Survey: The More Familiar People Become With Driverless Cars, The More They Accept Them

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Bobatoo.co.uk

A new survey by insurance advice website Bobatoo.co.uk has found that the attitudes of UK drivers toward driverless cars is beginning to improve.

Bobatoo ran the same survey 18 months ago and found that UK motorists were not too keen on the idea of self-driving cars taking to the roads.

It would seem attitudes are beginning to soften though, as the new survey results show that more UK drivers are looking forward to the prospect of driverless cars.

Of the 2,109 respondents to this latest survey, 34 percent admitted to being “excited” about self-driving cars, a significant increase from the 2015 survey when just 26 percent of respondents said they were “excited.”

A similar change in opinion was evident when respondents were asked if they would prefer a self-driving car over their current car. In 2015, 28 percent said they would rather have a driverless car. That figure has now jumped to 37 percent.

One of the reasons for this apparent change in attitude could be the increase in awareness of self-driving cars among the UK public as a whole. In 2015, more than a third of respondents were not aware that companies like Google and Uber were working on driverless car technology. That figure is down to just 24 percent now, suggesting that the more familiar we become with the technology, the more we accept it.

Revealing the results of the new survey, a spokesman for Bobatoo said, “When the idea of self-driving cars was first mooted by the likes of Google, the main concern among the public was about safety.

“The results of our new survey show that, whilst there is still a long way to go, it would seem that the general public is not only warming to the idea of self-driving cars, they are actively looking forward to them.”

By The Numbers:

A total of 2,109 UK residents were surveyed.

Gender:

Male – 53%

Female – 47%

Age:

17-24 – 12%

25-35 – 28%

35-45 – 21%

45-55 – 27%

55-65 – 8%

65+ – 4%

Do you have a valid U.K. driving license?

Yes – 72%

No – 28%

Are you aware that companies such as Google are currently developing self-driving cars?

Yes – 76%

No – 24%

How do you feel about the development of self-driving cars?

Excited – 34%

Concerned – 28%

Not bothered – 38%

Would you prefer to have a self-driving car instead of your current car?

Yes – 37%

No – 45%

Don’t know – 18%

 

Image: Rendering of Google driverless car / Credit: Google

News Roundup: Ford Introduces ‘SmartLink’ Connected-Car Plug-In For Older Vehicles, U.S. Lawmakers Consider Car Cybersecurity Bill, and More

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Jennifer van der Kleut

A roundup of interesting headlines from the driverless and connected-car worlds over the past week:

Ford designs new device to turn older cars into connected cars

Ford Motor Co. has created a new device called SmartLink that can plug into older cars through the OBD link II and turn them into fully connected cars. The SmartLink includes a 4G LTE modem on board, letting it act as a Wi-Fi hotspot for up to 8 devices in the vehicle. It also enables remote start, lock and unlock functions, and can send alerts to a car owner via a companion web and mobile app to let them check the car’s diagnostic health, and get alerts related to security and service requirements. SmartLink was designed to work with Ford and Lincoln cars built between 2010 and 2016. Read more from TechCrunch.

 

Driverless bus debuts in Atlanta before embarking on U.S. tour

The Alliance for Transportation Authority offered rides in an autonomous, 12-passenger bus in Atlanta on Thursday to kick off a U.S. tour. The tour, which will take the bus to other major cities in states such as Texas and California. Representatives of the Alliance hope the tour, and free rides on the shuttle, will improve public perception of self-driving cars, which they see as one of the biggest barriers to the implementation of the technology. Read more from the Albuquerque Journal.

 

U.S. lawmakers introduce bill to study cybersecurity in connected cars

With at least 90 percent of cars on U.S. roads expected to have connected-car features by 2020, U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday introduced a bipartisan bill in the U.S. House of Representatives that would direct the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to study cybersecurity in vehicles. Named “The Security and Privacy in Your Car Act,” the bill requires the NHTSA to work with the Defense Department, the Federal Trade Commission, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Automotive Information Sharing and Analysis Center, SAE International, and academics and manufacturers in the automotive industry to set a standard for safety in all connected cars. Together, the group will study how to isolate software systems in vehicles, create a system to prevent and detect hacks, determine best practices for storing data and create a timeline for how to implement these standards. Read more from GeekWire.

Photo: Ford SmartLink plug-in / Credit: Ford Motor Co.

CES 2017: All the Driverless, Electric and Connected-Car Buzz

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Jennifer van der Kleut

Thursday marks the opening of one of the biggest technology shows of the year, and that includes innovations in transportation-the Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2017).

