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Tag: self-driving cars

  • Florida Political Ad Suggests That Self-Driving Cars Will Be the Death of Grandma

    Florida Political Ad Suggests That Self-Driving Cars Will Be the Death of Grandma

    Striking memories of Maximum Overdrive and vehicles gone mad, a new Florida campaign ad hints that one candidate supported technology that will splay out old people in the streets. What’s so terrifying that Florida’s retired population should consider it in the upcoming State Senate race?

    Self-driving cars, or course.

    Florida’s 22nd district is being contested by two Republicans, Jeff Brandes and Jim Frishe. Frishe is a fiscal conservative, who places a high value on raising educational standards. Apparently, Brandes is an irresponsible futurist who wants to put autonomous death machines onto the streets of Nana’s assisted living community.

    “Technology is great,” says the narrator (who sounds like a elderly woman). “But driverless cars? Is this really a priority?”

    During that narration, the messages on the screen says “Driverless cars for all: more dangerous than driving” and “Will driverless cars really slow for pedestrians?”

    Let’s just say that this is the first time I’ve seen self-driving cars at the center of an attack ad. Check it out below:

    The ad was paid for by the Committee to Protect Florida, who says that their purpose is to “support and advance the ideals of protecting the interests of the state of Florida.”

    And it looks like Google is the enemy.

    [via Jalopnik]

  • Google’s Self-Driving Cars Log 300K Miles, Add a Lexus to the Family

    Google’s Self-Driving Cars Log 300K Miles, Add a Lexus to the Family

    Whether you’re thrilled about the prospects of driverless technology or not, self-driving cars are probably coming to a stoplight near you in the near future. Google thinks that they are definitely inside a decade away, and automakers like Ford have said that they think the technology will be road-ready by 2017.

    Although Google isn’t the only one out there working of driverless car technology, they are the most prominent. And because of that, their driverless cars steal a lot of the spotlight.

    Back in May, Larry Page said that the team of testers had driven the family of driverless cars over 200,000 miles (with no incident, he made sure to specify). And today, Google announced that their fleet of cars have logged over 300,000 miles now (also without incident).

    Plus, they’ve added a new model to the fleet – the Lexus RX450h (a hybrid, pictured above).

    Here’s what lies ahead for Google’s driverless team:

    [T]here’s still a long road ahead. To provide the best experience we can, we’ll need to master snow-covered roadways, interpret temporary construction signals and handle other tricky situations that many drivers encounter. As a next step, members of the self-driving car team will soon start using the cars solo (rather than in pairs), for things like commuting to work. This is an important milestone, as it brings this technology one step closer to every commuter. One day we hope this capability will enable people to be more productive in their cars. For now, our team members will remain in the driver’s seats and will take back control if needed.

    The gears are already in motion for self-driving cars to hit the roadway as soon as the technology is deemed stable. Google’s already been talking to automakers in Detroit, and have begun to get patents as well.

    Plus, states like Nevada and California are already taking steps to legalize and regulate driverless cars within their state lines.

    “It’s just an amazing, amazing experience,” he continued. “And think about — you know, I have young children. I’m sure many of you do as well. Think about your children. By the time that they’re old enough to drive, there’s no reason we can’t have technology that helps them — teaches them to drive and learn all the things they need to know. And that’s like almost, I think, the leading cause of death, actually, for kids as they learn to drive. I mean, it’s a big deal. So I think, you know, my point was that I think in technology, if we take some ambitious bets, we really have an amazing ability to transform people’s lives,” said Page at the Zeitgeist 2012 event earlier this year.

    Do you think that self-driving cars could change lives? Either way, it won’t be too long until we see them on the road. Even as a fan of driving, that’s an exciting proposition.

  • Self-Driving Cars Will Be Waiting Next to You at Red Lights by 2017

    Self-Driving Cars Will Be Waiting Next to You at Red Lights by 2017

    If you think all the hubbub about Google’s fancy self-driving cars is just a fleeting novelty, Ford, it of the automobile industry, thinks you should check yourself before you wreck yourself.

    According to ExtremeTech, Ford predicts that driverless cars will be a way of life in 2017. That’s only five years from now. If you think that seems somewhat quick for a culture to adopt a new technology, the iPhone just turned five years old earlier this week, and I’m sure it would’ve been difficult to anticipate just how pervasive that device would become to our culture back in 2007. So if it happened once, it could happen again, and why not have it happen with something awesome like driver-less cars?

