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Dutchess_III's avatar

Do you find this interesting? (Details).

Asked by Dutchess_III (46856points) 2 weeks ago

At this point self-driving vehicles are presented as appearing exactly like people driven vehicles, with seats, steering wheels, seat belts and windows to look out of. ?
Do you think that eventually they’ll drop that nonsense and we’ll simply seecargo boxes running about on their own?

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10 Answers

zenvelo's avatar

They’ll continue to have seats and seat belts. But it is highly likely that there will not be any space for a driver, and people sit in a circle facing each other. And since each passenger will be interested in his or her own entertainment, there will be great wifi but no radio.

JLeslie's avatar

No. Aerodynamics play a part in car design and also appealing to specific markets through branding. I think there will always be times when a person has the option to drive or needs to take over the wheel.

I do think some very plain cars will be available eventually as an economic option or taxi service. I think they won’t be a box, but more rounded for efficiency.

ragingloli's avatar

Subway trains have windows, and they are underground. in dark tunnels.
Cars will always have windows, because people will want to look outside.
They will also have seatbelts, because accidents will happen, even with self driving cars.

Tropical_Willie's avatar

Like these food delivery robots, they move at pedestrian speed on sidewalks and some on roads. https://cmr.berkeley.edu/2022/04/self-driving-robots-a-revolution-in-the-local-delivery/

JLeslie's avatar

Clarifying my no response: it’s interesting, but I don’t think it will be just plain boxes driving everywhere.

janbb's avatar

@Tropical_Willie I saw one of those in Berkeley trundling down the street!

Dutchess_III's avatar

I was thinking of delivery trucks. No humans needed at all.

Zaku's avatar

Yeah, and some of them will be flying. People have been working on flying delivery drones for many years. Self-driving delivery drones is a slightly harder and more danger-frought problem, in some ways.

Blackwater_Park's avatar

I’m optimistic that this will eventually bring back mass transit

JLeslie's avatar

Supposedly, there are driverless trucks on the highways already. I have a hard time believing it. Scares me, but at the same time truck driver fatigue is real, and that is dangerous too.

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