In addition to all the newest tech gadgetry that is making a buzz-everything one can imagine, from fitness tracker rings to smart hairbrushes to the latest drones-many automakers choose CES as the place to show off their newest concept vehicles.

Here are just a few of the most exciting highlights automakers showed off during the media preview days early this week:

Faraday Future FF 91: Secretive tech company Faraday Future unveiled its production-ready car, and it appears to be getting the biggest pre-show buzz of all. The FF 91 is an electric vehicle with impressive stats, including the ability to go nearly 400 miles without a charge, and speeding up from 0 to 60 miles per hour in under three seconds. The exterior boasts a deployable Lidar sensor, and the interior features luxurious reclining seats. The FF 91 is expected to hit the market in 2018. Read more and see plenty of photos from CNET Roadshow.

The Fiat Chrysler Portal: The all-new electric portal is being outed as the ultimate car for millennial tech-lovers. The in-car entertainment system boasts more than 20 connected apps for pairing with your mobile phones, cameras, tablets and even laptops, and features facial and voice recognition for a smooth user experience. The seats don’t just recline, either-they “float” on inline tracks that allow them to rotate 360 degrees, lie flat, or even be removed altogether. That all comes in handy when it’s in Level 3 autonomous mode. The car also features vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) technology that allows the car to communicate with other cars, the Internet, roadside infrastructure and more. Read more from Fortune.

Ford’s Next-Generation Autonomous Fusion Hybrid: Ford announced last month it would be debuting its new and improved autonomous Fusion Hybrid at CES 2017. It’s been three years since Ford first started testing autonomous Fusions, and this latest iteration features a sleeker look with less-obvious Lidar sensors, more processing power, and improved hardware. The Business Journal says Ford is also expected to show off improvements to its on-board SYNC infotainment system. Read more from Ford’s Blog on Medium.

2017 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid: Fiat-Chrysler America (FCA) will show off its newest model, which it was tasked with building 100 of for Waymo (the company Google spun off its self-driving car arm into). The car gets 30 miles of all-electric range or 530 miles of total range. FCA is also expected to show off its fourth-generation connectivity system, Uconnect. Read more from the Business Journal.

BMW’s HoloActive Touch System: The future is now, according to BMW. The automaker will show off its new user interface concept which actually floats in the air like a hologram and is operated by finger gestures rather than a touchscreen. Read more from the Business Journal.

DriverlessTransportation and our sister company, eTrans Solutions, are on hand for all of the excitement this week in Las Vegas, and next week at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Photo: The Chrysler Portal, courtesy of Fiat-Chrysler America

Renesas, eTrans Systems Partner Up to Debut Connected Parking App at CES 2017

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eTrans Systems

FAIRFAX, Va. — eTrans Systems, a leading developer of software solutions for connected and automated vehicles, today announced their collaboration with semiconductor solutions provider Renesas Electronics America Inc. by delivering a parking availability solution using dedicated short range communications (DSRC) to help enable both autonomous and driver-based vehicles to easily find open parking spots.

This technology will be showcased on Renesas’ automotive fleet of vehicles during CES 2017 (Consumer Electronics Show).  This collaboration brings together the expertise of the world’s leading automotive semiconductor provider along with an innovative startup company specifically focused on Connected and Autonomous Vehicle (CAV) technology solutions.

Why is this technology important?

In cities throughout the world, parking is a major issue.  It has been estimated that upwards of 30 percent of urban drivers are at any one time looking for available parking. This is a tremendous waste of both time and fuel.  eTrans’ new DSRC Parking Solution can help to eliminate this waste.

How does the DSRC Parking Solution app work?

Sensors in the parking lot can detect the availability of open spaces. When spots are available, the sensors notify the DSRC Road Side Unit (RSU), which in turn broadcasts out availability.  On-Board Units (OBUs) in the car receive the messages and then notify either the driver or the vehicle’s autonomous driving system.

“Renesas is very excited about this application, “ said Amrit Vivekanand, vice president, of Renesas Electronics America’s automotive business unit. ” We see this as an interesting use of our automobile technology in the Vehicle to Infrastructure (V2I) market, which is a market that Renesas is looking to further expand into.”

eTrans representatives said they look forward to try and solve the world’s parking woes together with Renesas.

“At eTrans, we see the DSRC Parking Solution as the next major piece in our Vehicle to Infrastructure application suite,” said John Estrada, CEO of eTrans Systems. “It provides an additional benefit from Connected Vehicle technology and is the foundation for solving a major urban problem.”

eTrans and Renesas plan to unveil this solution at CES 2017. For more details on the demonstration, contact John Estrada at jestrada@eTransSystems.com.

