Drivers are more likely to engage in non-driving activities, such as checking their phones or eating a sandwich, when using partial automation systems, with some easily skirting rules set to limit distractions, new research showed on Tuesday.
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducted month-long studies with two such systems — Tesla’s Autopilot and Volvo’s Pilot Assist — to examine driver behavior when the technology was in use and how it evolved over time.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
While launching and commercializing driverless taxis have been tougher than expected, major automakers are in a race to deploy technology that partially automates routine driving tasks to make it easier and safer for drivers, and generate revenue for the companies.
The rush has sparked concerns and litigation around the dangers of driver distraction and crashes involving such technology.
The studies show better safeguards are needed to ensure attentive driving, IIHS said in the report.
CONTEXT
Partial automation — a level of “advanced driver assistance systems” — uses cameras, sensors and software to regulate the speed of the car based on other vehicles on the road and keep it in the center of the lane. Some enable lane changing automatically or when prompted.
Drivers, however, are required to continuously monitor the road and be ready to take over at any time, with most systems needing them to keep their hands on the wheel.
KEY QUOTES
“These results are a good reminder of the way people learn,” said IIHS President David Harkey. “If you train them to think that paying attention means nudging the steering wheel every few seconds, then that’s exactly what they’ll do.”
“In both these studies, drivers adapted their behavior to engage in distracting activities,” Harkey said. “This demonstrates why partial automation systems need more robust safeguards to prevent misuse.”
BY THE NUMBERS
The study with Tesla’s Autopilot used 14 people who drove over 12,000 miles (19,300 km) with the system, triggering 3,858 attention-related warnings. On average, drivers responded in about three seconds, usually by nudging the steering wheel, mostly preventing an escalation.
The study with Volvo’s Pilot Assist had 29 volunteers who were found to be distracted for 30% of the time while using the system — “exceedingly high” according to the authors.
—Abhirup Roy, Reuters
Login to add comment
Other posts in this group
If you’ve followed Apple for any length of time, you’ve no doubt come across the notion that the company doesn’t rush into adopting cutting-
Every now and then, you run into a tool that truly wows you.
It’s rare—especially nowadays, when everyone and their cousin is coming out with overhyped AI-centric codswallop tha
Tesla released its quarterly earnings report on Tuesday, its first since the company’s chief executive, Elon Musk, took up residence in the Trump White House and immediately began trying to fire f
There’s never a dull day in the world of weight-loss medication. This week brought new restrictions on compounded GLP-1 medication, the cheaper, copycat versions of brand-name drugs that tel
In December 2023, I wrote an article exploring Apple CEO Tim Cook’s most likely successors, because t
“Meta profits, kids pay the price,” was the message delivered by dozens of grieving families at the doors of Meta’s Manhattan office on Thursday.
Forty-five families traveled from
The world’s auto industry is getting a shake-up from Chinese automakers that
