Posted on 01/27/2016 4:41:13 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
Volvo has made a pretty bold statement this week. It says it wants to make things so that no one dies in a Volvo or because of a collision with one by the year 2020. "If you meet Swedish engineers, they're pretty genuine," said Lex Kerssemakers, CEO of Volvo Cars North America. "They don't say things when they don't believe in it." A pretty serious lot it seems. People who say what the mean and mean what they say.
"With the development of full autonomy we are going to push the limits of automotive safety," says Volvo safety engineer Erik Coelingh, "because if you make a fully autonomous vehicle you have to think through everything that potentially can happen with a car." Elon Musk has said something similar recently. In his opinion, full autonomous driving is quite simple at speeds below 10 mph. It is not especially difficult on the highway where there is no cross traffic, no pedestrians, and no bicyclists.
Where autonomous driving gets really hard is in the city at speeds between 10 and 50 mph. That's when autonomous software has to be able to distinguish between a cardboard cutout of a person and a real people. It has to anticipate all the things that people might do. It even has to know what to expect from someone who might be drunk or under the influence of recreational drugs.
Volvo's safety systems will operate constantly in the background, monitoring the world around the car. It will identify bicyclists that may come flying unexpectedly through an intersection, a car that stops short ahead, or a pedestrian who is about to step off the sidewalk and dash in front of the car....
(Excerpt) Read more at gas2.org ...
I wouldn’t be caught dead in a volvo.
I knew someone would post a picture of that guy!
Several people I know will only buy or have bought Volvo’s for their teenage kids based solely on their safety record. Of course, the kids hate their body styles but that is not the first priority with their parents.
I couldn’t resist!
It only takes ten times the effort to chip away at each of those last few percent, but you have to commend them for the idea. Probably work well as a marketing tool, as well.
New superintelligent cars that will kill no one (accidentally) ...
Volvo’s are great car for kids.
Listened to my 15 year old grandson and some of his friends talk about cars last week. Believe me, none of them want a Volvo. Their comments were pretty funny. Most of them will probably end up with a pick-up truck when they start driving next year.
It’s strong and very light.
It’s a light weight material.
So is titanium. I’m surprised magnesium is cheaper and a better choice. When the metal is hot and the engine is hungry I would expect meatloaf would make a different metal choice.
This message approved by Gus.
I’m driving an 83 pickup. You couldn’t give me a new vehicle.
Just give me an old Ford Galaxy and I’ll be fine.
Magnesium has been used for some years in the auto industry. VW bugs had a magnesium engine case in the late ‘60’s. Nothing like 40 lbs or so of Mg with the fuel pump on top and the gas tank gravity feeding the fire.
We went to a fire at a Chrysler dealer service department many years ago and all of the steering column mounts were Mg.
We have had better luck with the Diablo blades from Home Depot than the high dollar “rescue” blades on composites. High strength is still a challenge.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.