Many people talk about self-driving cars or autonomous vehicles, but many people do not realize that the industry is working on making heavy trucks also become autonomous. Many cars these days have automatic stopping if it were to encounter an obstacle and other similar technology to make the car safer, but the driver is still in control of the vehicle for the most part. The trucking industry is slightly slower at adapting this technology, but it is trying to revolutionize the trucking industry. One major company working on making autonomous trucks is Freightliner.
Freightliner was founded in 1942 by Leland James. This truck brand is one of the most recognizable brand names in the trucking industry who are helping lead the revolution in making autonomous trucks. Some of the main reasons for making autonomous trucks is due to the shortage of drivers, driver fatigue, and driver error. Wolfgang Bernhard, Freightliner head of Trucks and Buses, states “it can help curb long-haul fatigue by allowing a computer to handle the long, dull stretches of straight highway miles.” The Freightliner Inspiration Truck is the first ever self-driving commercial truck to receive a road license plate for autonomous operation on public highways. The state of Nevada is one of the first states to allow autonomous testing of a commercial truck on its highways. This truck has a limited version of autonomy and is classified by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which it calls a Level 3 autonomy level.
The Freightliner Inspiration Truck is classified as Level 3. This means that the driver is always present and can take full control of the truck at any time. It only takes control on the highway and it maintains a safe following distance from other vehicles while staying in its own lane. It cannot pass slower vehicles on its own and if it encounters a situation it cannot handle, the truck will alert the driver to take over and resume control. If the driver does not respond in about five seconds, the truck will gradually slow down and come to a complete stop. There is not much difference between this vehicle and many other passenger cars and trucks on the road in terms of computer hardware.
This means that these trucks will be connected to a network. Which means that they will need to rely on the internet and other technologies to keep these trucks on the road and to keep other drivers safe. These trucks will need to communicate and receive data over a network at all times. This makes these truck part of the IoT, which means they need their connections to be secure to prevent hackers from taking control of these vehicles and operating them in an un-safe manner. I believe that security will need to play a major role in the development of autonomous vehicles.
In the near future, the world may see limited autonomous driving trucks on the road and maybe even a fully autonomous truck. Freightliner will continue to be at the forefront of this new and emerging technology. Other heavy truck manufactures may follow suit, but for now Freightliner is leading the revolution on semi-autonomous trucks. These trucks will help make roadway systems safe for everyone including the truck drivers. It will also help alleviate driver fatigue and driver error and it will increase the efficiency and speed that goods are delivered to consumers.
Sources:
http://www.wired.com/2015/05/worlds-first-self-driving-semi-truck-hits-road/
http://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/freightliner-autonomous-inspiration-truck/
This is an awesome development with a lot of features that are very beneficial. I think the best part about it is that it is not completely automatic. The driver can take control whenever he feels the need to. If the vehicle malfunctions or there is some spontaneous emergency that the vehicle cannot address on its own, the driver can take over.
This does not eliminate the need for a truck driver, however. It simply makes their jobs easier. The driver is still the boss. The virtual pilot informs the driver of its current status and accepts commands from the driver. It is still necessary to have someone in the truck who knows how to drive and who knows how a truck works inside and out. This way they will know when and if a problem comes up.
I completely agree with how important the need for security is in these autonomous vehicles. The system needs to be virtually flawless. If the vehicle is hacked, it would be out of control. This could be very dangerous to the driver and other people in the vicinity.
Source: http://www.freightlinerinspiration.com/technology/
This is an extremely well written piece. I think this is a great development, too. You bring up a good point about security which is something that is very important to me. I responded about a week ago on another blog post that Tesla should restrict their autopilot feature until they get all of the security kinks out. A Tesla (or any car) being hacked is still a scary thought; however, a big rig that gets hacked — weighing 26,000 lbs. or more — is appalling. The physics is simple and no one should be put in danger by being in close proximity of a 13 ton vehicle that someone can crash on purpose.
One feature you touched upon gives me some of peace of mind. The ability drivers have where they can always take control is something that I find to be very reassuring. I would be extremely worried about this systems malfunctioning and there being no way to stop the truck. In the same token, it is equally important that if this system alerts the driver and he/she does not answer, the truck automatically slows down within 5 seconds of no response. This prevents a runaway truck if the driver happens to be falling asleep.
This is all good and great, but I am super curious to see any kick-back from this. When reading this, I could not help but think a similar situation where the government is trying to set a speed limiter on these same trucks. The similar concepts hold true, as the government wants to restrict 13 ton vehicles from speeding excessively. Most of the stakeholders involved support it, while there are certain organizations like the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) who is against the speed limiter. Will they oppose this autonomous driving too? Time will only tell.
Source:
http://www.autoblog.com/2016/08/26/semi-truck-speed-limit-government-official/