About eTrans Systems

eTrans Systems specializes in the development and deployment of autonomous and connected vehicle systems.  eTrans solutions include safety applications, mobility applications and vehicle management applications. eTrans clients include automobile OEMs, tier-1 auto suppliers and state and local governments.

News Roundup: Google Forms Self-Driving Car Company Called ‘Waymo,’ Uber Starts Testing Driverless Taxis in San Francisco Without Permission, and More

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Jennifer van der Kleut

A look at some of the most interesting headlines to come out of the driverless and connected-car industries this past week:

Google spins out driverless car arm into its own company: Waymo

It’s finally happened-Google has officially launched its own self-driving car company, known as Waymo. Google officially announced the formation of Waymo this week on Dec. 13, 2016, along with the launch of Waymo’s own website. Using the same fleet the company has been testing in four U.S. cities over the past few years, Waymo says its next steps will be to start allowing people to test drive its self-driving cars “to do everyday things like run errands or commute to work.” Read more on Waymo’s website.

 

Uber starts testing self-driving taxis in San Francisco without DMV’s permission

The industry marveled when Uber rolled out self-driving cars in Pittsburgh earlier this year, but the government was less than happy when the ride-hailing giant began trying out autonomous taxis in San Francisco this week-without the DMV’s permission. Not to mention, some people are reporting seeing the driverless cars make traffic violations such as running red lights. News reports indicate the California DMV is currently trying to get Uber to halt the use of the driverless cars in California until testing permits are finalized. Read more from Business Insider.

 

Univ. of Iowa to use USDOT grant to research autonomous cars, pedestrians

The University of Iowa will share a $1.4-million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation with four other institutions, and says one of the areas it will focus on with the research money is the safety and viability of self-driving transportation. Dr. Joseph Kearney, a computer science professor at the school, said “There’s work being done and work that will be done, that will look at interactions between pedestrians and bicyclists, and automated vehicles and semi-automated vehicles, in order to see how pedestrians respond.” Read more and see video footage from KCRG-TV.

News Roundup: Autonomous Tricycle Testing Underway, Apple Reportedly Ditching Plans for Electric Self-Driving Car, and More

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Jennifer van der Kleut

A roundup of some of the most interesting industry news headlines from around the world from the past few days:

University of Washington-Bothell making progress on autonomous tricycle

We’ve seen autonomous trucks, buses, shuttles, cars, and last week, a semi-autonomous motorcycle. Headlines this week are showing us an autonomous tricycle, under development by a team at the University of Washington in Bothell. Led by Tyler Folsom, the team says they are hoping to introduce a lighter, less expensive, more environmentally friendly autonomous vehicle for the future of transportation. A small test has already been successful-guided by a remote control, the test cycle managed to pedal itself in a small circle safely. The team reportedly received a $75,000 grant from Amazon Catalyst to develop their technology. Folsom said the team’s target is a price point of around $10,000, making an inexpensive price for college students or families looking to move about more easily, instead of owning a car or depending on public transport, plus the environmental footprint would be practically non-existent. Read more about the autonomous tricycle from New Atlas. Courtesy image by Mark Studer.

Reports: Apple drops plan to build its own autonomous car, instead focusing on platform

If you believe the many rumors news outlets are publishing this week, Apple has reportedly decided to forego manufacturing its own self-driving car, and instead is focusing on building just the autonomous car platform. The New York Times recently reported that Apple had laid off dozens of employees of Project Titan, which was working on developing an electric, autonomous car with a target release date of 2020. The company then reportedly turned around and hired dozens of new employees focusing on artificial intelligence, with a new focus of building its own self-driving platform. In the future, Apple may decide to partner with an established car manufacturer to release its own vehicle. Read more about Project Titan’s new focus on 9 to 5 Mac.

DARPA’s Cyber Grand Challenge aims to beef up security for IoT devices

According to research firm Gartner, the number of Internet-connected devices has risen nearly 70 percent to over 6.4 billion devices just in the past two years, making a lot of people’s lives more convenient with connected devices ranging from appliances to home thermostats to even clothing, bracelets, watches and more. Unfortunately, that also leaves 6.4 billion ways hackers can target us. DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, is aiming to combat that risk. In 2013, the agency launched the Cyber Grand Challenge, inviting scientists from all over the world to “create automated digital defense systems that could identify and fix software vulnerabilities on their own — essentially, smart software robots as sentinels for digital security.” The Cyber Grand Challenge was announced in 2013, and qualifying rounds began in 2014. At the outset, more than 100 teams were in the contest. Through a series of elimination rounds, the competitors were winnowed to seven teams that participated in the finals in August in Las Vegas. The three winning teams collected a total of $3.75 million in prize money. Read more about what the teams created and what it means for IoT security from the New York Times.

