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12/22/2024 06:09:43 pm

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Google's Driverless Car Won't be on the Road Just Yet

Ever wanted to just relax in the backseat of your car without anyone driving your car?

Google's driverless car has been capturing the attention of a lot of people but, sadly, the car won't enter service for a few more years.

A few weeks ago, the U.S. Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) announced it won't approve Google's self-driving car if the vehicle remains completely independent. DMV made it clear they want drivers to still be responsible in self-driving cars.

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Google has had to tweak a few features in its driverless car to comply with the DMV's demand. Google now says its vehicle can navigate with minimal engagement from a driver but isn't fully independent of the driver.

The electric car is said to be a "moonshot" project as it has no steering wheel, brakes or gears. It runs on its own, reads road signs, understands traffic situations, changes lanes and executes emergency stops.

The car literally has a face and a nose but these features have functions. The eyes are its headlights while the nose is a sensor and radar. The car navigates roads using a combination of video cameras, lasers, GPS and detailed 3D maps.

Google's driverless car is being updated every now and then to make for a smoother ride, said Chris Urmson, the man leading the self-driving car team.

Urmson added the driverless car can really be a breakthrough in road safety since it can reduce the number of deaths from car accidents by at least 50 percent.

The driverless car has driven safely for more than 700 miles. There were, however, technical and software glitches encountered during the testing that still need to be fixed.

Parking is one of the main issues against the driverless car. The car also needs to be tested in multi-level parking areas.

Another glitch is that the car stops whenever there's a stop sign on its computer map even if there isn't a stop sign in the real world. The car also doesn't work flawlessly in areas with intersections.

The car hasn't been tested in severe weather such as snow or rain. The last concern for the self-driving car is its inability to differentiate a pedestrian from a police officer.

Urmson and his team said they're working on the problems plaguing the car and hope to launch the vehicle in five years' time.

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