A worse timing could you look at BMW probably can not imagine: Just hours before the Munich carmaker with a lot of effort on Friday afternoon its cooperation with the chip giant Intel and the Israeli company Mobileye presented for the construction of self-propelled cars, is the message from an accident in the US all the technology in question.
Although accident in Florida no BMW driver, but the owner of a Tesla, while he was traveling in the so-called autopilot mode. But the accident – because experts are certain – throws the whole industry on the subject of autonomous driving back
The accident occurred already on May 7, but. known it was only in the night of Friday, because now the American traffic safety Administration NHTSA has launched investigations. Joshua Brown, a 45-year-old man from Ohio, was with his Tesla Model S on Hwy 27 near the town of Williston road and had the so-called autopilot activated.
it should hold independently the distance to the preceding vehicle cars of Tesla, it accelerates, brakes, keeps track and should stop automatically especially in case of obstacles. Still, that did not work. As a truck at an intersection before Browns Tesla abbog left, all failed sensors and cameras. The Tesla raced into the trailer. Brown did not survive.
“technology is not ready for serial production”
“The accident is very sad “said BMW boss Harald Krüger, leaving clear criticism of colleagues of Tesla through sound. “We need the next few years yet. Today the technology for autonomous driving are not yet ready for mass production.” At BMW therefore wants to take another five years, until 2021 to the model iNext at least go so autonomously on highways that the driver does not constantly have to watch the road.
In certain limited areas, such as individual cities, the car will even be able to move completely without drivers. Who already now promises that you can do other things while driving that puts its customers in high risk, should be called the well. “At BMW, safety is paramount,” Kruger said.
When asked must feel comfortable Tesla founder and boss Elon Musk, whose autopilot now probably has to answer the first fatal accident. Musk said the bereaved at night via short message service Twitter condolences, Tesla published a blog entry in which the causes of the crash will be analyzed.
Schlichter event of a fatal error
and the reasons seem strange to the profane, even experts had actually kept the technology for significantly more sophisticated. Apparently, Tesla cameras did not recognize the white truck against the background of white cloudy sky. But why beat the radar sensors no alarm? The work with infrared, missing color contrasts they should not interfere. Musk gave a sobering statement via Twitter: “Radar hides what looks like an overhead sign, to avoid false stunts.”
The Tesla autopilot so do not differ in the worst case a truck trailer of a gantry. The problem seems to be that there is a relatively large space between the road and the trailer, the radar but not being able to determine whether the Tesla to pass through under the object. A shockingly simple reason for an error with fatal consequences.
expert Stefan Bratzel from the Center of Automotive Management (CAM) provides implications for the entire sector, which currently two main trends followed: the development of electric vehicles and of autonomous driving. “Each tragic accident is a setback for as a new technology,” said Bratzel.
The driver is to be only “supported”
especially the trust of motorists and owners take significant damage. “The accident shows that the technology is not 100 percent sure – and it never will be,” said Bratzel. Nevertheless, the expert does not believe that such accidents will lead to the technology of autonomous driving is completely stopped. But they delayed.
Bratzel compares the Tesla accident involving a plane crash due to technical reasons. could completely rule to him never, but we must learn from it. Nevertheless, of course, a certain degree of security must be there before you can even use the technology in traffic. “People in cars may not be a guinea pig,” he says. But after all, Tesla had received for the autopilot function authorization -. In Europe
This is confirmed by a Tesla spokeswoman. It also points out that it does not handle to the autopilot to a function of autonomous driving, but the driver should be only “supported”. There is explicit evidence that you always keep your hands on the steering wheel and at any time must be able to intervene. It also handle a beta version of the autopilot, which means in the language of software developers that a program is not yet mature.
