Autonomous driving: AXA shows the dangers
AUTONOMOUS DRIVING There is no going back. AXA's accident researchers are convinced that fully automated vehicles will increase safety. Nevertheless, there will still be accidents in the future. In crash tests, the professionals showed which new risks arise and which accidents cannot be avoided. What can happen was shown by a crash in which the vehicle brakes were so [...]
What can happen was shown by a crash in which the vehicle brake was manipulated (or hacked) so that the car accelerated at full engine power instead of braking. The bottom line is that injuries to occupants and severe damage to vehicles cannot be avoided. And there are other risks that cannot be avoided in the future. These include, for example, natural events or glass damage. Another crash showed the damage that a stone chip can cause to a vehicle. Conclusion: there is a risk of considerable injury to the occupants.
Swiss family wants autonomous cars
Bettina Zahnd, Head of Accident Research & Prevention at AXA Winterthur: "More than 90 percent of all accidents today are still caused by humans. With improved technology, more sophisticated sensors and further developed systems, I am convinced that the automated vehicle will significantly increase safety." According to a recent survey, one in four respondents in Switzerland would like or very much like to use an autonomous vehicle in the future.
There is a lack of trust in technology
However, the survey also shows that trust in technology is still rather restrained: Around half of those surveyed said they did not trust a computer to steer reliably and behave correctly in traffic. But the pleasure of driving also stands in the way of greater acceptance: More than 60 percent of the men and women surveyed in Germany and Switzerland said they enjoyed driving and would not want to do without it.
Data of the accident vehicles are important
Since hardly any cars have yet been driven in fully automated traffic, no experience is yet available on the probability of accidents or possible causes. In accident reconstruction as well as in accident causation research, the analysis of skid marks and damage to the vehicle has been decisive up to now. However, with the increasing networking of vehicles, the data recorded by the vehicle is becoming more and more important for accurately reconstructing the course of an accident.
Also worth reading is the article on the same event in the Security Forum, which you can find here read
The three crash tests in the video:
