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Blog Waymo Invites Consumers to ‘See Through the Eyes’ of a Driverless Car

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The idea of a car navigating public roads without the presence of a human driver still makes most people uneasy. Even strong advocates of the technology believe there’s still work to be done to prove autonomous cars are safe in all driving conditions.

While the technology is obviously a major challenge, building trust among consumers will also be a major focus for companies working in the space.

Alphabet’s self-driving arm Waymo is already taking on that public relations challenge. The company released today a video that offers a 360-degree view of a ride in one of its driverless Chrysler Pacifica vans, as well as some explanation on how the technology works.

According to the video description:

Waymo began as the Google self-driving car project in 2009. Today, we have the world’s only fleet of fully self-driving cars on public roads. Step into our 360° video and take control of the camera to see through the “eyes” of our car.

[/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8R148hFxPw” video_title=”1″][vc_column_text]Waymo is already operating a fully driverless service in Phoenix, Ariz., allowing people to apply to be part of an “early rider program.” The company also recently said it ordered “thousands” of Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans to scale a driverless ride-hailing service.

Another hurdle for companies developing driverless technology is government regulation, but there have been some positive developments on that front. For instance, California’s Department of Motor Vehicles passed regulations this week that would allow driverless cars to operate on roads as early as April. The regulations require a remote human operator – who could be miles away – to monitor the vehicle as a fallback.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

 
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It looks impressive and certainly makes a strong case for the need for LIDAR. If this is actually operating in Phoenix, then it seems they are moving ahead of Tesla. Tesla has not publicly demonstrated anything close to this yet. My S certainly can't do this but I wish it could.

I would think local roads are much more challenging than freeway driving. If it can do local roads I suspect it can do freeways too.
 
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Admittedly being nit-picky due to this being their promotional video, but is the distance to the stop line intended to be so great? Glad the intersection doesn't have in-lane vehicle detection...


waymo.PNG
 
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How must does Waymo's system cost per car per year?

What it really costs to turn a car into a self-driving vehicle

Most experts would say about $8,000-$10,000 but when you ask them to list the cost details, it's about $250,000 option and you also need to add the price of the car on top of that so it's about $300,000 total in 2017 price.

That's a lot to pay but some already pay a full $250,000 for a Roadster so $300,000 should be affordable for them :)

For a ridesharing service, it's a high initial investment but they save on the labor for the rest of the life of the car and it can work 24/7 overtime to recuperate the cost.
 
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It may be easiest but it's also deadliest due to high speed.

Waymo is able to brake timely from a speed of 35 MPH to avoid a fatal collision but can it do the same at 90 MPH?

Yes, Waymo has no issues with this. They are not using Koala cars anymore. They do actual driving of real vehicles in all situations and have demonstrated that. All of which is more than Tesla.

Waymo is testing their FSD in AZ and travels on highways as part of that service (with no issues though they probably don't go 90mph).

EDIT: Read Waymo's CA report. It lists the roads and includes several highway disengagements. It is beyond cavil to say Waymo is somehow unable to do highway when it is far more proficient than anyone save Cruise at EVERYTHING.

EDIT EDIT: Waymo has so few disengagements that if they had a FSD for my Tesla, in one year of driving I'd have, on average, 1 disengagement (maybe 2). Annually.
 
It has vast testing ground(s) so there's no reason that it cannot withhold a demonstration that it could avoid the high-speed fatal Florida Autopilot accident scenario.

If it cannot, then there's no need to demonstrate!

I'm coming to the conclusion that there is no need for further "conversation" as I have provided proof that you are wrong and yet you continue to speculate.

Waymo has nothing to prove. The Earth is not flat. Its not up for debate, its up to you to prove the earth is flat (i.e Waymo can't do highway). I've already proven they can, do and do it better than anyone else (if you believe facts and data, if you don't, I suggest we never communicate).