Summary

Original source:
http://economist.com/science/displaystory.cfm?story_id=4316021

Details

• The car has automatic cruise control of the sort fitted to many expensive cars such as Jaguars and BMWs.
• These use either radar or infrared beams fitted to the front of the car to measure the distance to the car in front.
• To circumvent this problem, the new car uses lidar---short for "light detection and ranging"---a measuring technology similar to radar but which uses laser beams rather than radio waves to measure distance and determine the speed of other vehicles.
• As light waves have shorter wavelengths than radio waves, the technology works at shorter distances and lower speeds.
• Almost two million accidents a year worldwide are thought to be caused by drivers inadvertently changing lanes, frequently caused by drowsiness.
• These systems use camera images or near-range radar to determine the direction and position of the vehicle in relation to lane markings.
• When the system recognises that a lane departure is imminent, it bleeps or flashes to alert the driver.
• A camera mounted on the windscreen behind the rear-view mirror gives a clear view of the road ahead, picking up the white lines even in poor visibility or where the paint has faded.
• There is a second advantage to using lasers in preference to radar: while they have a similar range, laser sensors have a significantly wider field of vision.
• Together, the camera and laser sensors monitor the white lines and, if the car strays out of its lane, an electronic control unit attached to an electric power-steering unit corrects it.
• The system is unlikely to have a smooth ride into production, however, despite achieving what General Motors says is a very high level of reliability during the development stage.
• For example, self-steering cars are currently illegal in most European countries.

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