    Ford expects that smart car technology called Traffic Jam Assist will help reduce traffic by at least 37.5%. In other words, if you commute an hour on a freeway during rush hour, your commute would drop down to 38 minutes thanks to self-driving cars. Aside from giving you back some time on your life, Traffic Jam Assist can handle unforeseen events like a car cutting you off.

    Take a look at the demo of Ford’s Traffic Jam Assist technology in the video below.

    While the advent of self-driving cars isn’t exactly news – Google’s Sebastian Thrun was giving TED talks about driver-less technology all the way back in 2010 – this is a pretty exciting prediction from major automobile manufacturer.

    So what will you do with your free time when you don’t have to worry about the bucketheads cutting you off in traffic? Start solving crossword puzzles? Knit? Talk on your phone (even though you already do that right now)?

  • Sergey Brin Goes Full-on Google to Impress Turkey’s First Family

    Sergey Brin Goes Full-on Google to Impress Turkey’s First Family

    Google’s official Twitter account posted a couple of pictures yesterday featuring the visit of Turkish President Abdullah Gül and his wife to the company’s Mountain View, California, offices. Sergey Brin and company apparently weren’t satisfied with just letting the impressive presence of the Googleplex speak for itself, so they decided to dazzle Turkey’s First Family with a few of the more fascinating gadgets that Google’s been testing out this year.

    The funnest ride Google has to offer, its driverless car, was brought out of the garage for the president’s visit. As you can see in the lead photo, Mr. Gül and his wife were taken for a drive in the self-driving car and appear to be enjoying themselves (although Mrs. Gül appears a little pensive). Google tweeted the photo with the description.

    A Googler
    @google     Sergey Brin, Turkish President Abdullah Gül & his wife in a self-driving car at the Googleplex http://t.co/c0zV8KHP
    17 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto
     Reply  · Retweet  · Favorite

    Another tweet was posted that shows Brin, Turkey’s First Family, and some other (presumed) Googlers hanging around outside the car. Check out the photo attached to the tweet, paying special attention to the tall fellow’s laptop brandished with the sticker, “My other car car drives itself.” Clever, yeah?

    A Googler
    @google     Great to have Abdullah Gül, President of Turkey, stop by Google on his 1st official trip to the West Coast of America http://t.co/twCDhtfe
    18 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto
     Reply  · Retweet  · Favorite

    If you’ve been keeping up with the Google goings-on this year when it comes to fun and exciting gadgetry, you probably have noticed what’s becoming a familiar fixture sitting upon the face of Sergey Brin.

    Sergey Brin Project GlassYes, it’s those Project Glass augmented reality glasses he’s been spotted running around in. Seriously, dude, when don’t you wear those out in public anymore? I thought the original pitch was that people wouldn’t wear them all the time? Stop rubbing this in our noses so often or else let us play with a pair of specs, too.

  • Larry Page On Google Self-Driving Cars: Think About Your Children

    Larry Page On Google Self-Driving Cars: Think About Your Children

    Google CEO Larry Page spoke at the Zeitgeist 2012 event this week, talking about Google’s Glasses, search, and various other topics. He briefly touched on Google’s self-driving cars.

    In his talk, he played up the safety factor, and called upon the audience to think about their children.

    “One of the projects I wanted to talk about was we have this project for self-driving cars,” said Page. “You know, and that seems really crazy. You’re like, how can a car possibly drive itself? You know, how’s that ever going to work? And, you know, we’ve had a team working on that and we’ve driven over 200,000 miles now with no incidents. And it’s really amazing to ride in one of these cars. It’s just almost a life-changing experience. You sit down, you drive through the parking lot, and you’re like ‘Why am I driving,’ you know?

    “It’s just an amazing, amazing experience,” he continued. “And think about — you know, I have young children. I’m sure many of you do as well. Think about your children. By the time that they’re old enough to drive, there’s no reason we can’t have technology that helps them — teaches them to drive and learn all the things they need to know. And that’s like almost, I think, the leading cause of death, actually, for kids as they learn to drive. I mean, it’s a big deal. So I think, you know, my point was that I think in technology, if we take some ambitious bets, we really have an amazing ability to transform people’s lives.”

