I just watched a video on the news of a new Volvo with an automatic braking system running into what appeared to be two salesmen in the dealership. The reason? It didn’t also have the “pedestrian recognition” option, an extra costing hundreds of additional dollars.
Let the fun begin…
The lawyers are salivating already… 
I realize that this “pedestrian recognition” technology is designed to satisfy European requirements, which are much stricter in the area of pedestrian protection, but jeeze, if they’re going to put automatic braking technology into a car it seems just dumb to make the pedestrian recognition components an additional option in the U.S. just because it isn’t mandated here. They deserve whatever they get.
The technical term for this type of decision making is “stupid”. Yeah, I know all about cost/benefit, risk assessment, and all that junk. But as I sit here this evening I’m disgusted at some of what I’m seeing in the new cars.
Just a way of bleeding more money out of the consumer. Who says you can’t squeeze more blood out of a turnip… 
I can’t imagine the pedestrian avoidance being that much more difficult or expensive to incorporate on a production line. Bean counters have perfected this kind of thing.
I’m starting to think I should go looking for my '64 Fairlane back…
I heard a story the other day Google executives were saying their self driving cars had a few minor fender bender type accidents. Their explanation: When the computer car bumps into other cars it is because the human driver doesn’t drive their car in a rational manner.
You mean to say there are drivers out there on the roads who don’t drive in a rational way? Oh my! … lol
Then we get into the whole software copyright and licensing issues where you buy the car but not the software and it is not yours to tamper with through penalty of law.
100% wetware failure.
And this whole thing about Google wanting to REMOVE the steering wheel/brake/throttle?!?
Engineering redundancy into a system is a sound practice; an admission that, every so often, stuff breaks. DELIBERATELY DELETING vehicle controls, so as to ensure zero redundancy, is tantamount to “Giving Murphy the Finger,” and the last thing in the world anybody ought to be doing is peeving Mr. Murphy off, lest he and his Law open a can of whoop-ass on somebody (naturally, of course, at the worst possible moment…)
I thought vehicle design was supposed to improved as time goes on. I think we’ve finally hit a point where we are truly regressing in that aspect.
You may be right missileman. I feel the same way about direct injection.
As regards self-driving technology, I’m sure some good stuff will emerge from all of this experimentation, but it’ll probably take a form different from what we envision. Maybe Amazon will deliver our books using self driving cars. {
Pedestrian recognition is being combined with the new facial recognition software so that when you hit someone, your car will announce, “Please stop. You just ran over John P. Doe.”
;-]
Perhaps it will announce “John P. Doe, you’ve just been run over by Will B. Sorry. Call your lawyer.”
I don’t think the demand for this whole technology is clearly coming from the consumer.
“Open The Pod Bay Door, HAL”. "I’m Afraid I Can’t Do That Dave."
We are getting closer by the day.
CSA
Maybe Amazon will deliver our books using self driving cars.
Nope… Drones
This was apparently in a Southern American country, so I doubt there would be any lawsuits.
My wife slipped and fell pretty hard in Europe while exiting a poorly designed restroom with a slope and step in some unusual place (I had already warned her, but I don’t know why she won’t listen!). Anyway, I was waiting to see some stressed workers apologizing, but noticed there weren’t phased at all. Other countries are mush less litigious than US.
Now I want a system that can differentiate between a dog and a coyote.
The Technology package with the pedestrian detection is a $1,500 option on the XC60 here in the us. Here’s one of the reports about the video
Don’t be surprised if in a few years this is mandated by the US government to be on ALL cars much like airbags TPMS, ABS, ESC and any other three letter acronyms that sound cool to the press.
The Euro-zone already has requirements for pedestrian “soft” crush zones on cars. The hoods must be ballooned up away from the engines so that if a car hits a pedestrian, the hood gives a softer place for them the land to reduce injury.
Mustang, I would not at all be surprised if in a few years our out-of-control nanny state mandates it… driving the cost of new cars up even further.
To quote CSA, from Space Odyssey, “Open The Pod Bay Door, HAL”. “I’m Afraid I Can’t Do That Dave.” I think we’re there already.