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Another Tesla crash

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Mildredop

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Oct 14, 2013
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As more people are using the confusingly-named Autopilot (which isn't an autopilot), so we're seeing more crashes.

The woman was on her phone which I'm not surprised about - if my car didn't need any input from me for extended periods of time, my attention would naturally drift elsewhere.

Tesla say you must keep your hands on the wheel at all times. If that's the case, why not simply drive the car as you normally would?

I don't think fully-automated cars will become a reality for many decades yet.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-tesla-china-crash-idUSKCN10L0P4
 
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C DM

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Oct 17, 2011
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Seems like fully automated cars are different enough compared to what is involved here. And in this case what is involved seems to also be misunderstanding and essentially incorrect use of something.
 
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Mildredop

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C DM said:
Seems like fully automated cars are different enough compared to what is involved here. And in this case what is involved seems to also be misunderstanding and essentially incorrect use of something.
Click to expand...

Incorrect use how? By the driver not paying attention? I agree, but humans have a short attention span. Take the action of driving away from them and, understandably, the driver will start to do other things.
 
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C DM

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Oct 17, 2011
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Mildredop said:
Incorrect use how? By the driver not paying attention? I agree, but humans have a short attention span. Take the action of driving away from them and, understandably, the driver will start to do other things.
Click to expand...
Incorrect use as it wasn't meant to be and wasn't/isn't a self-driving system, while that is what it was being used like.
 
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Mildredop

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C DM said:
Incorrect use as it wasn't meant to be and wasn't/isn't a self-driving system, while that is what it was being used like.
Click to expand...
I don't think anyone would ever use it correctly. Humans are human and they get distracted or, at the very least, start to daydream.

Tesla is asking the driver to be fully alert whilst not actually expecting them to drive. They're expecting the driver to react just as quickly and take over control to avoid a problem the car hasn't spotted which just isn't going to end well.

If Tesla are saying "Autopilot" still requires the driver to be fully alert and aware, with their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road at all times, why bother using the "Autopilot" function at all?
 
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C DM

macrumors Sandy Bridge
Oct 17, 2011
51,392
19,461
Mildredop said:
I don't think anyone would ever use it correctly. Humans are human and they get distracted or, at the very least, start to daydream.

Tesla is asking the driver to be fully alert whilst not actually expecting them to drive. They're expecting the driver to react just as quickly and take over control to avoid a problem the car hasn't spotted which just isn't going to end well.

If Tesla are saying "Autopilot" still requires the driver to be fully alert and aware, with their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road at all times, why bother using the "Autopilot" function at all?
Click to expand...
Extra safety to enhance what the driver normally does?
 
grahamperrin

grahamperrin

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Jun 8, 2007
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… A 33-year-old programer at a tech firm, Luo Zhen … blamed the crash on a fault in the autopilot system and said Tesla's sales staff strongly promoted the system as 'self-driving'. …
Click to expand...

No sympathy for a programmer who did not RTFM.
 
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