For all the hype and speculation around self-driving cars, it’s worth taking a moment to pause and realize how quickly the technology has moved from fiction to reality. In the next few months, we can expect Google’s Waymo unit and other autonomous vehicle technology companies to put the finishing touches as they move from trials to widespread deployments. What self-driving car features and components make this possible?
GPRS and navigation systems help the vehicles move through challenging terrain and traffic without running the risk of accidents. The latest anti-collision systems ensure that, even when moving through heavy traffic, the vehicles can quickly come to a halt. Self-driving vehicles are also designed to provide enough room for other vehicles if they are traveling at a specified speed.
The global market for self-driving cars will grow at a compound annual rate of 25.7% from 2016 to 2024, reaching $20 billion, according to Variant Market Research. Strategy Analytics and Intel say the “global transportation economy” could be worth $7 trillion by 2050. Tesla executive Elon Musk is more bullish than many of his peers, predicting that we’ll be “sleeping in our cars” in two years.
Still, it’s early days, and self-driving cars will certainly take some time to come to market (and address regulatory concerns). In the meantime, the infographic below provides an overview of the hardware and software that goes into self-driving cars. Some consumers can already begin dreaming of owning — or sharing — such vehicles, while suppliers and automakers are bracing for the next era of transportation.
More on Robotics Developments and Self-Driving Car Features:
- How Automated Transportation Will Change Our Lives
- 2018 CES: Artificial Intelligence — Insights Into Our Future
- Breaking Down Autonomous Systems
- CES Recap: AI & Robotics Trends to Watch in 2018
- 3D Vision Brings Real-Time Sensing to Robots
- 10 Best Robots of CES 2018
- Delphi Buys Self-Driving Startup nuTonomy for $450M
- Aptiv, Lyft Give Self-Driving Taxi Rides During CES 2018
- Robot Investments Weekly: SoftBank Pays $7.7B for 15% Stake in Uber
