Washington / Palo Alto (dpa) – The driver of a Tesla electric car is the first man, who was killed in an accident in a computer-controlled car. According to Tesla, the driving assistance system did not recognize a truck-trailer crossed the track.
The American traffic supervision NHTSA now checks if the “autopilot” in the crash worked correctly.
The “autopilot” can keep pace, distance and speed, before obstacles slow down or avoid them and automatically parallel parking. Tesla emphasized at the same time reiterates that the software that electric cars do not fundamentally about self-driving cars and drivers should stay organized and their hands on the wheel. However, many videos were published on the Internet, on which is to see that a number of Tesla driver do not comply with these requirements.
The car industry and developer of robotic car technology as Google promise that self-propelled vehicles make transport much safer and reduce the number of deaths drastically. So far only one accident was known, was caused by a controlled via computer car while it remained a small fender bender.
“Neither” autopilot “, yet the driver recognized the white side of the trailer against the background of a bright sky and the brake is not engaged,” Tesla wrote in a blog post late Thursday , The sedan “Model S” is driven under the semi-trailer trailer, while the lower edge have met the windshield. When the vehicle frontal would or bounced from the rear of the truck, a collision safety system in the Tesla model would probably have prevented the driver more serious injuries. The accident already occurred in early May.
The “autopilot” picks among other cameras and radar and ultrasonic sensors back to capture the environment. The Tesla draw while driving on all possible data and transmit them to the Group. This information is used by Tesla used to make the technology better. Driving assistance systems with similar functions are also offered by other automakers.
Tesla also stressed that “autopilot” system is a new technology in the so-called beta, which was parked by default and must be activated consciously. Drivers would explicitly requested the use of the program, not to take the hands off the wheel and to retain control and responsibility over the vehicle.
“” autopilot “all the time is better, but it is not perfect and requires the driver to be vigilant,” Tesla wrote in the blog post now. The accident driver had previously even made videos of his “autopilot” DUTY into the net. On one was to see how the system dodged a truck, the surprising front of the Tesla changed lanes, and thus avoiding a probable collision.
At the same time there was also seen many Internet video, in which drivers system with other things employed when the “autopilot”. One even climbed into the back seat and filmed the empty driver’s seat during a motorway journey from there. To avoid such a thing, the system and check if the driver has controls on the hands. If not sound audible alarms and the car slows.
According to NHTSA concerns the preliminary investigation around 25 000 Tesla “Model S” of the model year 2015. The company of tech billionaire Elon Musk stressed that his car had been more than 130 million miles ( approximately 210 million kilometers) driven with switched “autopilot” function.
In the regular US road there was one death per 94 million miles driven. The NHTSA review only whether the “autopilot” was as expected had worked, said Tesla. The share of the car manufacturer announced after trading hours but after nearly three percent.
In Google there was in this year also the first accident involving a self-propelled car, which was controlled at that time by the computer. One of the cars came in the Google hometown Mountain View at low speed to a bus in the way, there was only a minor fender bender on a wing of the rebuilt SUV.
Link to NHTSA study
Tesla blog entry
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