Allentown Area Toyota Discusses the Future of Driverless Cars

Apr 30, 2015

There’s been a lot in the news lately about Google and possibly even Apple getting into the driverless car market for real. The idea of a market-ready driverless car is still a ways off, but there are already elements sneaking into current consumer models. Your Allentown Area Toyota dealer talks about what all the buzz is about with driverless technology.

What Are They?

Aside from being a constant in science fiction for decades, driverless cars are really just the next leap in existing automatic technology. For example, some cars these days can use sensors to detect a collision that’s about to happen and hit the brakes before you even notice there’s a problem. The more advanced version, of course, takes it over completely to get you from A to B without you even touching the wheel.

How Do They Work?

There are a few layers to how these cars can work. Firstly, there’s the internal system of the car itself. All the cars systems are networked in what’s called cyber-mechanical fashion. That means that an electronic signal can actually turn into a turning wheel. Next is the array of sensors mounted around the car. Radar and laser sensors are used to detect distance from other vehicles, buildings, pedestrians, and obstacles. Finally, there’s the infrastructure. Knowing how the roads are laid out, Google or some other provider can know exactly which direction to turn or which exit to take.

How Soon Will We See Them?

For various reasons, a lot still has to be done to make driverless cars realistic, including dedicating specific traffic sections. Still, some companies have already developed smaller segments of driverless time like parking or even searching for a spot.