Self-driving cars are loaded with advanced technology that can sense their environment.
The concept of a driverless car has leapt out of the pages of science fiction with major auto-makers working to make them a reality. So far, driverless cars have logged millions of kilometres in test runs and are steadily becoming a reality despite the many hurdles still to be overcome.
Self-driving cars are loaded with advanced technology like radar, lidar, GPS, cameras, and laser scanners that can sense their environment. The control systems in the car evaluate the sensory information about obstacles, road signs, traffic signals and other cars on the road to chart out a navigable path to the destination. The car’s computers accelerate, cruise at 120 kph, slow down, brake and pass without the human driver even touching the steering wheel or gear shift.
In December 2020, Waymo (formerly known as the Google self-driving car project) became the first service provider to offer driver-less taxi rides to the general public, in a part of Phoenix, Arizona, USA. While Honda has launched its self-driving car in Japan, Mercedes-Benz is in the process of doing so.
Picture Credit : Google