Robotic cars

           ROBOTIC CARS   

             A self-driving car, also known as an autonomous vehicle, connected and

      autonomous vehicle,  driverless car, robo-car, or robotic car, is a vehicle that is

     capable of sensing it environment  and moving safely with little or no human

     input.

  characteristics of  a robotic car:

 is a vehicle that is capable of sensing its environment and moving safely with

 little or no human input.

   Features:

1 Dynamic cruise control

Cruise control was one of the first great steps towards the self-driving car, but active cruise control takes the system to the next level. You set your desired speed and let the car do the rest. It uses forward-facing lasers to "see" traffic. When it detects a vehicle in front, it reduces your speed. When that car moves over, it resumes the original speed.

2 Collision mitigation systems

Imagine a "digital aunt" sitting in the back seat and keeping a constant watch on the road. If the car ahead brakes suddenly she will alert you. And that's what these systems do. If the distance between you and the car ahead starts to reduce rapidly, it will pre-tense the seatbelts, turn on the hazard lights and, in the most sophisticated systems apply full brakes. Volvo's City safety system will react to pedestrians, cyclists and even animals as well as cars.

3 Parking sensors

Reversing until you feel your bumper pressing on the car behind helps you squeeze into the smallest spaces, but won't impress the neighbours. Sensors now beep and flash as you near an object. Many cars now feature these both at the back and front and occasionally at the side. Using cameras, these images can be viewed on the dashboard. The most advanced models create a bird's eye graphic of your exact position. They'll even watch out for pedestrian crossing behind you.

4 Park assist

For domestic harmony alone, an intelligent parking system is worth its weight in gold. Ultrasonic sensors in the front bumpers scan each space to see whether it is big enough. When it finds one, you select reverse and let go of the steering wheel. The car does everything else. All you have to do is apply the handbrake at the end. Unless, of course, you have an electronic handbrake in which case you don't even have to do that.

5 GPS-controlled gear change

Using GPS to scan the topography ahead, predictive satellite-aided transmission monitors your driving behaviour and matches it to the road conditions. Essentially, it knows there is a big hill around the next bend and so selects the appropriate gear. This improves your drive and saves fuel. Rolls-Royce uses this system to create its so-called "magic-carpet" ride.

5 Attention warning system

Nodding off at the wheel is of huge safety concern. Using a system of in-cabin sensors and driving monitors, your car is watching you for signs of drowsiness. If your driving becomes erratic or your head movements are abrupt, the car will create an unpleasant high-pitched sound and flash a warning at you which states "You are dangerously tired! Stop as soon as it is safe to do so!"

6 Lane departure control

Cameras monitor where your car is in its lane. When you veer near the white line it will make your steering wheel or your seat vibrate. The more advanced systems will also apply "bias braking" to straighten you up, others will even override the steering wheel to keep you safely in the middle of your lane.

7 Dynamic headlights

Lights that turn on and off on their own, point in the right direction and dip when another car is near.

Images of  robotic cars

some inner and outer feature..... 

Robotic car motivations

Why would anyone need a vehicle that travels without human guidance?

 Mainly, to :

1) get rid of routine activities, 

2) increase safety, and

3) optimize traffic flow. 

 We still need to physically transport ourselves and cargo over land, so we continue to spend substantial time and energy in transport. Who wouldn’t want to be productive in the car, instead of spending time behind the wheel, especially as the pace of life accelerates? Options during safe robotic door-to-door transport include reading a newspaper  [or Control Engineering online or in print], finishing a presentation, safely making a business call while referencing a laptop, or napping. For now, these luxuries are for those who can afford personal drivers.

  Taxi drivers, bus drivers, and truck drivers are worth mentioning. It is possible that robot vehicles may try to replace these professionals. I think a human will remain available to drive a bus or truck, to retake control or interfere in dangerous situations, as do pilots of commercial aircraft and railroad engineers [and some plant operators for some highly controlled processes]. Meanwhile, automobiles equipped with reliable autopilots will begin taking routine, perhaps more rural, routes.

On the other hand, not everyone is a good driver. The statistics of people who have been killed or injured in car crashes looks more terrifying than status reports from battlefields. 

  When technology reaches the level needed, robotic automobiles will be much safer than inexperienced, aggressive, or drunk drivers, though some experts disagree.

Giving increased mobility to immobile people is among the biggest advantages of future self-driving cars.

 Road flow optimization is the third goal of autonomous automobile development. Many metropolitan area roads are overloaded. As some experts predict, self-driving cars will revolutionize private transportation. Just as Uber services are increasing vehicle utilization, when self-driving cars hit the market, there will be less need for everyone to own a car. Ride sharing, a lower-cost, per-use option, will decrease the number of vehicles on the roads [perhaps similar to large industrial companies purchasing functionality in service models rather than buying under-utilized assets that require maintenance].

Robotic communications

Self-driving vehicles will pre-calculate routes around traffic jams and road work, as well as communicate with nearby cars and traffic lights to optimize throughput and increase safety. Robotic cars will use a feedback approach, using elements of distributed and centralized control.

Priorities can be granted during rush hours or to certain vehicles (like an ambulance or fire crews). These concepts already are familiar in GPS navigation software that helps shorten current roadway transportation.

Some fear robots

Finally, some may avoid robotic cars out of fear, although some negative reactions toward self-driving cars may be expected. Fears may include the "rise of the machines," loss of privacy as people may feel watched by Big Brother, or feel that they’ll become a hostage of things [locked into an automated vehicle]. While that may seem like paranoia, technology is becoming a bigger part of our daily lives, especially, perhaps, as manipulation goes beyond information to material objects.

 It’s not hard to imagine that it would be easier to track and systemize movements of a self-driving car. How collected information will be used depends on who obtains the information, related laws [and cybersecurity of connected systems].

What if riders set a "shopping mall" or "restaurant" as a destination point instead of regular coordinates, and the car decides where to go? This could be convenient for riders and a sweet spot for advertisers. Maybe this is why Google is pioneering autonomous cars development.

With sinister motives, successful hackers could make a robotic car a weapon [just as with any robot large enough to do damage].

In October 2015, Google’s top management changed as Andy Rubin, an Android developer and a leader of its robotic engineering department, left. Larry Page, the CEO of Google’s parent company, Alphabet Inc., explained these changes as a desire to focus on project development, such as a Google self-driving car.

In time, we’ll see where all this goes [who’s driving, and what technologies are used and can be adopted from and for industrial automation and industrial mobile robotics].

With references to google this article is made..