    Here’s the video of his entire speech:

    This week, a bill regulating autonomous vehicles passed unanimously in the California Senate. It enables manufacturers of such vehicles to operate them on California’s roads, provided they live up to all safety standards and requirements set forth by the state highway patrol.

    Earlier this month, Nevada issued an autonomous vehicle license to Google, allowing the company to test the cars on its roads. If you’re thinking about applying for a license, you may want to consider taking this class offered by one of Google’s engineers:

    A recent study found that one in five people would buy driverless car technology. The study, from J.D. Power, found that young, city-dwelling males showed the highest level of interest in the cars.

  • Google Driverless Car Bill Cruises Through the California Senate

    Google Driverless Car Bill Cruises Through the California Senate

    It seems that Google is continuing to impress lawmakers with its autonomous vehicle technology. The California Senate has unanimously passed (37-0) a bill regulating autonomous vehicles on the state’s roads. The bill will now head to the California State Assembly, where it is expected to pass quickly. This news comes the same month that Nevada has issued its first-ever autonomous vehicle license for one of Google’s self-driving cars.

    The bill, Senate Bill 1298, allows manufacturers of autonomous vehicles to operate them on California roads as long as the vehicles meet all of the safety standard and performance requirements set out by the California Highway Patrol (CHP). Those requirements and standards are not yet set, as the legislation also directs the CHP to develop the regulations. Presumably, the requirements will be similar to the ones Nevada has adopted: a documented safety plan, a plan for training operators, a complete description of the autonomous vehicle technology, a large cash deposit, and, of course, plenty of up-front fees.

    The bill, written by California State Senator Alex Padilla, seems almost apologetic. It recognizes that self-driving car technology is quickly being developed, and that the cars are potentially much safer than human drivers. From the bill:

    The State of California, which presently does not prohibit or specifically regulate the operation of autonomous vehicles, desires to encourage the current and future development, testing, and operation of autonomous vehicles on the public roads of the state. The state seeks to avoid interrupting these activities while at the same time creating appropriate rules intended to ensure that the testing and operation of autonomous vehicles in the state are conducted in a safe manner.

    An article by Wired shows Padilla as being very impressed with Google’s autonomous car technology, much the same way Nevada Govenor Brian Sandoval was last year. It’s a bit frustrating to see that every person to experience Google’s self-driving cars is impressed with how much safer they are than human drivers, yet the technology still has to drive through miles of red tape because it is cutting-edge technology. Still, driverless cars should be a commercial reality before the end of the decade, and they are sure to be worth the wait.

    (via Wired)

  • Nevada Issues Google an Autonomous Vehicle License

    Nevada Issues Google an Autonomous Vehicle License

    The Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has issued an autonomous vehicle license to Google. The license is the first of its kind, and will allow Google to test its self-driving cars on Nevada roadways.

    It was announced in February that, after legalizing autonomous vehicles last year, Nevada was developing regulations for self-driving vehicles. As seen in the photo above, Google’s new license plate carries an infinity symbol and is red, meaning the car is still considered to be in testing.

    “I felt using the infinity symbol was the best way to represent the ‘car of the future.’” Nevada DMV Department Director Bruce Breslow said. “The unique red plate will be easily recognized by the public and law enforcement and will be used only for licensed autonomous test vehicles. When there comes a time that vehicle manufactures market autonomous vehicles to the public, that infinity symbol will appear on a green license plate.”

    Though Google was the first company to file for the new license, The Nevada DMV stated that some auto manufacturers have indicated an intrest in filing for the license as well. Those companies should start preparing now: the application for an autonomous vehicle testing license has stringent requirements. In addition to normal vehicle licensing requirements and a few fees, the Nevada DMV requires requires companies to put up a $1,000,000 cash deposit for every 5 vehicles being tested and submit a complete description of their autonomous technology, documentation detailing a safety plan for testing on public roadways, and a plan for hiring and training operators for the test vehicles.

