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Try Guy by Sergius Barretto: Let go of the wheel
An auto writer gets behind the wheel of a driverless car and finds out if it’s fun, or just plain creepy?
Feasting your eyes on shiny new metal, the excitement of trying out tech, and the simple delight of driving a car all day are job highs for an automobile reviewer. So, it’s ironic that, of late, the job requires me at times to let a computer drive.
Towards zero
My latest experience with autonomous cars was a drive of the ZF Zero, an experimental test bed and something that’s still quite futuristic. The ZF Zero (zero accidents, zero emissions) experimental car is based on a VW Touran MPV and crammed full of cutting-edge tech that can handle automated driving and is impressive. Like, it uses GPS coordinates to warn you of obstacles like road works, where you would need to take control. If you don’t after all the warnings, it brings the car to a controlled halt.
What really caught my attention was the car’s ‘wrong way warning’. This could really help in our country! At the test centre, the engineer pointed me down a no-entry path and no sooner did I signal the turn than the vehicle warned me with an audio signal, a tighter steering feel, vibration of my seatbelt, and a visual on the central display. I turned in anyway—this was a test—and barely a few feet ahead, the software cut the engine’s power.
This high-tech system can also keep the car on the outside edge of the lane and use the hazard and high-beam to warn oncoming traffic. It relies on GPS coordinates, mapping information and a camera to differentiate between right and wrong paths. It’s an impressive system that will prevent mishaps and reduce unintentional one-way entries, and in our case, intentional ones as well.
Taking charge
Are autonomous cars driving in soon? Yes. In fact, autonomous cars with various levels of assistance are already here. But there are still challenges to address, legislation, infrastructure and consumer acceptance being the big ones. Many countries are grappling with the dilemma of testing and legislating laws governing them. Going by Nitin Gadkari’s tweet, India won’t allow them so as to protect drivers’ jobs. Even otherwise, the infrastructure is not there. And then, will drivers let go of the wheel?
It will take a lot of getting used to. I’m okay with a level 3 system: think Will Smith in I, Robot. I’d like the ability to take control. But there are many benefits to full autonomy. Imagine napping while commuting to work and letting the car manage traffic. A crash thanks to a system malfunction is entirely possible, but chances of that happening are low. So, yes, a more comfortable and safer drive experience is arriving. If only we can let go the wheel.
Try Guy is an occasional column where we put a writer through an experience, and ask them to write about it.
Sergius Barretto is the managing editor of Autocar India.
From HT Brunch, July 2, 2022
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