Washington Post game highlights AV flaws

Mind the kangaroos! That is among the more surprising suggestions in a new entertainment which purports to illustrate the pitfalls of autonomous vehicles (AVs). US media giant The Washington Post has created a short interactive game which “shows readers how autonomous cars function and breaks down the technology to educate viewers about their limitations and challenges”. These include sensor blind spots and confusion over what other road users are about to do. The five-minute game takes the form of a jou
September 11, 2019 Read time: 2 mins

Mind the kangaroos! That is among the more surprising suggestions in a new entertainment which purports to illustrate the pitfalls of autonomous vehicles (AVs).

US media giant The Washington Post has created a short interactive game which “shows readers how autonomous cars function and breaks down the technology to educate viewers about their limitations and challenges”. These include sensor blind spots and confusion over what other road users are about to do.

The five-minute %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external game false https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/business/how-does-an-autonomous-car-work/ false false%> takes the form of a journey in an AV to the airport, with the user able to take over the controls. The accompanying %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external article false https://wapo.st/2m1L0Gu false false%> - ‘How does an autonomous car work? Not so great’ - points out the problems (familiar to the ITS industry) of operating in a mixed traffic environment, including issues such as safety, insurance and liability.

As well as pointing out that AVs have ‘read’ wrongly the colour of traffic lights or failed to stop for broken-down vehicles, the game also features a kangaroo which bounces towards the vehicle.

“Despite how much engineers train their self-driving cars, there’s always the possibility they’ll encounter something unexpected,” the Post says. During a 2017 test in Australia, a car detected a kangaroo but “was confounded by its unusual hopping habits”.

The Post says that 1,400 self-driving vehicles are being tested in 36 states of the US as well as the District of Columbia. It quotes Adam Scow from Consumer Watchdog saying a lack of federal regulation on testing could “lead to disaster”.

Try the %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external game false https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/business/how-does-an-autonomous-car-work/ false false%>yourself here.

Related Content

  • July 24, 2019
    Self-driving bus collides with pedestrian in Vienna
    A self-driving bus trial in the Austrian capital Vienna has been halted after a collision between a vehicle and pedestrian, says Bloomberg. Authorities are now investing the cause of the incident which led to minor injuries. According to Bloomberg, state broadcaster ORF says the Navya vehicle was driving at 7.5 miles per hour when it hit the 30-year-old woman in the knee. In a statement given to The Verge, Navya said witnesses had seen the pedestrian wearing headphones and looking at a mobile phon
    Read More
  • December 21, 2018
    USDoT calls for comment on V2X integration
    The US Department of Transportation (USDoT) is seeking public comment on how Vehicle to Everything (V2X) technology should be integrated into the transport environment. The organisation says it intends to maintain the priority use of 5.9Ghz spectrum for transportation safety communications. It points out that the automotive industry and local authorities “are already deploying V2X technology and actively utilising all seven channels of the 5.9 GHz band” and says that technology such as Cellular-V2X (C-V2
    Read More
  • October 31, 2018
    Groupe PSA trials car-sharing service in Washington, DC
    French car manufacturer Groupe PSA says its ‘free-floating’ car-share service provides members in Washington, DC with access to 600 vehicles. The Free2Move service is available to drivers for a $10 membership fee and does not include late fees, per trip fees or insurance charges, the company adds. Members can use the Free2Move app to locate, book and open/lock the vehicles. This pilot coincides with Maven’s announcement to expand its peer-to-peer car-share service in Washington, DC – and other US
    Read More
  • December 10, 2018
    Waymo trials commercial driverless taxi service in Phoenix, Arizona
    Waymo has launched a driverless taxi service in Phoenix, Arizona, where riders will be charged for the journeys they take. In a blog post, CEO John Krafcik says the commercial self-driving service – called Waymo One - is available to early riders who have already been using Waymo’s technology. The company hopes to make the service available to more members of the public as it adds more vehicles and drives in more places, he writes. “Self-driving technology is new to many, so we’re proceeding carefully wi
    Read More

Highlighted Content