Page 15 - EE Times Europe September 2021

EE|Times EUROPE 15

Is the Spec for Vehicle Automation Levels a Dead End?

Pause and consider that every Waymo
test vehicle is outfitted with more sensors and
processors than nearly all privately owned
passenger vehicles, yet when operating in
manual (human-driven) mode, the
collision-avoidance technology was insuf-
ficient to even prevent a collision with a
scooter.
How worried are San Franciscans now,
I wonder?
AEB Vulnerable Road User (AEB-VRU)
has for several years been specified by the
European New Car Assessment Program (Euro
NCAP) for passenger vehicles. However, the
San Francisco incident implies that Waymo is
deploying test vehicles on public roads fitted
with collision-avoidance technology for man-
ual mode that does not even meet historical
(Source: bit.ly/3ix3jgm) Euro NCAP standards, let alone exceed the
current one.
Why are there no guidelines published by
the U.S. National Highway Transportation
Safety Administration (NHTSA) specifying
minimum AEB performance standards for test-
level AVs when operating in manual mode on
public roads? Also, why are there no guidelines
specifying minimum performance standards
for driver-monitoring systems to assess dis-
traction and fatigue in human backup drivers?
These are two obvious safety cases that
have been overlooked.
While little can be expected of AV foxes
guarding the public hen house, the regulatory
environment shifted dramatically recently
when NHTSA required operators of test-level
AVs to report all crashes, with the publication
of a Standing General Order.
This is likely to be the first of several
significant changes to the regulatory environ-
(Source: bit.ly/3kL76JA) ment for AV testing and development, with
lawmakers now increasingly questioning the
that the answer might be about 2 billion miles expensive cul-de-sac in history? promises of the AV industry while listening
(see above slide). carefully to safety advocacy groups such as
If Waymo Driver has accumulated “over SCOOTERS, NHTSA, AND NCAP Consumer Reports and the Center for Auto
20 million miles on real-world roads since In February, Waymo announced expanded Safety, which are pushing instead for proven
2009” (waymo.com/safety), then that equates testing to include San Francisco. In an accom- vehicle safety technology such as AEB, DMS,
to only 1% of the necessary distance esti- panying blog post, the company observed: and lane-departure warning systems to
mated by Koopman. For all the press hype “When asked to name factors making it hard become mandatory.
over Level 4 autonomous driving, these to get around the city, 63% of respondents Keeping the human driver attentive and
calculations imply the technology requires pointed to dangerous drivers, 74% to parking, engaged is the primary role of DMS. In
way more money, time, and testing before and 57% to stressful commutes. Worryingly, comparison, AEB and lane-keeping systems
the suppliers are anywhere close to proving nearly a quarter didn’t feel safe on San provide longitudinal speed assist and lateral
the safety case. Francisco’s roads at all.” lane support, respectively. These proven
In which case, please allow me to introduce San Franciscans’ worries probably weren’t vehicle safety technologies look set to save
Waymore. soothed when a Waymo test vehicle then many more lives in the decades ahead than
This analysis suggests many more testing promptly collided with a pedestrian riding anything “self driving” at Levels 3, 4, or 5.
miles to go, prompting me to question a scooter. In a statement, Waymo said: “The Although well-known and widely refer-
whether investors in the Level 4 suppliers autonomous specialist had recently disen- enced, perhaps the J3016 spec just isn’t that
truly grasp the scale of the challenge ahead gaged the vehicle from autonomous mode and helpful after all. ■
and have the money, patience, and nerve to was driving in manual mode when the vehicle
complete the journey. entered the intersection and made the left Colin Barnden is lead analyst at Semicast
Or did the comfort blanket of J3016 and the turn. After turning, and while still in manual Research and EE Times’ “Seriously Skeptical”
promises of autonomous driving technology mode, the vehicle came into contact with an columnist. This article originally appeared
inadvertently create the longest, most individual on a motorized scooter.” on EE Times.

www.eetimes.eu | SEPTEMBER 2021