Future Cars

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I sometimes wonder about the future of technology
in our generation.
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Everything is either getting bigger or smaller
depending on user preference.
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This is actually quite exciting.
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The advancements in technology include how we
take care of patients in a hospital or even how
we do our taxes.
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The advancements in technology also include how
we drive or more specifically how we can be
driven from point A to point B in the possible
future.
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This being said will cars actually start driving
people around to their destinations?
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What advantages does this have?
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What safety concerns should be addressed?
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Is the level of automation on self-driving
vehicles manageable depending on the situation?
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These questions need to be answered before cars
start driving people around.
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The advantages of having an automobile that can
handle the tasks of driving its passengers from
point A to point B is that passengers could focus
more on other tasks.
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This could end up being a huge time saver
depending on what tasks the occupants of the
vehicle need to complete.
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Imagine being able to have a business meeting in
a vehicle while on your way to the airport or
even home.
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Another advantage of having a car that can drive
itself is the actual parking of the vehicle.
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I know from personal experience that Im not the
best parallel parker.
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With a car that could do this for me I could find
a parking space much easier and faster than I
could if I had to parallel park myself.
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Even with the possible advantages of future cars
we must also consider what risks they possess.
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The first risk that comes to mind is the
following of multiple safety maneuvers that
drivers must perform every time they get behind
the wheel.
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How do we make sure that these self driving
automobiles are properly able to do such tasks?
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The next concern is user friendliness of the
vehicle.
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What if a driver needs to take control of the car
due to an emergency such as a malfunction of one
or more of the vehicles driving functions?
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To answer these questions the makers of such
vehicles such as Google have addressed concerns
with 5 levels of vehicle automation.
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With level 0 drivers would be in full control of
the vehicle.
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Level 1 would just assist in braking when needed.
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Level 2 would be able to park the vehicle.
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Levels 3 and 4 cede all tasks to the vehicle.
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However, even with these safety features extreme
levels of testing need to be completed to ensure
everyones safety.