> So, silly question - why are these technologies not being made broadly available as driver assist tools while we work our way up to L4 driving automation?
Well, they are. Lane departure warnings, auto braking, self parking are all incremental automation/assistive technologies that have been rolling out slowly and will continue to.
Advertising stuff now is a kind of marketing aimed at hiring and in building enthusiasm for a company like GM that as seen as a has been (not picking on GM, they are simply the topic of this article!).
I think your real question is, "why aren't I seeing these features on current model year cars?" It's about the structure of the car industry. For example, when I worked with <car company X> on brake-by-wire in 1996 it was for the 2004 model year. They had a team with functional steer by wire -- I still haven't seen it in production! This is a combination of historical industry practice, a focus on safety, and regulatory constraints. A mixture of good and bad.
> I think your real question is, "why aren't I seeing these features on current model year cars?"
Or as 3rd party modules which can be installed by a moderately competent mechanic.
And while yes, some of these are being offered, they are far from freely available and affordable - two things which would seem to me to be important for full blown automation.
Well, they are. Lane departure warnings, auto braking, self parking are all incremental automation/assistive technologies that have been rolling out slowly and will continue to.
Advertising stuff now is a kind of marketing aimed at hiring and in building enthusiasm for a company like GM that as seen as a has been (not picking on GM, they are simply the topic of this article!).
I think your real question is, "why aren't I seeing these features on current model year cars?" It's about the structure of the car industry. For example, when I worked with <car company X> on brake-by-wire in 1996 it was for the 2004 model year. They had a team with functional steer by wire -- I still haven't seen it in production! This is a combination of historical industry practice, a focus on safety, and regulatory constraints. A mixture of good and bad.