What could... | Page 2 | Vital Football

What could...

I’ve got the lane assist thingy on mine which gently eases me back to the centre of the lane if I drift to the white lines but I think it’s more of a safety thing in the event I should fall asleep as on the third correction the car shakes as though you’re on a rumble strip to wake you up. I don’t think I could ever completely trust it though and certainly can’t see myself comfortable in a driverless car
 
I recall a case in US of A where a driver of a silly giant camper van (or whatever Americans call their ones) was suing the vehicle manufacturers because...wait for it...they failed to explain that cruise control did NOT mean autopilot, and the driver having engaged cruise control had got out of the driver's seat and gone into the rear part of the van presuming it would now be driving itself, and surprise surprise the vehicle soon crashed.
Only over there.
Think it was a winnebago the silly cow got up to make a cup of tea
 
I recall a case in US of A where a driver of a silly giant camper van (or whatever Americans call their ones) was suing the vehicle manufacturers because...wait for it...they failed to explain that cruise control did NOT mean autopilot, and the driver having engaged cruise control had got out of the driver's seat and gone into the rear part of the van presuming it would now be driving itself, and surprise surprise the vehicle soon crashed.
Only over there.
Yep, I've heard that one before. Also the cup of tea thing mentioned by BrisImp.
 
To answer Rob's question, the point of self-driving vehicles is to get rid of taxi drivers, HGV drivers and delivery drivers.

There's a reason Uber has their own - currently useless - driverless programme. Their end-game is to be a driverless taxi firm. Hundreds of billions is currently being gambled on that.

Amazon are in there as well.

Essentialy, it's all about profit.
 
I do like the cruise control on my car. Wouldn't be without it now (although not had a chance to use it since lockdown began...hope it still works!).
Driver assistance is going to get more and more advanced and widespread as each new model comes out.
If the advances all help to reduce or even eliminate driver error, then that can only be a good thing.
Not too sure about no driver at all though...
It would take a vast amount of programming to cover every possible road (and even off road) situation, and could still not cover all actions of other road users.
 
That is true. My worry with this sort of technology is that a) I fail to see why it is necessary and b) driving is inherently an unpredictable activity which any algorithm or combination of algorithms is going to struggle with.

And in fairness to the car, it was excellent for the other 2,200+ miles.

The vast majority of accidents in cars are from human error rather than mechanical failure of a system or component. If driverless cars reduce that accident rate significantly then we can: (sarcasm alert ahead!)
Look forward to significantly reduced insurance premiums! HAHAHHAHAHHAHAHA! As f**king if...
 
Reminds me of the Dave Allen joke (which I haven't been able to find), where he cites that (can't remember numbers and precise wording, but it's the principle that counts) 10% of accidents are caused by people who are drunk. Which means that 90% of accidents are caused by people who are not drunk. So the roads would be safer if all drivers were drunk
 
In searching for the above quote came across this youtube clip from 1993 where he is discussing technology in cars

 
Can anybody answer the question of what the point of self-driving cars is? The only thing I've seen with any relevance was a very slow electric car that delivered a pizza to somebody in America...

A classic example of a solution looking for a problem.

'The internet of things' is another one. Fridges have been able to order food on-line for 20 years. The only problem is that they don't know what you want next, just what you have just eaten, or what has gone out of date because you haven't eaten it. Same thing with turning on the heating when you are due back home, but are stuck in traffic. If it takes 15 minutes to warm up your house, who cares if the heating is on when you get home, or you turn it on when you get home, or have paid 60p extra because the heat to the house at the same time every day and that was 30 minutes before you got home.

Just because we can do something, doesn't mean we should. And it certainly doesn't mean people will be willing to pay for it.

Although maybe the same arguments were made about the Dishwasher and the inside toilet.
 
Turning heating on when you're not there does baffle me as an idea of progress.
Clearly only benefits those giant companies who charge for all that extra heating.

And never had or used a dishwasher.
And don't even understand the fridge comments. My fridge has a door, some shelves and a light and is a bit chilly inside.
It's never been down to Tesco to get the shopping in to my knowledge.
 
Same thing with turning on the heating when you are due back home, but are stuck in traffic. If it takes 15 minutes to warm up your house, who cares if the heating is on when you get home, or you turn it on when you get home, or have paid 60p extra because the heat to the house at the same time every day and that was 30 minutes before you got home.
A conversation I had with my Missus, bless her, several times over the years.
"Let's get Hive. You can turn the heating off if you're going to be late home from work"
"How much does it cost love?"
"About £200"
"You must be joking. You work for British Gas, surely you know that's 4 or 5 months of gas. I'm not going to that fucking late!"
 
A classic example of a solution looking for a problem.

'The internet of things' is another one. Fridges have been able to order food on-line for 20 years. The only problem is that they don't know what you want next, just what you have just eaten, or what has gone out of date because you haven't eaten it. Same thing with turning on the heating when you are due back home, but are stuck in traffic. If it takes 15 minutes to warm up your house, who cares if the heating is on when you get home, or you turn it on when you get home, or have paid 60p extra because the heat to the house at the same time every day and that was 30 minutes before you got home.

Just because we can do something, doesn't mean we should. And it certainly doesn't mean people will be willing to pay for it.

Although maybe the same arguments were made about the Dishwasher and the inside toilet.


Your comments remind me of the old adage, "Why do dogs lick their balls??"
 
I suppose the idea of a self-driving car is that your boss will be able to ask you to work during the commute. ;)

Wait, though, we don't do that anymore, do we?