feel responsible because it would be my decision to allow the car to become autonomous. Whatever. It seems the industry is really psyched up about autonomous cars and I'm not exactly sure why. I'd only be comfortable in some autonomous mass transportation vehicle where liability didn't come back to me if someone gets injured or killed. I suppose I'm too old or narrow-minded when it comes to this type of technology. Even my driving isn't going to reach 100% but I've driven cars and motorcycles for over 50 years and never had more than brushed a vehicle and never hit a pedestrian. I've been fortunate. I probably wouldn't own an autonomous vehicle until my driving skills were completely eroded. Of course, at that point, I might as well depend upon taxis or Access-A-Ride.
 
a courtroom full of R2D2s charged with crap driving isn't going to materialise. Ever.
By the way, I agree with this point because they won't be "crap driving". No ticket == no courtroom appearance.

The one "downside" to this will be the job losses. First it will be truck, taxi, and bus drivers. They'll soon be followed by people working at truck stops, then lawyers will see huge losses with far fewer speeding, accident, and DUI defendants. The drop in civil lawsuits will hurt lawyers the most! Even EMTs and emergency rooms will be affected!
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I wouldn't feel very comfortable in a self-driving car in certain situations.
You have to think about where the puck will be, not where it is. Right now, it's good, but there are situations where you can't rely on it. It's still early days, so that's changing.
Check this video:
She was really nervous about using Autopilot when they first got the car. Now she loves it - and she's safer with it.

You just need to get used to the technology, and really, that's just a matter of using it for a few weeks.
 
In the UK we can't even fit cycle lanes efficiently. Speed cameras are the only 'developments' with any form of planning. So the concept of autonomous vehicles is and always will be the stuff of fantasy here. Perhaps in large and less congested cities in other countries it might work. But in our oversubscribed and neglected road networks over here the idea of robot cars is just that. An idea. Why even electric cars won't take off majorly here because there won't be the infrastructure to supply enough charge points for them or who paysfor them. So. In a country that builds cycle lanes that appear and disappear without warning. Where most traffic control is done remotely via cctv and where potholes are more of a feature than a rarity - the driverless/mindless transport network is still as likely.a reality as house cleaning robots were when I was at school. Forty years ago (shudder) that was and the nearest to that was a robot vacuum.cleaner. Ah well. We can but hope. And another thing .....
 
Why even electric cars won't take off majorly here because there won't be the infrastructure to supply enough charge points for them or who paysfor them.
Tell that to these people:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzz4CoEgSgWNs9ZAvRMhW2A
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDKtaH6RMcn22L3_ArtDBgw
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO8njdiq06-irfyc9xaCyig
and look at Tesla's web site for the Supercharger locations in Britain. There are many.

It's happening over there, you just don't see it because you're not looking for it. Electric cars charging stations aren't going to have giant Exxon signs that you can see for miles. They're much higher tech than that. People either use their phones or have their cars direct them to the stations — on the odd day that they actually need one.

Remember, you can go for months at a time - years if you don't take vacations - without needing to stop to charge because every morning you have a full "tank".

Really people, this is MacRumors! You're supposed to be part of the community that's up on technology! How come you don't know this stuff?
 
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