Can self-driving vehicles replace traditional cars?

Today quite a lot of large companies are developing an unmanned vehicle, including Google, which by the way, about this development said the first. Let’s imagine a car that drives itself without a driver, where you can rest during long trips or while we sit in traffic jams well, something like this in the movie “I, robot”, this car is going to create Google.

At the request of one of the main developers of the project Sebastian Troon (Sebastian Thrun), their main task is to prevent accidents and reduce carbon dioxide emissions drastically changing the principles of driving. According to the results of the world health organization every year on the roads killed at least 1.2 million people, and thanks to new technology it is planned to reduce this number at least by half.

This technology could help to solve another problem related to lack of time. According to estimates of the Ministry of transport, the average time people on the road is 52 minutes a day. Saving this time, you can spend it on something else, for example, telephone calls or reading the newspaper. Would it help to solve the problem with drunk drivers and those who are asleep at the wheel?

Despite some idea to implement it in the near future. As stated in Google the first tests, held in August have already produced results. “The New York Times,” writes, the only accident was at the intersection when a car crashed into the ass of an unmanned vehicle. For engineers, there are still challenges that need to be addressed, such as temporary road signs, snow covered roads, and any emergency situation.

Today Google machine can pass without any difficulty more than 480 thousand kilometers. Under assumptions of experts to become reliable at 99% and stay ahead in this ordinary car, this car should be able without problems to travel a distance of 1.16 million kilometers. But it needs a lot to do, as recognized by Google.

Whether Google is the leader among such competitors as BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Volvo, Volkswagen and Ford which have already invested heavily in the development of its unmanned vehicles. This is a very promising industry, which may in some cases create tens of thousands of jobs in the automotive industry, and can also make a very good profit.