Experts see a world free of crashes, not drivers

RoadblocksIndustry executives and researchers agree that autonomous-driving technology is well on its way to making driving safer, but they say a fully self-driving car still faces major obstacles.• Legal changes: New laws would have to be passed state by state to allow consumers to own and operate fully autonomous cars. International standards and accords also would have to be forged.• Technology: Self-driving vehicles require many more sensors and cameras; more advanced software and algorithms to process signals; faster processors to handle the data; and more accurate maps to put the data in context. Systems would have to have reliable backups and no bugs.• Cost: The cost of radar and laser-based lidar guidance systems would have to fall significantly to make them affordable enough for deployment in production vehicles.• Infrastructure: Vehicle-to-infrastructure communications would require investments by federal and state governments in an era of tight budgets and gridlock in Congress.• Driver behavior: Automakers and technology companies must find out more about how drivers respond when they are called on to retake control of the vehicle. DETROIT — The heavily hyped, highly anticipated era of the self-driving car is closer than you think — and as far off as ever.

Experts see a world free of crashes, not drivers

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