    Matt Cutts, head of Google’s webspam team, announced the development in a tweet:

    @mattcutts
    Matt Cutts    Nevada issues the first license plate for an autonomous vehicle: http://t.co/ldu67wlT It has an infinity symbol on it! 12 hours ago via Tweet Button ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    Cutts’ tweet was met overwhelmingly positive, geeky humor:

    @groovyPost
    groovyPost.com    @mattcutts #skynet begins? 11 hours ago via Twitter for iPhone ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    @chiropractic
    Michael Dorausch    @mattcutts I’d like to put that “self driving car” sticker on mine, just to see the look on people faces. 12 hours ago via TweetDeck ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    @carlmalamud
    Carl Malamud    @mattcutts get a roving casino license and you could add a slot machine for the !driver to use. 12 hours ago via TweetDeck ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    I know that Carl Malamud was joking in the above tweet, but seeing self-driving Las Vegas taxis with slot machines inside of them is probably something we will see in the not-to-distant future. What do you think? Are you ready to not drive your autonomous vehicle? Leave a comment below and let us know.

    (via ars technica)
    (photo courtesy The Nevada DMV)

  • Self-Driving Cars: Young, City-Dwelling Males Lead The Market

    Self-Driving Cars: Young, City-Dwelling Males Lead The Market

    Google thinks that self-driving cars are inside a decade away, and the technology is so fluid that car owners could simply pay a few grand and have it installed in the time it takes to put in a new stereo. They’ve been talking to automakers in America’s car capital, Detroit. And although Google is the most prominent company pushing the driverless technology (they started getting patents back in December), we’ve seen that they’re not the only ones interested in what could be the future of transportation.

    The benefits of this technology are fairly obvious. Done right, driverless cars could severely decrease the amount of accidents that are caused by some sort of unpredictable action by the driver. Distracted drivers could be distracted without endangering the lives of others. Want to put on makeup, text, or work on that presentation on the way to work? Just plug in your destination, sit back, and let your car take you there. At its best, it would be like a chauffeur or taxi driver who doesn’t ever try to make small talk.

    Some automotive enthusiasts might not be too pleased to have the art of driving taken out of their hands, and there is always a concern about how fail-proof the technology would be when it first launches.

    But according to a new study from J.D. Power and Associates, 20% of car-owners now say that they would ‘definitely” or “probably” buy self-driving technology in their next vehicle. That’s even after they learned about its estimated price tag of around $3,000. Before anyone brought up price, 37% said they were “definitely” or “probably” interested.

    “Consumers are still learning about how autonomous driving technology could be used in their vehicles,” said J.D. Power’s Mike VanNieuwkuyk. “Many owners are skeptical about releasing control of their vehicle and would like to see the technology proved out before they adopt it.”

    Apparently, there is already a prime target for the self-driving car technology – young, city-dwelling males. The highest interest in what J.D Power calls “fully autonomous driving” came from males (25%) who are between 18-37 (30%), living in urban areas (30%). I wonder if that has anything to do with Google’s Taco Bell demo we saw last month:

    Like you would expect, people want the self-driving capabilities for “boring” driving times – like rush hour traffic, going to and from work, and running errands. Most respondents said that they would want the ability to turn it off and drive manually for pleasure, when the mood arose.

    We’re probably not that far away from driverless technology becoming a reality. With multiple companies testing it and some being in talks with automakers, then last hurdle is on the legislative level. States have to approve the self-driving cars for road use. Nevada took the first step last year by legalizing autonomous cars, and earlier this month we heard that the state is in the process of developing regulations for said cars.

    The driverless movement has now spread to California, where a state Senator has proposed similar legislation. Other states like Hawaii, Florida, and Oklahoma are also currently considering self-driving car legislation.

  • Google Self-Driving Car Makes a Trip to Lake Tahoe

    Google Self-Driving Car Makes a Trip to Lake Tahoe

    In case you misplaced the self-awareness that working at Google will always be cooler than your job, Sebastian Thrun, Google Fellow and Vice President, took a moment to remind you today and uploaded a photo to his Google+ account announcing a successful trip to Lake Tahoe via one of those zany self-driving cars that Google’s been teasing us with.

    He uploaded the following picture of the car’s dashboard with the message, “Just drove to Lake Tahoe in a self driving Lexus. It was amazing. So relaxing. I have done this trip perhaps 100 times but this time it was different. Magical..” Thus far, apart from the video of a blind man test-driving Google’s car, it’s the closest and clearest image we’ve seen (to my knowledge) of what the dashboard of these self-driving cars looks like. Unsurprisingly, it appears to be a digital display up there.

