Shaping the future of autonomous cars

That figure alone demonstrates the serious opportunity that this huge change in transport infrastructure presents. However, large hurdles still remain in terms of the levels of trust shown by the public – the passengers of this proposed autonomous future – when asked if they would be happy to be driven by a robot. The number one concern is safety and the risk of accidents. 

The 2018 Global Automotive Consumer Study Report, released last month by Deloitte, has found that the public are gradually getting used to the idea of being transported by autonomous vehicles. What’s more, people are starting to trust artificially intelligent systems with 47% of US candidates currently feeling that autonomous cars won’t be safe, a marked improvement from the previous year’s 74%. 

But this is still a sizeable percentage who remain unconvinced. The automotive sector might invest huge sums in developing exceptionally elegant driverless cars, but if passengers don't feel safe enough to use them, the industry is not going anywhere very fast.

So how can industry help scale the hurdle of trust? 

The safety argument for self-driving vehicles is certainly compelling on paper. Statistics and early research show that autonomous cars will be far safer than human drivers on the roads, as they can’t get distracted, check phone messages or fall asleep. It is estimated that 90% of car crashes are caused by human error, based on losing concentration. The Huffington Post reports that autonomous car development company Waymo has logged over two million miles on US streets and has only been at fault in one accident. Even the safest demographic of drivers – 60-69-year-olds – are 10 times more likely to have an accident. New drivers? They’re 40 times more likely. 

However, we must recognise that simply replacing human drivers with autonomous ones will not prevent every single accident from occurring. There are a lot of miles of research still to be covered, to teach driverless cars to be able to effectively process the unpredictable nature of the roads, and ensure they remain predictable to other vehicles. There have, of course, been a number serious accidents, widely reported in the media recently, involving autonomous cars from Tesla and Uber. These require more analysis before we can draw conclusions, but they have drawn attention to the fact that there must be clarity between the human and the autonomous car about who is in control at any given moment.

A crucial point is understanding the level of automation being applied in any particular case. To date, all self-driving cars, that are carrying passengers on the roads, are ‘Level 2 autonomy’, meaning computers take over multiple functions from the driver, but strictly require the driver to stay actively engaged with the journey and take back control immediately on request. Some new models are ‘Level 3 ready’, which will see cars take over all controls, but the driver will still need to stay involved, while Level 4 – predicted by 2023 – will see fully driverless cars being used in geofenced urban areas. The ultimate prediction is that self-driving car manufacturers will be in a position to offer exceptionally advanced vehicles at Level 5 autonomy – where the car has become a ‘cocoon’ in which to sit passively and be transported – which will be on the roads by 2035.

These stages of control – combined with realising that the public’s belief requires a level of understanding in what’s going on beneath the skin – all point to a clear necessity for an autonomous vehicle to be able to communicate its status and processes at all times. The vehicle needs to be able to sense and respond to its passengers’ perspectives and demonstrate its awareness of the world around it. To build trust, this needs to be a two-way dialogue between man and machine.  

One pioneering project that is set to take huge steps towards bridging the gap in understanding and trust between the public and driverless vehicle technology is the Smart Mobility Living Lab (SMLL). It is a world-leading research programme based in Greenwich, South East London, which provides a unique test bed for the development of new autonomous transport solutions within controlled, real-world scenarios.

Paul Zanelli, Director, Engineering & Technology at TRL, one of the core expert organisations within the consortium, explains, “this exciting project will see us working closely with the industry to develop the case for bringing new products and services to market.

“At the heart of the Living Lab will be continuous engagement with the public, to help facilitate a greater understanding of the implications of autonomous technology and enable them to have their say during this huge transition in urban mobility.”

His comment notably gets right to the heart of the issue around society’s willingness to embrace an autonomous future, and the need for greater understanding and real-world experience to build trust. The SMLL programme is an exceptional example of the approach and open attitude that is required to help autonomous cars and the public co-exist.

One autonomous concept that might offer a way to bridge the gap between man and machine is the Audi Aicon – a luxury saloon with no dashboard or driving seat. It promises voice communication, haptic-powered touch surface systems, customizable entertainment and atmospheric features, as well as external LED lighting on the bonnet and rear of the car. This communicates to the world around it, for example, when it has seen a pedestrian and when it is safe for that person to cross.

One step beyond this is Sensum – a biometric technology company that’s fitting biometric sensors that monitor a driver or passenger’s wellbeing. The real-time results of these inform the vehicle’s actions and will again help the rapport between vehicle and occupants. Sensum will be showcasing this technology in FoS Future Lab at this year’s Festival of Speed in July. 

Ben Bland, COO of Sensum, explains, “Changes in a person’s physiology can indicate changes in their emotional state. In other words, using our sensor technology, we can infer an emotional response from something changing in or on the body — heart rate, facial expression, voice tone, breathing rate, and so on. 

“By plugging human data into our future vehicles, they can be trained to respond to our emotional state. This can provide many benefits, from life-saving safety to comfort and entertainment. Your ride could be very different if your car knows you are happy, anxious, distracted, tired or unwell.”

The likes of SMLL, Sensum and the Audi Aicon are tackling one of the biggest challenges facing the future of autonomous driving: trust between car and driver. And every new development like these makes this future look even more promising.