Self-Driving Cars: Where Innovation Meets the Road

Shah Akther

Computer engineering

City College of New York

Introduction

What is a self-driving car?

● It is as it sounds: a car that can drive itself without requiring the presence of a human. This car is also known as an autonomous vehicles in short (AVs). They use smart technology like artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and lastly artificial sensors. They are influenced by three primary factors, which are

○ Safety of the passengers in the car reduces human errors that cause accidents.

○ Efficiency helps improve the traffic flow (e.g.,adjust the speed and the route, reducing congestion and fuel).

○ Accessibility increases the mobility for people unable to drive (ex.disabled, elderly, ora person without a driver’s license).

Interesting?

Fig. 1. Regular car vs self-driving car (source: Harvard.edu)

History

The idea of self-driving cars goes back all the way to 1925 when a guy named Francis Houdina modified a 1926 Chandler car and named it The American Wonder. It had an antenna on the top, and a car driving behind it controlled it remotely using a wireless connection. Later on, the loose connection in the steering led to the car losing connection and ended up in an accident with another car. Even though it wasn’t really an autonomous car, it all started from here. Some people believe that there were successful tests after that, but it does not have any proper documentation to prove it. By offering a $1 million reward for the creation of completely autonomous cars, the DARPA Grand Challenge in 2004 greatly advanced the technology and brought to light both the difficulties and notable advancements in real-world use.

Fig. 2. The American wonder (source: Autonomous Vehicles, Ethics of Progress April, 2019

Grand challenges includes

● 2004: First major AV test; no vehicles finished.

● 2005: Five vehicles completed the course; demonstrated viability.

● 2007: Six teams completed a 60-mile urban course, navigating urban traffic laws.

2015: Launch of Mcity in Michigan, a dedicated AV testing facility to research safety, efficiency, and commercial viability of AVs.

The SAE

Based on the degree of human intervention, the u.s. National highway traffic safety Administration (NHTSA) uses a six level classification system created by Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)

Level 0 NO Automotion, the driver is present in the car.

Level 1 The driver gets basic help, like the cruise control, but the driver does most of the tasks.

Level 2 The driver gets some help with features like the cruise control, and lane keeping work, it still requires the driver to be 100% alert.

Level 3 Conditional automation, under specific circumstances, the vehicle can operate on its own, but the driver must be prepared to take over.

Level 4 High level of automation, where in many circumstances, the car can operate entirely on its own without the driver’s input.

Level 5 Complete automation, whether a driver is present or not, the vehicle drives itself everywhere.Parts of the car

Fig. 3. Parts of the self driving car (source: The Sungkyun times)Key words

● Gps( global positioning system)- To offer more precise positioning than GPS alone, satellites are used together with data from gyroscopes, altimeters, and tachometers.

● Ultrasonic sensors- it detect curbs and other vehicles when parking the car.

● Odometry sensors- It complement and improves GPS information.

● Central computer- A central computer analyzes the data from all the sensors and controls the brakes, accelerator, and steering. Its software needs to be aware of both official and common traffic laws.

● Lidar (light detection and ranging)- Read the lights to determine the distance between cars, detect the edges of the road, and identify the lane markings.

● Video camera- monitor the vehicle’s surroundings (ex. Road signs, traffic lights and hazards).

● Radar sensors- It helps monitor the position of nearby vehicles.Saving Lives by using Automation

Current Statistics

● About 42,795 people have died in vehicles crashes in 2022.

● About 94% of crashes were due to human errors.

The impact of self-driving cars

● It can reduce the crushes by 90%, which will save thousands of lives annually.

● It can also save about $190 billion each year for any crash-related costs.Pros and Cons

Pros

● Less accidents

● Better traffic

● Free up people’s time

● Increase roadway capacity (reducing the distance between cars)

Cons

● Drivers will lose their jobs

● Chance of hacking

● Expensive technology

● Failure of a sensor can cause an accident

Conclusion

Redefining Mobility:

● By putting safety, effectiveness, and accessibility first, self-driving cars (AVs) have the potential to completely change the way we travel from one place to another.

Difficulties that need to be fixed:

● addressing issues with technology, like sensor dependability.

● safeguarding data privacy and cybersecurity.

Way to the future:

● Even though there are still challenges that need to be addressed and fixed, the self-driving car has the potential to save lives and change the way our city works today and, lastly, make our lives more convenient. Because of these factors, it holds great promise for future engineers and the future.References

Articles

● https://css.umich.edu/publications/factsheets/mobility/autonomous-vehicles-factsheet

● https://www.researchgate.net/profile/George-Heinzelman/publication/335505074_Aut

onomous_Vehicles_Ethics_of_Progress/links/5d696d7c92851c853880526b/Autonom

ous-Vehicles-Ethics-of-Progress.pdf

● https://news.mit.edu/2023/autonomous-vehicles-carbon-emissions-0113

● https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-evolving-safety-and-policy-challenges-of-self-

driving-cars/

Pictures

● https://skt.skku.edu/news/articleView.html?idxno=127

● Self-driving Cars: The technology, risks and possibilities – Science in the News