This is the second time that a Tesla vehicle has not detected an object because it was at windshield level.
The funny thing is after every update, there will be people who say that they've noticed improvements but then other people will complain about something that's gotten worse. I suspect people who go directly from an Oct 2015 build to a June 2016 build will barely notice the difference simply because the hardware is the main limiter.
Even if we could cut that number in half through automated driving, that would be amazing.
I think your expectations are too low. Automated driving properly implemented will cut the vehicular collision death rate to near zero.
Unfortunately due to lighting conditions neither the driver nor the auto-pilot system detected the truck ahead
I am curious, how was it determined that dead driver didn't see the truck? Is it not possible he saw the truck making the turn and assumed the Tesla was going to stop?
-KeithP
I don't see why everyone is blaming the truck driver and automatically giving the Tesla driver a free pass without knowing more details. A truck pulling out into the intersection is generally very slow but it was pulled out far enough that the car went underneath the trailer without braking at all. I found find it very hard to imagine that an attentive driver at the wheel wouldn't have seen the truck like many are claiming.
I would assume that their analytics can pick up when the driver engages the brake vs. electronic braking from the auto-pilot.
If he did not brake one have to assume he did not see it.
"We have read the account of what happened in this case. Today's collision avoidance technology, or Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) is defined as rear-end collision avoidance, and is designed specifically for that. This incident involved a laterally crossing vehicle, which current-generation AEB systems are not designed to actuate upon. Mobileye systems will include Lateral Turn Across Path (LTAP) detection capabilities beginning in 2018, and the Euro NCAP safety ratings will include this beginning in 2020."
Interesting, MobileEye, Tesla's vision systems partner, has commented on the type of collision:
http://electrek.co/2016/07/01/tesla-autopilot-mobileye-fatal-crash-comment/
That's the thing with technology...it's purpose-built. They didn't have LTAP, just AEB for rear-end collisions. Even though it has Autopilot, it's not a universally-safe safety feature for 100% of situations.
So basically they are vulnerable to any T-Bone situations? I regularly drive on country roads that have 4 way intersections. People will blow through those regularly without stopping. You have to be on lookout to see if they are slowing down and use your judgement to see if you need to be ready to break.
I assume the auto detect tech wouldn't pick up on that type of situation?
Sounds like the car went under the trailer, sliced the roof off completely, went a few hundred feet, and hit a telephone pole before stopping in a yard. I wonder what the programming is for that...can the car detect that it became a convertible? Does it sense that the driver isn't touching the wheel & safely pulls over? The risk this runs is that the car becomes a 4,500-pound unmanned missile on the streets. What happens if you have a heart attack while driving solo, does the car become a coffin traveling down the road by itself? Creepy to think about.
Hard to understand how the truck driver could have heard whatever was playing inside the Tesla, let alone recognize it as a Harry Potter movie.
Had a hard time visualizing what happened, till I saw this.
Would you not run and go check on the driver if that was your truck? He probably say his phone still playing the movie when he went to see if he was alive.
I 100% expected asleep, texting, browsing reddit, or something like this. Its pretty much exactly why google wants to go straight to level 4.
The Florida Highway Patrol confirmed to Reuters that a portable DVD player was found in the wreckage. The driver of the truck that was crossing the highway when it was struck by the Model S told the Associated Press that the driver was playing a Harry Potter movie at the time. He said he could he could hear it playing after the car hit a telephone pole further down the road.