Federal Government in contact with US authorities
However, there was in Europe in the approval of an obligation, which is why the assistant to change lanes in the US is a little different – so it is not the world around the same software. While it is sufficient in autopilot mode in the United States to set the indicator for the vehicle to automatically track changes, one must also touch the steering wheel in Germany and the rest of Europe. At the accident this difference
would have probably not changed. On the part of the federal government, it means you currently do not yet know what caused the accident. “First, the need to be clarified before we draw conclusions,” says a spokesman. “We stand by the US authorities in contact.” On basic course, the automated driving, so that supported by Assistant driving cars advancing in Germany, but the misfortune not altered.
had in an initiative even joined a number of MPs and developed a concept of how to make Germany the leading market for self-propelled cars. Also Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) continues to rely on automated driving.
Crucial question of liability
A change the current legal situation had Dobrindt already been initiated, because so far are cars where the driver does not have to intervene in all driving situations actively into traffic, prohibited in Germany. . “. However, we want this technology to the road this we drive the opening of international agreements ahead,” said Dobrindt
However, to apply the following principle: The systems need to be overridden and turned off by the driver. The driver continues to bear the responsibility. However, the Government plans go much further. The Department of Transportation is working on further amendments to the Vienna Convention on road traffic. The definition of a driver should be enhanced so that the human computer will in future be treated.
The new framework will also have a huge impact on the insurance industry. After all, the key question is: Who is liable in the event of an accident with a vehicle which is controlled by automated systems and in which the person in the situation in question did not have a hand in: the manufacturer of the car, the assistance system, or at the driver? Daimler research chief Thomas Weber had even hinted that the manufacturer since hardly could evade responsibility.
Harakiri actions on motorways
on the insurer in any case come to a new situation, nevertheless stands as an industry giant such as Munich Re to advance autonomous driving. “This technology can save the lives of thousands of people who lost each year because of accidents due to human error,” says Mike Scrudato, head of mobility of Munich Re in the US. “Even the currently available wizards, for example, when braking, a substantial drop from accidents result.”
But technology just too enticing not to place undue reliance on them – or even to make nonsense with her. Shortly after the start of the autopilot had Tesla limit the function because more and more video appeared on the Internet, showed the drivers who tried the possibilities of the assistance system to exhaust.
This leads to Harakiri actions on motorways at high speeds. You have the software then reprogrammed to the autopilot does not work on single-lane roads without separation between the two directions of travel, says the spokeswoman. In addition, one could go only supported within the speed limits.
The computer learns
Tesla is by no means the only manufacturer whose cars cause accidents computerized. Even Google has already experienced clashes with its self-driving cars – but they went for the significantly lower rate of lightly. Most other manufacturers remain with their autonomous vehicles so far mainly on test tracks. Engineers other carmaker had Tesla criticized at the beginning of the introduction of the automatic pilot, because you bring a non-sophisticated technology on the market, weighing the drivers in the false security that they functioned already.
If you Tesla also sets out that the system is getting better, the longer one is now on the go. To learn the computer, always better to deal with different traffic situations. Already improve the autopilot, the safety on the road, arguing the US manufacturer: The first fatal accident had happened after nearly 210 million kilometers with the autopilot
Statistically ereigne in the US after good 151 million kilometers a deadly accident, when man controls himself. Even expert Bratzel is confident: “In sum autonomous driving will save many lives.” Not even the first fatal accident change anything.
The next step is connected cars
To the number of to reduce accidents in autonomous driving cars even more, some experts also believe in the combination of different techniques. Not only the cars are seen with sensors and cameras their environment, they should also communicate with the also smart infrastructure and other vehicles.
Networking leads to additional Security is Frank Fitzek, head of telecom Endowed Chair of communication networks at TU Dresden, confident. “When autonomous driving you will always reach their limits. The respective cars are only as good as the cameras, radar and sensors, with which they are equipped,” he says.
But for Fitzek are so equipped cars a temporary solution. “The next step is connected cars, vehicles that communicate directly and through a network with each other. They will make a decisive contribution that the number of accidents drops significantly.” Towards these vehicles that drive people to 99.99 percent accidents through the traffic, it will “still rumbling and give many a problem,” said Fitzek. “But it may not have been the beginning of development of absolute perfection of the art and no situations in which they failed to be expected.”
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