British ‘What Would You Do in Your Driverless Car’ Survey Yields Unexpected Results

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Jennifer van der Kleut

When South London-based logbook lender Varooma set out to find out what activities Britons would most like to do in their driverless cars once they no longer have to drive their vehicles themselves, they got some unexpected results.

Instead of giving expected answers like sleep, work or watch videos, most Britons said-they wouldn’t be in a driverless car in the first place.

A whopping 73 percent of Britons surveyed said they prefer to drive themselves over taking a driverless car.

Along the same vein, 38 percent of responders said they would not purchase a driverless car, even if they were readily available for purchase and were the same price as regular cars.

Are autonomous vehicles better suited to future generations? Varooma suggests their survey results may indicate just that. Results said that 18- to 24-year-olds would be most comfortable and “chill” engaging in other activities rather than paying attention to the road in a driverless car.

Then, after skipping a generation or so, acceptance of the idea of driverless cars gains traction again as people enter their senior years. The survey results show that people of ages 55 to 64 are more likely to want to purchase a driverless car than adults age 45 to 54.

The idea of autonomous vehicles have long been touted as a solution for aging drivers, as well as those with physical disabilities.

However, those open to the idea of driverless cars did have a few ideas of what they would like to do on their commutes if they didn’t need to pay attention to the road.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, 24 percent of men age 18-24 said they would “catch Pokemon.” Twenty-two percent said they would “catch up on sleep.”

Almost all responders said they would love to read a book or watch a movie.

Interestingly, more women said they would be a little distrusting of the technology and would probably keep one eye on the road (22.3 percent) than men (16.3 percent).

What jobs would Britons trust their car to do without them, while they were at work?

Another popular idea in regards to autonomous vehicles is the idea that your car could perform simple jobs for you while you are otherwise engaged, such as daytime work hours. So, Varooma also asked their survey takers what jobs they would feel comfortable sending their car to do while they were at work.

The number-one response from middle-aged men was “send their car to the car wash.”

The top answer from women of the same age was to send their car to pick up take-out food.

When it came to driving around their children, though, the numbers were a lot lower. Only around 4 percent of responders said they would feel comfortable having their autonomous car drive their children to school without them.

Even fewer said they would feel comfortable sending their car to deliver cash to someone-3.6 percent.

Varooma’s survey was conducted through Google consumer surveys. Their survey netted 1,591 online responses.

 

News Roundup: Tesla Launches Improved Autopilot 8.0, Driverless Taxis Hit the Streets of Singapore, and More

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A look at some of the most interesting recent headlines across the industry:

 

nuTonomy partners with taxi-hailing app Grab to offer robot taxis

Singapore-based taxi-hailing app Grab announced it is partnering with software startup nuTonomy to test out robot taxis to its customers on a trial basis. As of this past Friday, Sept. 23, “Robo Car” is an option offered to customers using the Grab app to hail a taxi in one area of the city-state. The robot taxi must be hailed in advance, and only one passenger is allowed to ride at a time. The passenger will be joined by a safety driver and a support engineer to ensure the ride is problem-free. There are currently two vehicles operating, which had previously been in testing since April. If all goes well, Grab and nuTonomy said they hope to have a fleet of 12 robot taxis on the road by the end of the year, and as many as 100 operating by 2018. Read more from Mobile World Live.

 

As Tesla releases Autopilot 8.0, Elon Musk says ‘perfect driverless-car safety is impossible’

After a few highly publicized accidents with the previous iteration of Autopilot-one of which killed the car’s driver-Tesla Motors released the new and improved version, Autopilot 8.0, this past Wednesday, Sept. 21. Reports indicate the new version offers better visibility in weather conditions such as fog, improved emergency braking, and auditory alerts that remind drivers to pay attention to the road. In fact, if four warnings within one hour are ignored, the car will reportedly shut down its semi-autonomous features and only allow them to be turned back on if the driver pulls over, parks, shuts off the car and restarts it. Regardless, CEO Elon Musk told media outlets that “perfect driverless car safety is impossible,” and some outlets are saying they agree with that statement. Read more from the Orlando Sentinel.

