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AN AUTONOMOUS CAR is one that is able to sense its environment and navigate without any input from humans.
Ideally, the only input from human drivers should be the destination – much like in Total Recall (the original movie, of course), when Arnie jumps into the autonomous taxi called Johnny Cab and instructs the robot to just “drive… anywhere” but Johnny Cab can’t go without an address. Arnie then proceeds to rip the robot out of, oh wait, maybe forget about that bit.
What we learn from Total Recall (apart from “a man is defined by his actions, not his memory”) is there will always be a need for human input and interaction, if for nothing else other than safety and though we think of them as a futuristic concept, autonomous cars and technology have been around for a while now.
In fact, many cars already on our roads have self-driving features that allow for semi-autonomous driving and manoeuvring, and no, these are not just found in luxury motors. Let’s take a look at some of this tech and the cars which currently utilise it.
Audi A3 – Traffic Jam Assist
Traffic jam assist works together with Audi’s adaptive cruise control (ACC) and the engines Stop/Go feature. It keeps the car at a safe distance from the one in front and in conjunction with the S tronic it can automatically set the vehicle in motion again after a short stop. The car can take over steering duties on well-paved roads, as long as the traffic is moving slowly.
The system uses radar sensors and a video camera that guides the car through gentle steering interventions and follows the preceding vehicles within the system limits. The traffic jam assist orientates itself by the lane markings and the other vehicles on the road.
BMW 750i – Driver Assistance Plus and Active Driving Assistant Plus
These driver aids help the car to maintain the desired speed as well as the distance from the car in front with automatic braking and accelerating. The car also takes over the steering and automatically stays in the middle of the lane.
A stereo camera located near the rearview mirror gives the car depth perception to identify pedestrians and lane markings. Five radar units, including one in the lower grille, monitor traffic from every direction. Some of these features can be used at speeds up to 210km/h. BMW allows three seconds of hands-off driving before its warning system activates.
Ford S-MAX – Active Park Assist
This semi-autonomous technology is designed to take any stress out of parking. This Active Park Assist uses ultrasonic sensors to measure the parking space and determine if the car can fit. Then the computer steers the car into the space. All the driver has to do is control the brake, accelerator and gears. The car then pulls out of the spaces, too.
The Perpendicular Parking system can sense if there’s space for the car to fit, then reverses the car in and the Side Parking Aid warns if there are any lateral obstructions. Hands-off driving continues until the car is safely and securly in the parking space.
Mercedes-Benz C-Class – Distronic Plus with Steering and Active Lane-Keeping Assist
Like the BMW above, Mercedes also uses a stereo camera system, which is mounted behind the windshield, to see lane markings. There are five radar units looking forward and to the sides to spot both nearby and distant traffic.
This system, again, helps with maintaining a safe distance from vehicles in front and helps hold the car in the middle of the lane markings. It provides lateral steering support if the car drifts out of its lane. Furthermore, if the car detects that a collision is likely when changing lanes, Active Lane Keeping Assist kicks in and uses its targeted brake application to try to get the car out of harms way.
Some of these features work at speeds up to 200km/h. Mercedes allows 12 seconds of hands-off driving before its warning system activates.
Tesla Model S P85D – Autopilot
Perhaps the most famous, or infamous, semi-autonomous driving feature in any car at the moment is Tesla’s Autopilot. This feature steers the car within a lane, change lanes with a tap of the indicator and manages the car’s speed by using active, traffic-aware cruise control. This is the only car that allows for hands-free lane changes.
Digital control of motors, brakes, and steering helps avoid collisions from the front and sides (as we know now, this is not always the case), and prevents the car from wandering off the road. Autopilot also scans for parking spaces and can parallel park on command.
After the fatal accident this month, which saw a man die whilst his Tesla Model S Autopilot function was active, Elon Musk, Tesla’s founder reminded us that he created Autopilot to assist drivers and not to let a car drive itself. And this seems to be the message so far about these driver’s aids and semi-autonomous features.
All these features require some input from humans to make them work and keep them safe, much like Johnny Cab, and failure to supply input to the car for a certain amount of time will usually bring the car to a safe stop.
So although fully autonomous cars are a few years away yet, the technology is here and being used every day on our roads.
However, without our human touch, the technology can’t be used to its full potential. This ensures that we will always be in charge of our robocars unless of course, Christine decides to make a reappearance.
Sure it’s only tax payers money….
@Martin Smith: I wonder how many wasters were fired over that loss?
