Tesla Crash 2016: Carmaker Working On Updated Autopilot Radar To Avoid Further Accidents [VIDEO]
After a notable crash which involved the first fatality in an accident involving self-driving technology, upstart carmaker Tesla Motors has announced that it would be fully revamping its radar features on its vehicles' Autopilot systems, in order to lessen the chances of accidents happening in the future.
In a statement on Thursday night, Tesla CEO Elon Musk stated that the carmaker is going full throttle in developing improvements to its vehicles' radar systems. Tesla's Autopilot feature utilizes a number of factors, such as onboard computers, radar as well as cameras as a means to detect obstacles and other notable objects on the road.
While the Autopilot feature has been largely successful, the fatal crash of May 7, which involved a Model S brought the self-driving features of Tesla's vehicles into intense scrutiny. The fatal accident, which happened while the vehicle was on Autopilot, was caused by the car failing to distinguish the white side of a tractor-trailer from the sky. Due to the error, the car did not brake, causing the fatal collision.
What was particularly interesting about the fatal crash was that Musk himself announced that the car's radar was discounted in the tragic incident. This was because the Autopilot's radar was designed to tune out certain objects on the road in order to avoid stopping the car unnecessarily.
Indeed, if there was something in the ill-fated Model S' features that could have stopped the crash, it would be the vehicle's radar systems. Thus, the fact that Tesla is focusing on radar improvement in its Autopilot feature actually makes a lot of sense.
Timothy Carone, an IT and analytics professor at the University of Notre Dame, has stated that the carmaker's reaction to the accident, as well as its decision to focus on improving its vehicles' radar technologies, are the correct decision.
"It kind of strikes me that they're figuring out how to solve that problem," he said.
With an updated radar system, the thousands of Tesla vehicles on the road would be able to distinguish and respond to objects of the road more effectively than before. By doing so, the well-received electric vehicle would once more become the darling of the EV revolution.