    Google Driverless Car

    So does this count as a company expense because he’s testing out some of Google’s new wares? If so, Lake Tahoe is the officially the best satellite office ever conceived.

    In the 100+ comments that followed Thrun’s post, he updated us on the car’s maneuverability: “Just drove back from Tahoe, and the system was flawless. My wife now prefers it to me driving.”

    He also gave a shout-out to the team of Googler’s who made the car a reality: “Big big cudos to +Chris Urmson and his team for making this happen. This is a transformational experience.”

    Previously, Thrun was featured in a video promotion for a class he offered in which students would learn how to program self-driving cars. The video below shows him behind the wheel of the car, speaking freely into the camera while the car drives him around what looks to be a parking lot.

    Even though Thrun is confident in his abilities to not worry about where the self-driving car is going, it’s still bracing to watch somebody not drive a moving car and it be okay.

    Since rumors of Google’s driverless car have slowly swelled over the past year, Thrun has been the poster boy for the project. Last year at TEDx Brussels, he described how the stunning technology could save countless lives both from waste and death.

    So… Mr. Thrun, how soon is now?

  • Google in Talks With Detroit Automakers Over Self-Driving Car Technology

    The Detroit News, a newspaper in Detroit, is reporting that Google is currently in talks with automakers to bring self-driving car technology to market. Anthony Levandowski, the head of Google’s driverless car project, made a speech at the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) World Congress this week in Detroit. In that speech, Levandowski seemed confident that self-driving technology will be used within a decade, going as far as to say Google might make an time-table announcement for the technology by next year.

    Google began testing its driverless cars in 2010. The company asserts that, since a majority of road accidents are due to human error, the sensors and safety mechanisms on self-driving cars will make roads safer. In a bold demonstration, Google recently had a mostly-blind man operate a driverless car:

    Now it seems Google is confident enough in the technology that all they need is a partner with which to begin manufacturing. Detroit News reporter David Shepardson quotes Levandowski:

    “All options are open. From giving the technology away to licensing it to working with Tier 1s, Tier 2s, working with the OEMs, building a car with them, everything is open and we’re trying to figure out which paths make the most sense,” Levandowski said. “We’re talking to basically every car company to see what their level of excitement is and how do we work with them.”

    If I’m interpreting this correctly, going and purchasing a self-driving upgrade for your car might just be on the horizon. It could be as easy as buying a new car stereo. Of course, Google isn’t the only one entering this market, as other companies rush to be at the forefront of what is sure to be the future of personal transportation. Also, states will now undoubtedly begin debating safety legislation, when what consumers will really need is protection from car DRM that leaves them stranded.

    What do you think? Does the thought of riding shotgun to your car frighten or excite you? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

    (via The Detroit News)

  • Project Glass Engineer Teaches You How To Program Driverless Cars

    Project Glass Engineer Teaches You How To Program Driverless Cars

    Sebastian Thrun is a Google Fellow and VP, a Stanford Professor, and the co-founder fo Udacity.com. He’s also on the Project Glass team, which last week, unveiled the much talked about Google glasses. He was one of the names that signed the initial announcement post for Project Glass on Google+.

    It just so happens that he is also involved with Google’s driverless cars, and actually teaches a class about how to program them.

    “This class, taught by one of the foremost experts in AI, will teach you basic methods in Artificial Intelligence, including: probabilistic inference, computer vision, machine learning, and planning, all with a focus on robotics,” the description says. “Extensive programming examples and assignments will apply these methods in the context of building self-driving cars. You will get a chance to visit, via video, the leading research labs in the field, and meet the scientists and engineers who are building self-driving cars at Stanford and Google.”

    “The instructor will assume solid knowledge of programming, all programming will be in Python. Knowledge of probability and linear algebra will be helpful,” the syllabus says.

    It’s a seven-week course, which includes: basics of probability, gaussians and continuous probability, image processing and machine learning, planning and search, controls, putting it all together and a final exam. This is enough time, according to Thrun’s Udacity site, to learn the basics of all the primary systems involved in programming a robotic car.

