What if one of the world ’s largest gondola companies separate you that , within five year , you could click a button on your sound and a driverless car would pick you up and take you to your name and address – without any human interaction ?
It voice like the sort of elevated elevator pitch you ’d expect froma would - be Elon Musk , but in fact , it ’s Ford . Like all the other big - shot manufacturers , Ford is working feverishly to develop licit driverless cars that will be part of ride - come fleet by 2021 – not to be confused with ridesharing . ( Exactly how the two will differ is still passably of an unsung , and how you " hail " a in full self-directed entity is beyond me . )
One thing Idoknow is that in reality rag in one feels extremely deadening . I hop in the back of one of the autonomous image Ford is presently developing , and even with the most in advance next - gen engineering there is , autonomous rides are middling much job as common – a very , very good affair for something in which surprise can be venomous .
Jeff Jablansky/Thrillist
Ford’s tech is more advanced than anything else on the road
Ford ’s driverless psychometric test scuff , which looks like a fair ordinary Fusion sedan chair , is retrofit with high - techLiDARhardware and advanced mapping to give up it to work autonomously . Unlike radars and camera , the LiDAR essentially makes a existent - time 3D CAT scan of the terrain , so the automobile can " see " – and learn how to interpret – everythingyoucan see . The spinning " pucks " on the roof do the difficult part , transfer data to in - car computer and feel what ’s in the automobile ’s vicinity .
In other Christian Bible , the car can drive without any lane mark , signage , or other motorcar to follow , which is a phenomenal gradation up fromTesla ’s Autopilot , not to observe every semi - self-directed system presently on the road .
Riding in the back is just like… riding in the back
As impressive as all that applied science is , none of it affects the passenger experience , making this one of the most pleasant taxi rides I ’ve ever taken . From my perch behind the passenger seat , it felt like going for a drive in an ordinary sedan , albeit with an unco good driver . The ride was placid and polished , free of fitfulness or sudden movement by the car .
The Fusion was now and then mystify by stationary objects , like trees that seem to be in its itinerary – a sign that there are still some kinks to work out . Having two of Ford ’s engineers in the front seat while the railcar drive itself was also fairly anticlimactic . To really get a sense of the chill ( if there is one ) , I ’d need to be in a car alone , just like Jared was .
The car is actually TOO careful with potential dangers
Usually , decisions made behind the wheel bank on either a thorough understanding of motor vehicle code , or basic human morals . In the case of the Fusion ’s autonomous software , adhesion to the rules trumps all . The car drive like my grandma – super timidly and politely .
Example : the software was designed to recognize crossover , slow for them , and wait for pedestrians topossiblycross . As we approached the stripy white lines , the Fusion decelerated , noticing a human race on his telephone standing just left of the crossing . For safe ’s sake , the Fusion did n’t budge . Would the mankind get across ? Was he even waiting to cross?After about 30 second , the examination driver take over .
The takeout : a fleet of these cars would get incisively nowhere in New York City .
Jeff Jablansky/Thrillist
Ford’s first driverless cars will be on sale in just five years
Ford expects to roll out a fleet of driverless cars to all its employees to use on its own Dearborn campus by 2018 , where it can canvass the cars in a wrapped surroundings . The company then look to enter a fully driverless elevator car to the general public by 2021 , and according to Ford CEO Mark Fields , itwon’thave the distinctive substance abuser interface of a traditional steering steering wheel or pedals .
Is this the remnant of human - driven cars as we make out them ? Not likely . ship’s company scion and chairman Bill Ford remarked that he " ca n’t resist " usingDrift Mode in the Focus RS– a really , reallygood sign for those of us who choose to do the drive ourselves .
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Jeff Jablansky/Thrillist
Jeff Jablansky/Thrillist