@Martin Smith: exactly, that’s the thinking throughout the public sector
@Jonathan: thats 315 houses LPT tax at average house price, or 10 days needlessly renting the convention center for the dail…… How this DERELICT property wasnt fully assessed before purchasing is bad enough, how it wasnt maintained after purchase is even worse…… Poor management again and probably more unaccountably…… We’re hemmorhaging money everywhere and the net result of government inefficiency and unaccountably is to raise taxes….. God help everyone in this mismanaged country. Imagine how better off we would be as a society if the country was run with some sort of competence and efficiency.
DCC must be the only property dealer to loose money when selling a property while property prices have been rising more than inflation in the last 5 years, regardless of the bad condition of the building.
@Goran Josifov: Anyone know why they bought this property in the first place.
@Michael Reilly: The pub, had been a popular meeting spot for theatre goers, but closed more than a decade ago. The four-storey Victorian building, which is on the record of protected structures, became increasingly dilapidated and by 2014 had been boarded up.
In 2017 the council bought the pub to stop it from falling into further decay. An inspection noted parts of the roof were missing with a “large number of plastic bags containing bird droppings stored throughout the building”.
The council had initially hoped to reach a deal with the Abbey Theatre, which had “expressed an interest in utilising the buildings when refurbished”. However no agreement was reached.
@Daniel O’Connor: Lovely, so now they’re going to sell it off to some crony at a bargain price, no doubt.
City Council spending tax payer’s money with no consequences for loss, unelected bureaucrats leaving people sleeping on the street’s to die & yet another building empty & derelict due to their collective negligence. Time they were told to sling their hook.
I know there is a loss here to the council (which is bad enough) but the more important questions are:
What was the intended use for this building when they bought it and what has changed since?
Why are DCC using taxpayers money to buy commercial buildings that they have no intention of using?
Who was the previous owner of the building before DCC bought it?
@The next small thing: This explains it all a bit more… https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/city-councillors-block-sale-of-dublin-s-plough-pub-1.4536468?mode=amp
@William Tallon: Cheers for that, bit more detail there alright. So basically they bought the property for speculation, in that they hoped the Abbey would want it, they didn’t so now want to flog it to a developer and then rent 6 apartments back for circa 150,000 p.a. They will then rent these for social housing where they will probably get about 15,000 rent for the 6 apartments and never actually own them. They should have just impossed levies on the original owner under the Derelict Sites Act and could have netted about 24,000 until the original owner refurbished the property or sold it onto someone who would.
@The next small thing: That would make sense, but someone will obviously benefit from having left it to crumble into the street instead. It shows how the rest of the city can be left with derelict buildings standing empty as well. Great management.
Only in Ireland, can the council buy property and loose money in the middle of a property boom. Incompetence doesn’t come close to describing these people. I wonder is there a friend looking to buy this property on the cheap?
ah the plough, over fourteens only
@Dave: happy memories. I waited until I was 15 though
That’s on just one building wait until they start building housing estate with there very own workers
Don’t worry. Our increase in property tax will cover such things…
They will sell it to one of their mates who will sell it for millions in profit
Not fit for purpose Thats the Council not the Building..
How did they manage to lose money on Dublin property?
Its easy to be incompetent when you get paid every week regardless.
Only taxes nothing to see here.
What the hell is going on here?, they paid 800k (and the rest) and they didn’t bother to fix the effing roof or deal with the vermin problem. That’s a bread and butter job for the council surely or with help from OPW?
Sorry, but there should be a sacking for the persons who stood over this.
Why is the council speculating on property deals instead of busying themselves with actual council business because last time I looked organizing some bins and port-a-pottys was a herculean task for them.
Did someone in the Abbey ask the council to buy it so that the pub could be saved?
Some ex-NAMA greaseball developer will now buy this for 500k and sell it in a few years for 4 times that.
How many other properties like this have Dublin City Council bought, how many have they also ignored and allowed to rot, and how much is the taxpayer on the hook for?
No.1 Rule, do not pish away taxpayers money.
@Eddie O’Neill: Plenty of abandoned buildings all over the place, and not a bother on them. I’m beginning to think that every single Councillor and TD should be required to walk through our capital city once a month to see all the empty buildings growing weeds.
Typical of the council. They must be getting their advice from the OPW
Another shower of wasters
@Mike Heelan: after dealing with some departments within the OPE I strongly oppose your generic view.
They’re actually pretty good.
But sure, keep bashing but don’t step up.
Some businessmen
Bought a naggin there when I was 16
@Maalouf: Back then you would have got money back on the bottle!
All councils should be disbanded and replaced with a new body. They are totally useless
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