RE: Einride introduces futuristic self-driving trucks as part of new delivery service

mcb1 — Fri, 18 Aug 2017 13:48:38 GMT

Cabe

Thanks for bringing these to our attention. They do provide some interesting observations and provoke discussion.

From my observations, the critical systems required to keep others safe are always written with the best intent, but it's that one thing that wasn't considered that usually makes it fail.

It's only Tesla v truck you have to worry about, and since they are both electic they might communicate better ... [View:/resized-image/__size/16x16/__key/commentfiles/f7d226abd59f475c9d224a79e3f0ec07-63c21932-b67a-4a68-9521-d42451df616c/contentimage_5F00_938.png:16:16]

Driven vehicles do have accidents and some are driver error, or avoidable, but when the car in the opposite lane appears in yours, driver or not there will be a meeting.

In those situations a driver may make choices, but what choices will an automated system make.?

This is exactly that and well worth a go, I don't agree with some of the assumptions made (it's like judging a book by it's cover), but it was an eye-opener.

Moral Machine

Lets assume a sensor fails that the system deems is critical.

Does the truck just stop where it is.?

In a driven vehicle the driver might decide it is not the safest place to stop and instead continue 100m to clear the roadway or bend so that other road users are kept safe and not inconvienced.

Here in NZ the poor truckies are not well paid, so the wages part of the freight bill is a very small percentage of total cost.

I'm sure that economies in other areas might make more sense.

I did a quick check and Gothenburg to Helsinborg is 217km or 134 miles.

[View:/resized-image/__size/277x454/__key/commentfiles/f7d226abd59f475c9d224a79e3f0ec07-63c21932-b67a-4a68-9521-d42451df616c/contentimage_5F00_185116.png:277:454]

So with a range of 124 miles it's going to be short.

Also the 20 tonnes is a waste, since even here we're allowed 53 tonnes all up (on specified routes), but even 44 tonnes is more than 15 pallets.

I have no doubt that driverless vehicles have a place, but I feel that these ideas are the hot air expelled by PR people when they've had a little too much cafine without an Engineer sitting in the corner bringing them back to reality.

Mark