By Jayu 
Visions of fleets of driverless cars efficiently transporting people to their destinations have inspired billions in investment and have captured the public imagination. Automakers have made substantial advancements in navigation, collision avoidance, and street mapping capabilities.
5G technology enables car connectivity so they can communicate with each other and their environment – but when will self-driving cars become standard practice?
1. Safety
Autonomous vehicles equipped with cameras, sensors, and artificial intelligence systems to understand their surroundings are steadily improving in terms of safety. Such systems are now widely used for taxis, ride-sharing vehicles, delivery cars, and transport for senior citizens and disabled individuals.
Autonomous Vehicles can help decrease risky driver behaviors like distracted driving by eliminating the need to focus on the road. Unfortunately, though, these technologies cannot completely mitigate human error which causes 94% of all crashes.
Solution: Autonomous cars could be trained to navigate common dangerous scenarios while being monitored remotely by human supervisors for more complex scenarios, like merging on highways. NIST is providing critical support by standardizing measurements and testing methods that will aid this effort.
2. Cost
Autonomous vehicle features can either come as standard equipment or can be made available for a premium, but for maximum adoption fully autonomous vehicles should provide mobility as a service and be operated as fleets.
Ride-sharing companies, e-commerce delivery vehicles, and trucking platoons will likely be the first to deploy autonomous vehicles (AVs). They typically include a safety driver for added protection.
Advanced software enables autonomous vehicles to continually update their maps and utilize sensor data for better driving and road conditions, helping lower operating costs while simultaneously increasing safety. Unfortunately, however, this technology will require lots of computing power.
3. Reliability
Future self-driving cars will feature three key electronic “eyes”: radar, cameras, and laser-based LiDar. These sensors feed their data directly into onboard computers that use advanced software algorithms and machine learning to adapt to changes in weather or driving conditions.
The technology could help alleviate congestion in cities worldwide, taking an immense economic toll. Furthermore, autonomous cars could offer new modes of travel for senior citizens and people with disabilities alike as well as provide automated logistics including delivery services and robo-taxis services.
However many industry players are finding it challenging to achieve profitability, necessitating strategic partnerships that can reduce development costs while expediently providing high-value features.
4. Efficiency
Autonomous vehicles will feature systems to find the most efficient route, decreasing fuel consumption and emissions while also driving at consistent speeds, eliminating constant braking and acceleration that leads to wear on tires and other components of their vehicle.
Government data points to driver behavior or error as being responsible for 94% of car crashes. Autonomous vehicles offer an effective solution by eliminating distracted driving behaviors like texting while driving or conversing on the phone while behind the wheel, while also helping fatigued drivers reduce their risks of accidents.
North American trucking manufacturers are conducting trials of autonomously driving trucks capable of moving from hub to hub without the assistance of human safety drivers, with hopes that such vehicles could reduce fleet costs and boost productivity.
5. Mobility
Autonomous vehicles (AVs) hold tremendous promise as an innovative transportation option, opening up mobility solutions for many Americans. From reducing traffic accidents and vehicle ownership costs to providing safe mobility solutions for people living with physical disabilities – autonomous vehicles offer tangible advantages that could change our world forever.
Consumers frequently cite lower insurance costs as one of their main drivers for purchasing autonomous vehicles (AVs). Businesses like Waymo (GM +4.5% Co) offer driverless robotaxi services while Kodiak Robotics and Gatik integrate autonomous technology into trucks that deliver goods over both long-distance routes as well as local routes.
Eventually, these technologies will allow cars to communicate and make decisions based on shared data. For instance, one car on a highway could coordinate with other vehicles to avoid risky merging situations.
6. Mobility for the Elderly
Autonomous cars should make it easier for seniors to maintain mobility. This will enable them to travel more frequently, visit friends and family more frequently, and stay engaged with their community.
Safety is of utmost concern for older adults and self-driving vehicles offer a great way to reduce traffic accidents and save lives. Equipped with cameras, sensors, and lidar to survey their surroundings.
MIT engineer Cathy Wu believes it may be possible for autonomous vehicles to travel unsupervised on highways while leaving other driving tasks like merging and changing lanes to human supervisors, similar to how air traffic controllers manage commercial planes.
7. Privacy
Autonomous vehicles will collect an enormous amount of data. Depending on their particular model, this may include miles driven, speeds, braking force applied when turning right or left and purchases made online during driving – along with privacy considerations that should be addressed appropriately.
Automakers are racing to develop autonomous cars that work under real-world conditions, Sumwalt said. Their test vehicles have been conducted on closed tracks as much as possible but sooner rather than later they plan on unleashing them onto public roadways.
Automated vehicles (AVs) will also help improve efficiency by eliminating traffic delays. Americans spent 6.9 billion hours stuck in traffic congestion last year, costing us both time and money.
8. Convenience
Many automobile manufacturers provide Level 2 systems that handle some driving tasks such as steering and acceleration while the driver remains attentive; some, like GM Super Cruise and Ford Blue Cruise, even allow hands-off automated highway driving.
Automated Vehicles (AVs) can be programmed to maintain a safe distance between vehicles, potentially reducing roadway backups caused by accidents or fender benders. They may also be deployed as fleets for ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft as well as automated local delivery services.
Trucking fleets may also be among the first to embrace autonomous vehicles. Autonomous trucks could safely deliver cargo over longer distances to warehouses, as well as reduce costs by enabling trucking companies to create “platoons” of self-driving trucks that travel together on longer routes.
9. Sustainability
Autonomous driving features can help cars reduce their environmental footprint. Navigation systems that utilize real-time weather and terrain data to optimize route planning can minimize energy consumption; electric vehicles equipped with AI can assist drivers in identifying charging stations to improve range estimates.
The next phase in autonomous car development will involve integrating features at scale into vehicles. This requires strategic partnerships as well as new development tools that support fast simulations and testing processes.
Consumers must carefully weigh the tradeoffs between safety and convenience features before making their choice of autonomous vehicle (AV). Most survey respondents indicated they prefer Level 2 AVs equipped with driver-override systems like those found in General Motors Super Cruise and Ford BlueCruise over completely self-driving cars with no steering wheel or brake pedal.