Driving east in the morning can sometimes border on insanity – a caffeine–fueled Mad Max parody remake as drivers jostle for position blinded by a burning ball of space gas 93 million miles away. Sun visors flip down, and eyes squint as silhouetted car–like shapes race at 70-plus miles per hour toward corporate oblivion.
The sun is a pain in the butt for drivers, and, according to a new report from Automotive News, a pain for various driver-assist systems, too, including Cadillac Super Cruise.
Cadillac Super Cruise is one of the more robust driver-assist systems on the market, allowing for semi-autonomous driving (calling the system fully autonomous is disingenuous) on about 130,000 miles of limited–access freeways. One of the features that puts Cadillac Super Cruise above the competition is its robust driver monitoring system. The system will only work if the driver is paying attention to the road, a feature other prominent systems lack. However, bright sunlight directly hitting the camera located atop the steering column that’s supposed to monitor the driver can cause the self–driving system to disengage.
The fix could require more than a software update. According to Daryl Wilson, GM‘s lead automated–driving engineer, who spoke with Automotive News, the fixes for the sunlight problem will be part of “significant changes” in the next–generation system. It’s unclear when the next–generation Cadillac Super Cruise system will arrive; however, the automaker plans to roll out the system across its lineup next year, and the fixes would be crucial to its success. The fixes could range from a filter or diffuser to moving the camera.
As automakers slowly implement various levels of self–driving technology into cars, safety should be the highest priority. Driver monitoring systems help keep drivers from abusing the system and putting themselves and others in danger. The problem with Cadillac Super Cruise is a reminder that these technologies are far from perfect. Even a minor computational hiccup is dangerous in a moving vehicle. Often, issues with self–driving technologies and weather come from rain and snow — precipitation that hinders visibility. We now know that bright sunlight is a nemesis, too.
Source: Automotive News
Comments
GM always has problems with the details unfortunately. Too big?
Ford seems to miss these details too. I seem to recall shiny parts of other vehicles on the road causing their automatic braking system to freak out and slam the brakes. How did they miss that during testing? Maybe once Volkswagen takes over Ford, VW engineers will make sure their safety systems work right before production begins.
Everyone has these issue with sunlight on the sensors with cameras. This probably hardly ever happens as you have to be at the right angle for it to hit that camera. It may have never show up in testing.
This is why automous cars will never be able to work without sensors in the ground or on poles or somewhere because of these types of issues.
Unless, of course, others sensors are used that see wavelengths of light other than visible light that we can see.
Maybe recessing the sensor into the gauge cluster more, or adding a sunshade over it somehow would fix the issue?
Will this feature be added to the 2020 Denali 3500 dually? Its the cadillac of GM ttuck line!
In drivers’ ed, they told us to look 12 seconds ahead of you when you can. I don’t see how any system can do that, or anything close. The system may keep you in-lane, but it won’t know when the car in front of the car in front of you slows down.
Cadillac wants to add this system to all cars by 2020, as an option of course . Like any new tech there will be bugs to work out .This bug seems morelike an over sight by engineers . It is still the best in the business . Just look at the lane keeping assist , in the winter if the roads are covering the lines the assist doesn’t work because it can’t see .
” Just look at the lane keeping assist , in the winter if the roads are covering the lines the assist doesn’t work because it can’t see .”
If people can remember where the lines on the road ought to be in the winter months by observing where the lines were when they drove over the same road in the summer months, a computer can record and recall the same data in an autonomous car.
Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but the problem is not insurmountable to engineering.
“can cause the self–driving system to disengage”.
That’s worlds better then a system that can be coaxed into oncoming traffic by stickers in the road!
GM is taking the right approach with autonomous cars with a safety first mindset. It’s good to see this with some of the reports that have come out about other companies systems.
I’m glad GM isn’t pushing the system onto customers that don’t want it. Or using customers as beta testers for the system like some other manufacturers are.
I worked at a Chevy dealership and took one out for a test and I do remember having the system disengage out of the blue, thinking back we were driving straight into the sun near sunset.