General Discussion

[TheFlyingGeneral]

Link

Following on from the Google test a while back, Volvo have tested out a convoy of self drive cars. Looks like a case of follow the leader where the cars were behind another being driven by a person, but after Google tested the idea and Volvo showing it off to good effect here, anyone intrigued, interested or concerned? Willing to go for it yourself? I would be as long as I wasn't sat behind the wheel. Seeing the wheel move on its own would worry me slightly.

As a separate thought, Toyota provided Google's test car and recently had an issue where their cars wouldn't brake. Volvo are testing it here and their cars are built like tanks. I know which one I'd prefer to be a passenger in.

[Warren_Jeeves]

Wasn't all this done years ago?

Sorry, just looked at the link, first public test.

[dannyjt]

Self drive cars are evil

[TheFlyingGeneral]

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dannyjt wrote:
Self drive cars are evil

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Really? Because I heard Defra want to start a cull, so I thought you'd be in support of the cars. You know they could probably program them so that if there's a Phesant/SomeOtherAnimal in the road it executes a flip to avoid it. Would that make them less evil?

[dannyjt]

You missed my point which was that wheels=Evil.

[Warren_Jeeves]

It could be pretty useful really.........you could drop yourself off at the pub and then send the car off to pick your wife up from work when she's working late shifts then if she got drunk at work she could send it to go and pick the kids up from Herbert's place. Finally when you are completely wasted at 5am you could call it up to take to you home and then you could wake the kids up, tell them to get ready for school and program the car to take them there for 9am while you get yourself off to bed in a drunken mess.

I like.

[fenian]

This tech is nothing to do with google, and older than googles tech.

I like it.

You can get versions of it already in their cars, they will break if a pedestrian walks out, they will brake hard enough not to hit the car infront but soft enough so the person behind you does not hit you.

I prefer this tech to googles, its more of an aid.

But would we all follow someone off a cliff?

[TheFlyingGeneral]

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dannyjt wrote:

You missed my point which was that wheels=Evil.

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Even Wagon wheels?

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fenian wrote:

I prefer this tech to googles, its more of an aid. But would we all follow someone off a cliff?.

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Which was why i preferred Googles, that seemed more of a "Computer takes driving decisions away from pesky fallable human". The follow the leader approach would be useful on motorways and other main roads for traffic control, but for the majority of people's driving i can't see it being of much use.

[dannyjt]

Especially wagon wheels.

Think of it like this. You are sat at a train station platform. It's one of those proper seats that you can sit down on. Suddenly out of the corner of your eye you see a car (of whatever type you want, perhaps even a Ford Fiesta) wandering over to your seat and going under it. Now are you think "Blimey that was a cute specimen os the motor variety" or are you thinking "That thing is definitely going to start crashing into my heels any second now".

[TheFlyingGeneral]

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dannyjt wrote:

Especially wagon wheels.

Think of it like this. You are sat at a train station platform. It's one of those proper seats that you can sit down on. Suddenly out of the corner of your eye you see a car (of whatever type you want, perhaps even a Ford Fiesta) wandering over to your seat and going under it. Now are you think "Blimey that was a cute specimen os the motor variety" or are you thinking "That thing is definitely going to start crashing into my heels any second now".

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But what does that have to do with wagon wheels? They wouldn't crash into your heels. And the marshmallow is sooo cute. Also if Ford Fiestas were so evil they wouldn't be one of the most popular cars in the country. If it did start crashing into my heels i'd take the young urchin who was at the controls by the ear and throw him towards the crocodile under the seat next to mine. Unless it was controlled by Microsoft Bing technology. There'll do whatever the heck they want and proclaim about how much different they're doing to Google while they're doing it as well.