    “First of all, this is a fascinating subject,” it says in a FAQ section. “The technologies involved are cutting edge, but the theories behind them are simpler than you might think. In addition to learning the math and science behind these technologies, you will also improve your coding probabilities as you solve the same problems that scientists at places like Google, Stanford, and MIT have been working on for years.”

    With Thrun on the Project Glass team, perhaps there will be a programming for glass class at some point. Hopefully, some tips will be shared at Google I/O at least.

    Oh, and by the way, the class is free.

    Other free classes ad udacity.com include: building a search engine, design of computer programs, web application engineering, programming languages, and applied cryptography.

  • Google Isn’t The Only One With Self-Driving Cars

    Google Isn’t The Only One With Self-Driving Cars

    Google has made a lot of headlines with its self-driving cars. Last week, they put out the following video, showing one of the cars driving a blind man to Taco Bell:

    With that video, Google said its cars had completed over 200,000 miles of safe driving.

    Then over the weekend, Google announced its April Fool’s joke Google Racing (which doesn’t seem all that far fetched). This essentially equated to Google’s self-driving cars being tested for NASCAR, potentially eliminating drivers from the sport. Google co-founder Sergey Brin even got in on the fun:

    “As you might have guessed, Google Racing is an April Fools joke brought to you by Google and NASCAR,” Google said. “And while we won’t be providing self-driving cars to compete in the races, we look forward to working with NASCAR on future projects.”

    The cars themselves are certainly no joke. They’ve already been legalized in Nevada, and California recently introduced similar legislation:

    According to New Scientist, legislation is also being considered in Arizona, Florida, Hawaii and Oklahoma. They put out an interesting article about the phenomenon, referencing some work from others in the same area.

    Check out these videos fo the WIldCat from the Oxford Mobile Robotics Group and the Department of Engineering Science at the University of Oxford:

    Autonomos Labs in Germany has also modified a Volkswagen Passat:

    Here’s a two-year old video from Stanford University, showing off “Shelley”:

    If you take away anything from all of this, it should be that there are others besides Google working to bring driverless cars to society, and that includes politicians. I just hope there is something in all of this legislation that prohibits self-driving giant spider robots (which Google had at its Google I/O event in 2010, by the way). Otherwise, we may all be in trouble:

  • Google Self-Driving Car Takes Blind Man To Taco Bell

    Google Self-Driving Car Takes Blind Man To Taco Bell

    Google uploaded a video of a self-driving car test, showing Steve Mahan, a legally blind man behind the wheel, and stopping at Taco Bell for a burrito.

    Google says in the video description, “We announced our self-driving car project in 2010 to make driving safer, more enjoyable, and more efficient. Having safely completed over 200,000 miles of computer-led driving, we wanted to share one of our favorite moments. Here’s Steve, who joined us for a special drive on a carefully programmed route to experience being behind the wheel in a whole new way. We organized this test as a technical experiment, but we think it’s also a promising look at what autonomous technology may one day deliver if rigorous technology and safety standards can be met.”

    “95% of my vision is gone. I’m well past legally blind,” says Mahan in the video. “You lose your timing in life. Everything takes you much longer. There are some places that you cannot go. There are some things that you cannot do. Where this would change my life is to give me the independence and the flexibility to go to the places I both want to go and need to go when I need to do those things.”

    At the end of the video, it says it was produced in partnership with Morgan Hill Police Department and Santa Clara Valley Blind Center San Jose, CA.

    As reported earlier this month, Google’s driverless cars have inspired new legislation in California, similar to legislation introduced last year in Nevada, which legalized autonomous cars, clearing the way for Google’s program. It’s actually kind of hard to believe this program has already gotten so far, but there’s no telling how far it will actually go, if enough legislation gets passed in other states, and eventually countries.

    I have a feeling we’ll be seeing Google put out a lot more videos similar in nature to the one above, to promote the company’s efforts.

  • Google’s Self Driving Car Involved in Accident

    Google’s Self Driving Car Involved in Accident

    Car blog Jalopnik broke a story about one of Google’s self-driving cars being involved in a fender bender with a Prius.

    Justin Hyde writes, “Sent in by a Jalopnik tipster, the photos were snapped earlier this week near Google’s Mountain View, Calif., headquarters. The Prius — recognizable as a Google self-driving prototype from the roof equipment that’s smaller than a typical Google Streetview image collector — appears to have rear-ended another Prius.”

