> The physical act of turning a wheel isn't the hard part of driving. Paying attention is.
As an avid user of Tesla Autopilot I'll disagree with this. On a long road trip, monitoring my surroundings and making sure everything is generally ok is far less fatiguing than making constant microadjustments to steering, speed and following distance.
Even while paying close attention to the ride, long trips (especially in stop-and-go traffic) become significantly less stressful and exhausting.
This isn’t a matter of whether you think you’re paying attention.
It’s whether you actually are - and that’s very different from what you perceive. For example i would be curious to see how eye movement of regular autopilot users differs when they are using autopilot vs when they aren’t.
Based on all prior studies of attentiveness I suspect you’d find dramatic reduction in active scanning, etc.
Part of the reason for the many curves in I280 in the sf peninsula was apparently to ensure drivers had to actually do something while driving. I’m tempted to investigate whether that’s a myth or fact, but the nature of the internet means I’ll probably just find that i280 gave me cancer :)
I've noticed the same thing driving my Chrysler Pacifica, which has lane keeping and adaptive cruise (with FCW). But it's not called "autopilot", and it deactivates if it detects that my hands are off the wheel.
Model S and X owner here. Autopilot will nag you after so many seconds (depending on vehicle speed and autopilot path planning confidence) if it doesn’t detect steering wheel torque, and if you ignore the nags, it brings the vehicle to a stop safely with the hazards on.
Car and Driver tested AEB in several vehicles (Tesla, Toyota, Subaru) and they are all pretty equally bad at it. Figuring out if matter in front of you, while traveling at speed, poses a life critical hazard is hard! It’s better than no AEB, but don’t rely on it entirely or you’re going to end up maimed or dead. As the driver, you are still the final responsible party.
How do you reconcile this with the claims in the accident report that the hands-off alert intervals are measured in minutes for the accident scenario? Quoted here with link to full source:
Visual indicator after 2 minutes of no detected driver-applied torque to the steering wheel (apparently because they only detect torque - i.e. turning/steering motions - and not pressure?)
>hands-off alert intervals are measured in minutes for the accident scenario
Since January 2018 there have been software updates that reduce the time that the car will allow you to not signal to it that you are paying attention. You now have to apply a little turning force to the wheel much more often than before.
I can’t speak to their vehicle, but we run the latest software revisions on both of ours (both 2018 builds, Autopilot hardware version 2.5), and nag delay has never been more than 10-15 seconds apart if I’m not applying sufficient torque. I have not experienced nags taking a minute to be realized (even in rush hour traffic with no curves and slow speeds).
The safety system is robust IMHO. If I push the accelerator pedal while autopilot is running, immediate nag. Running at 89 mph (max speed before Autopilot locks you out for the duration of the drive due to too high of a speed)? Nags every 5-10 seconds.
It’s not perfect by any means, but it also expects a responsible, aware driver behind the wheel.
> is far less fatiguing than making constant microadjustments to steering, speed and following distance.
Adaptive cruise control and lane assist, available in every modern car under the sun will make microadjustments to steering, speed, and following distance all day long.
I also wonder whether “dumber” systems are easier to predict. I’d feel much more comfortable knowing what the car won’t do (change lanes on me, e.g.).
(Update: to be clear, I’m not inherently opposed to a car changing lanes if I need it to, but it seems easier to deal with a potential emergency, and easier to persuade myself to pay more attention, if I know definitively it won’t do something that sophisticated.)
The physical act of turning a wheel isn't the hard part of driving. Paying attention is.