Headline Sep 14, 2015/ ''' VOTE COMPUTERS : VOTE !WOW! CARS '''

''' VOTE COMPUTERS : 

VOTE !WOW! CARS '''

ON THE AVERAGE  -EVERY MONTH, 108,000 people are killed in traffic accidents around the world, and this death toll is increasing.

On current trends it will exceed  150,000  people a month by 2020, according to the World Health Organization, as cars become more widespread in developing countries-

Increasing the number of vehicles on the world's roads from ground 1 billion in 2010 to 2 billion. Many lives will be spared by outfitting more vehicles with airbags, the biggest  lifesavers in car technology since the seat belts.

But now a far greater revolution in road safety is within reach. Around 90% of accidents are caused by human error. Design vehicles so that they can drive themselves, goes the theory and death tolls will plummet.

Driverless cars would provide further benefits beyond safety. They could co-ordinate their routes and travel in close formation, increasing the capacity of road networks, reducing congestion and saving fuel.

They would be able to drop someone off and then go and park themselves. They might even usher an era of widespread car-sharing with, vehicles dispatched on demand to people who need them, rather than spending most of the day sitting idle by the side of the road.

And then on understanding the technicalities, Computers and Automotive technology,  -take the case of these driverless trucks being used in Australia. Manufactured by a subsidiary of a Japanese giant, Komatsu- -each truck the size of a three-storey house and uses-

Satellite technology positioning to carry nearly 300 tonnes of iron ore along the predefined routes. An accident, then, could be very nasty indeed. But James Petty, head of Rio Tinto's robotic-trucks programme, says: the trucks emergency-braking and evasive-action systems have not been triggered since 2008.

One reason is that as well as using the usual plethora of sensors, the trucks inform each other of their position and speed using  ''vehicle to vehicle''  [V2V] wireless links-

So that they can, for example, co-ordinate their actions at junctions. Human truck-drivers, by contrast, regularly have to take evasive action. They also demand salaries of around  A$100,000 {$100,000} to work in the remote Pilbara region of Western Australia.

Initially driverless vehicles will be in a minority, but eventually may make sense to redesign road networks around them. Using  V2V  communication, for example, driverless cars approaching junction could co-ordinate their movements to keep traffic flowing smoothly, rather than having to stop and take turns.

Traffic lights and road signs would no longer be needed. V2V would also allow vehicles to travel together in platoons or  ''road trains'', making more efficient use of road capacity.

A consortium of European companies has tested five-vehicle platoons in which the lead vehicle is controlled by a human driver and the other four travel close behind it under autonomous control. 

Trials including a 200km trip on a motorway near Barcelona in May have found that platooning cuts fuel consumption by about 15%, because each vehicle  [apart from the lead vehicle] travel in the slipstream of the one in front.

Passengers find the proximity unnerving at first, but they quickly get used to it, says Eric Chan Ricardo, the British Technology firm leading the project.

Clearly, a shift towards driverless cars would completely transform the experience of road travel. But there would be further knock-on effects beyond the car itself. Self-driving vehicles would keep the growing numbers of elderly people in ageing societies mobile for longer, for example,

The design of the cars would undoubtedly change if the controls are rarely needed, steering wheels and pedals will vanish, and cars will be built instead for comfort-

Perhaps with a PlayStation like controller that pops out on the rare occasions when manual controls is needed.

The Honour and Serving of latest ''Operational Research''  on Computers, and Automotive Technologies continues. Than you for reading and sharing forward. And see you all on the following one.

With respectful dedication to the Students, Professors and Teachers involved in inventions, innovations, and research. See Ya all on !WOW!  -the World Students Society Computers-Internet-Wireless:

''' Transforming The World '''

Good Night and God Bless

SAM Daily Times - the Voice of the Voiceless