    If you’ve not read up much on Google’s self-driving cars, they were first announced last year. Here’s a snippet from the announcement:

    Our automated cars use video cameras, radar sensors and a laser range finder to “see” other traffic, as well as detailed maps (which we collect using manually driven vehicles) to navigate the road ahead. This is all made possible by Google’s data centers, which can process the enormous amounts of information gathered by our cars when mapping their terrain.

    To develop this technology, we gathered some of the very best engineers from the DARPA Challenges, a series of autonomous vehicle races organized by the U.S. Government. Chris Urmson was the technical team leader of the CMU team that won the 2007 Urban Challenge. Mike Montemerlo was the software lead for the Stanford team that won the 2005 Grand Challenge. Also on the team is Anthony Levandowski, who built the world’s first autonomous motorcycle that participated in a DARPA Grand Challenge, and who also built a modified Prius that delivered pizza without a person inside. The work of these and other engineers on the team is on display in the National Museum of American History.

    Here’s video of them in action from Search Engine Land’s YouTube channel:

    This year, Nevada made it legal for the cars to operate in the state. According to Jalopnik, the cars have been “racking up hundreds of thousands of miles in California.”

    Business Insider obtained a statement from Google about the accident: “Safety is our top priority. One of our goals is to prevent fender-benders like this one, which occurred while a person was manually driving the car.”

    Ok, so it’s a human error. Allegedly. Computers never have errors though right?

    Are these cars a good idea?

    Oh by the way, robots are getting smarter, and Google has been known to rent out giant robot spiders:

  • Google Lobbying Plus One: Nevada Legalizes Autonomous Cars

    Google Lobbying Plus One: Nevada Legalizes Autonomous Cars

    In case you’re still looking for futuristic flying cars, you may want to rest your gaze on the state of Nevada, thanks to some lobbying by Google. The state of Nevada has just passed legislation allowing the Nevada Department of Transportation to create rules and regulations governing the use of driverless automobiles. While the new law, Assembly Bill No. 511 (PDF), doesn’t necessarily make autonomous cars legal, the fact is, the legal groundwork concerning the operation of these vehicles will now take shape, courtesy of the state of Nevada.

    WebProNews previously discussed Google’s participation in the process, which saw Google hire a Las Vegas-based lobbyist to promote Assembly Bill 511. Clearly, the lobbying was successful, although the details of what methods were used are scarce, although, it wouldn’t be surprising if some Nevada officials were having the time of their lives in Vegas, all on Google’s dime. Greasing the wheels, and all that.

    As for the legislation itself, Forbes quotes Ryan Calo, a Stanford professor who says the legislation is a big step towards autonomous vehicular operation:

    The law charges the Nevada DOT with setting safety and performance standards and requires it to designate areas where driverless cars may be tested.

    While this is a long way towards the flying cars of the future, it’s refreshing to see the future embraced on such a practical level. The new law also makes it hard not to watch the end of Back to the Future and actually have some hope renewed.


    Granted, Google’s advances in the driverless vehicular operation are a long, long way from Dr. Emmett Brown’s creation, but this is still a step in the right direction. Who knows? If Google masters autonomous driving, maybe they’ll turn their attention to cars that can fly. From the looks of it, Google’s doing rather well with the driverless car thing, so maybe it is time to expand those horizons:


    Concerning Nevada’s new law, something just occurred to me: Will driverless police cars be tasked with enforcement if driverless civilian vehicles go to fast? Food for thought.

  • Google “Not Betting the Farm” on Self-Driving Cars

    Google “Not Betting the Farm” on Self-Driving Cars

    Google co-founder and CEO Larry Page spoke to investors, and aimed to set their minds at ease with regards to the company’s spending habits.

    The company’s stock has not been doing so great since Page took over as CEO, with investors worrying that Google is spending too much on things that might not pay off. According to Mercury News, Google’s stock has dropped nearly as much as $100 per share since the transition in leadership.

    Page highlighted the company’s success with Android, Chrome, and Display Advertising. He reportedly put up a picture of Google’s famous self-driving cars, saying shareholders shouldn’t read press reports about things like that and assume a large amount of the company’s resources are being poured into them.

