Beginner’s Guide to Self-Driving Vehicles
What they are and how they will change your life
The future of transportation has arrived. Driverless cars could hit the consumer market within 5 years. Experts estimate that by 2025, the driverless car market will be worth up to $42 billion. No wonder major car and tech companies are working so hard to bring autonomous cars to the consumer market. So what exactly are they and how are they going to impact your life?
Varying levels of autonomy
When most people think about autonomous cars, they are probably thinking about Google’s Self-Driving Car Project. While complete autonomy is the end goal, there are varying levels of “autonomy”. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has categorized the degree of autonomy into 5 levels, ranging from Level 0 (no autonomy) to Level 4 (Full Self-Driving Automation).
Many people already have Level 1 autonomous features in their cars, such as pre-charged brakes, cruise control, and lane centering.
Tesla’s autopilot features are an example of Level 2 automation.
Currently the Google Self-Driving Car is categorized as Level 3. This means the driver is expected to be available in case of unexpected events, but the car can drive autonomously in most…