 

Verizon pushes to be the top provider of self-driving and connected-car fleet management

Telecommunications giant Verizon is working to position itself as a top manager of self-driving and connected-car fleets. Verizon is becoming a strong provider of telematics services, offering a combination of telecommunications, vehicular technologies and real-time wireless data that are central to connected cars and self-driving vehicles. Verizon most recently made moves to acquire Fleetmatics Group PLC for $2.4 billion and Telogis Inc. for an undisclosed amount. Both companies offer services for managing and operating vehicle fleets, which many believe to be the gateway for acceptance of self-driving cars. Once both deals are closed, Verizon will control about 25 percent of the telematics market, making them the largest provider world-wide. “You can’t have autonomous vehicles if they’re not connected to the Internet, which our best-in-class networks enable. That connection becomes ever more important — the reliability of it, stability of it, security of it — as the stakes associated with autonomous vehicles goes up,” commented Andres Irlando, the CEO of Verizon Telematics Inc. Read more about Verizon’s progress on The Detroit News.

Image: Tesla Motors Autopilot

News Roundup: Tesla Improving Autopilot System, Ford Planning ‘Affordable’ Autonomous Car for the Masses, and More

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A roundup of recent headlines from the driverless and connected-car industry:

 

Ford announces plan to start selling affordable self-driving cars by 2025

In a speech by CEO Mark Fields on Monday, Ford Motor Co. announced it will begin selling driverless cars within the next five years. The company will start by selling robot taxis to ride-hailing companies by 2021, and then “affordable” models to the masses by 2025. Fields said the company is committed to making autonomous cars affordable for everyone, not just those who like luxury cars. Read more about Ford’s plans from Bloomberg News.

Volvo to begin driverless car testing in Sweden

Sweden-based auto manufacturer Volvo is almost ready to kick off its public driverless car testing program in Gothenburg. The program, called Drive Me, will feature the company’s first autonomous car, the Volvo XC90 SUV, which the company has been working on in its Torslanda facilities. Once final testing of its hands-off and feet-off capabilities is complete, the cars will be handed over to customers who have signed up to participate in the Drive Me program. Read more about the XC90 and the Drive Me program in Economic Times-Auto.

Tesla announces plans to upgrade its Autopilot systems

Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk on Monday announced plans to update its Autopilot system, after a number of accidents that included one death. Analysts have responded positively to Tesla’s announcement, and express hope that the updates will not only improve the company’s outlook, but also consumer confidence in self-driving technology as a whole. Musk said the updates will include more of a reliance on radar instead of just cameras to scan the environment for obstacles that create a risk for collisions. The recent fatal crash involving Autopilot is still being investigated by federal transportation authorities. Read more about Tesla’s plans from the Los Angeles Times.

News Roundup: Michigan Senate Passes Law Allowing Driverless Cars to Operate Without Humans, French City Debuts World’s First Driverless Bus Service, and More

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Jennifer van der Kleut

A roundup of recent headlines in the driverless and connected-car industries.

Michigan State Senate Unanimously Passes Bill That Would No Longer Require a Human to Be in A Driverless Car

Driverless cars are moving full speed ahead in Michigan, where the state Senate has unanimously passed a bill that would no longer require a human to be in an autonomous car being tested on public roads. Backers touted the bill as “necessary” to keep Michigan ahead of the curve on rapidly advancing technology. Michigan Governor Rick Snyder reportedly supports the bill as well, which is on track to have full legislative approval by the end of the year. Other provisions in the bill include: allowing for public operation of driverless vehicles when they hit the consumer market; easing the “platooning” of autonomous commercial trucks traveling closely together at electronically coordinated speeds; help creating a facility to test autonomous and wirelessly connected cars at highway speeds at the site of a defunct General Motors plant; and allowing auto manufacturers to run networks of on-demand self-driving vehicles. Read more from the Associated Press and CBS Detroit.

 

Lyon, France Debuts World’s First Public Driverless Bus With Daily Service

Lyon, France launched this past weekend what is being called the world’s first driverless bus in its downtown Confluence area. The bus, which uses LiDAR radar technology and motion sensors to help it avoid accidents, can seat up to 15 passengers, and is now serving rides to the public, daily. Two shuttles run a 10-minute route with five stops. The shuttle was designed by French company Navya, and the design is set to undergo trials in Dubai soon as well. Read more about the new Navya shuttle buses from Travel+Leisure Magazine.

 

Volvo Teams Up With Autoliv to Develop Autonomous Car Software

Volvo Car Group and Autoliv, an automotive safety group, announced this week that they are forming a jointly-owned company to develop advanced driver assistance systems and autonomous driving systems. Volvo will bring to the table its know-how of decision-making software that determines how an autonomous car will react in different situations. Autoliv will bring expertise in sensor technology and computer vision systems. The two companies say they are committed to creating “a completely open, transparent environment for collaboration.” In a news conference, representatives said the new company, which has yet to be named, will initially have around 200 employees, and could grow to around 600 within two years. The company is set to begin work as early as next year. Read more about the collaboration from Associated Press and Crain’s Detroit Business.