They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but just one came to mind when we saw the photograph posted below: poignant.
The picture is an enlarged portion of a photograph from our freshest, most recent batch of GM Cruise AV spy shots, and it shows an engineer in the drivers seat whose focus is very clearly on the mobile device in his hands, and not on the road in front of them. Both hands are fully off the steering wheel, and while the engineer’s face has been blurred to grant them some anonymity, we’d guess their eyes are cast down rather than ahead.
If ever there were a picture that captured the future of transportation in a nutshell, this would be it. We here at GMAuthority live to drive, but if this photograph is any indication, we’re drawing ever closer to a future in which the human driver is utterly obsolete. In fact, the “production-intent” version of the GM Cruise AV shown earlier this year doesn’t even feature a steering wheel like the test vehicle photographed here; the human controls in this car are a purely precautionary measure.
The production-intent GM Cruise AV features plenty of other precautionary equipment, too, with redundant cameras, RADAR, and LIDAR sensors – 40 in all – placed all over the body to help it watch the whole driving environment for features, obstacles, and other commuters. The total sensor count includes 5 LIDAR, 14 cameras, and a staggering 21 RADAR, keeping tabs on pedestrians, cyclists, other vehicles, signage, traffic lights, and other features and objects in the car’s vicinity.
Granted, all of those sensors cost a fair amount of coin, so the “future of transportation” will at least be delayed a bit as General Motors and its partners and suppliers work out how to remove enough cost that it can be economically feasible to sell to the general public. More immediately, after the car enters production next year, it will be pressed into service in commercial rideshare and ride-hailing services.
Check back in with GM Authority regularly to keep up-to-date with the latest GM Cruise Automation news.
Comments
Heck, I see this now every day about a dozen times.
Right, here in So. Cal. people can’t even back out of a parking spot before they cram a phone in their ear. Montclair Ca, just recently passed a law where a pedestrian could be fined $100 for crossing (through a crosswalk) while using a phone which is higher then the first offence fine of $50 for using one while driving.
Progress huh!
It should be made were using a phone while driving cost as much or more then an aftermarket tuner with integrated hands free phone operation. There are the stand alone bluetooth phone speakers but most suck and I haven’t seen one that is powered via the cars accessory power and not needing to be charged. Eliminating the hassle of using them and the excuse “it just went dead osifer”.
Well…”GM’s self-driving car reportedly has trouble recognizing pedestrians”
https://finance.yahoo.com/m/db7ad661-0d24-3447-bc25-8effc5230d71/gm%26apos%3bs-self-driving-car.html
Pass. I think I’ll be driving for a long time yet.
I think its pathetic that people are worried or scared of this new technology. Truly autonomous vehicles should be embraced by the public not hated!
Driving a car is not going away for a really long time, but in the future you will be able to say do I want to drive today or just sit and ride along and let the car do the work? Similar to what aviation pilots have to deal with today, they can choose to fly manually or put it in autopilot and sit back and relax.
And if you think a pilot would rather fly the plane instead of letting the autopilot do the work then you would be wrong!
Look I love to drive as much as the next guy, driving in stop and go moving parking lots called freeways is not driving. Hitting the brakes every 50 feet is not a enjoyable way to drive.
This is what autonomous vehicles will alleviate, the pain in the ass of stop and go. Much like a pilot you set your course and sit back and wait for the vehicle to arrive at it’s location.
Why are people so afraid of change?
It is not so much that people are afraid of the technology as you described, but there are afraid of those on the lunatic fringe that would advocate that our cars be taken from us for “our own good.”