Google’s driverless car project: Can it reduce accidents ?

Google’s driverless car is a project aimed at creating cars that are self driven and headed by Google engineer Sebastian Thrun who also is co inventor of Google Street view .Google’s driverless car has travelled 140,000 miles (230,000 km) so far without any accidents.

 

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Google’s driverless car project: Can it reduce accidents ?

The driverless car developed by Google relies on a complex integration of multiple data sources in order to navigate without human assistance. Specifically, it combines high-definition mapping data from Google Street View with several on-board sensory devices. These devices include video cameras positioned both inside and outside the vehicle to provide a 360-degree view of the car’s surroundings. Additionally, a rotating sensor atop the car provides lidar data by constantly scanning the environment using laser range-finding technology.

The vehicle also utilizes radar sensors on the front bumper to detect obstacles ahead, as well as a position sensor attached to one of the rear wheels that enables precise geo-locating of the car on its pre-mapped routes. All this sensory input data is processed using sophisticated artificial intelligence software that essentially mimics human decision making and judgment required for driving. It controls the vehicle’s speed, steering, braking and acceleration accordingly to safely navigate to a preset destination.

However, the Google driverless car project remains an ongoing experiment in self-driving technology. Despite strong preliminary testing results, it may take several more years of refinements and enhancements to the sensory integration, decision-making algorithms, and robust system controls before driverless cars can be approved and considered road-ready for mainstream commercial use. But the project shows promising progress in that direction.