    He’s quoted as saying, “It’s much more interesting [for the media and people outside of the company] — what is the latest crazy thing that Google did. It tends to be like three people in the company, keep that in mind. We are not betting the farm on a lot of those things. That’s not what we are doing.”

    Page stressed that the company is still focusing on search and advertising, Google’s real breadwinners. “We don’t want to choke innovation,” he added. “We want to make sure we have a lot of things going on at the company that are maybe speculative…we spend the vast majority of our resources on our core businesses, which are search and advertising. … That’s our core focus.”

    In October, Google announced:

    So we have developed technology for cars that can drive themselves. Our automated cars, manned by trained operators, just drove from our Mountain View campus to our Santa Monica office and on to Hollywood Boulevard. They’ve driven down Lombard Street, crossed the Golden Gate bridge, navigated the Pacific Coast Highway, and even made it all the way around Lake Tahoe. All in all, our self-driving cars have logged over 140,000 miles. We think this is a first in robotics research.

    Our automated cars use video cameras, radar sensors and a laser range finder to “see” other traffic, as well as detailed maps (which we collect using manually driven vehicles) to navigate the road ahead. This is all made possible by Google’s data centers, which can process the enormous amounts of information gathered by our cars when mapping their terrain.

    To develop this technology, we gathered some of the very best engineers from the DARPA Challenges, a series of autonomous vehicle races organized by the U.S. Government. Chris Urmson was the technical team leader of the CMU team that won the 2007 Urban Challenge. Mike Montemerlo was the software lead for the Stanford team that won the 2005 Grand Challenge. Also on the team is Anthony Levandowski, who built the world’s first autonomous motorcycle that participated in a DARPA Grand Challenge, and who also built a modified Prius that delivered pizza without a person inside. The work of these and other engineers on the team is on display in the National Museum of American History.

    This followed a lot of media criticism about Google’s continued ability to innovate, and numerous reports of top engineers choosing Facebook as an employer over Google.

    As recently as last month, Google was found to be “quietly lobbying” for proposed legislation in Nevada that would legalize self-driving cars on public roads. According to the New York Times, Google had hired a Las Vegas-based lobbyist to promote the legislation, which would allow the licensing and operation of the cars while also allowing texting behind the wheel of a self-driving car. 

    Self-driving cars aside, Google has recently unveiled some other ambitious endeavors, not the least of which being Google Wallet – the company’s vision for mobile payments. At Google I/O, the company’s developer conference held last month, the company discussed Android @ Home and the Open Accessory Projects, which would see everyday appliances getting integrated with the company’s mobile operating system. Google also unveiled Google Music, and the new Chromebooks, based on its innovative operating system strategy – Chrome OS.

    This week, Google officially launched Google Offers, which is a little more in line with the more traditional money makers like search and advertising. Then of course there’s the +1 button, which is even more directly tied to search and advertising.

  • Google Lobbies for Self-Driving Car Legality in Nevada

    Google Lobbies for Self-Driving Car Legality in Nevada

    Google’s once secret automated vehicle research and testing is now looking towards the next step: legality.  Well, in one state at least.

    The New York Times is reporting that Google is “quietly lobbying” for proposed legislation in the great state of Nevada to legalize self-driving cars on public roads.

    Back in the fall of 2010, Google announced that they were in fact developing the technology for automated driving, and that they had already been testing the cars with great results.  Google said that they has test-driven the robotic overlords self-driving cars more than 140,000 miles in California, 1,000 of those being driven entirely autonomously.

    A couple months ago we got some video of the cars in action, signalling that the future is upon us.  Slow down! You’re driving like a maniac, bot!

    According to the NYT, Google hired a Las Vegas-based lobbyist to promote the legislation in Nevada.  One piece of legislation allows the licensing and operation of the autonomous cars and another would allow texting behind the wheel of a self-driving car.  You know some lawmaker’s daughter in Nevada made them put that one in there.

    The self-driving cars could have great benefits, like safety, fuel efficiency and job creation.  Unfortunately, they could also aid in the transportation of our robot masters during the robot uprising.

    But lower gas costs sound nice.

    No word on why Google is looking to Nevada to break this issue.  There is also no word on whether inebriated gamblers leaving casinos could get behind the wheel of an automated car.  I see no correlation.