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Especially in the US even a fairly simple "hybrid" self driving truck could probably provide some savings. Automate the long straight roads and let the driver t

by kriro 10y ago

Especially in the US even a fairly simple "hybrid" self driving truck could probably provide some savings. Automate the long straight roads and let the driver take over for everything else. Depending on the route the sleep schedules could be met during the automated driving part. I guess that's what they meant with the sentence about saving 50kk/year even in the current form. As an aside, the article mentioned that the driver was sleeping in the back...I'm sure that's no accident. However I doubt that's a safe thing to try (and only possible in these very artificial circumstances) even with a good warning/wakeup system in place it takes too long to get from the back to the front and react.

nathanvanfleet 10y ago
I don't think that the driver would be in the truck once this tech is finalized. If they needed a driver for a "last mile" scenario the truck would probably pull over to let them on. The only savings is if you only have 2 hours for a human instead of 20.
ricardonunez 10y ago
The driver wasn't sleeping "while the truck driver hung out back in the sleeper cab". Sleeping will not make much sense for such a small trip and during a test.
mkarazin 10y ago
Article mentions the driver was hanging out in the sleeper cab. Long term them may be able to sleep or completely tune out in the back, but for now it was a stunt. I bet there were clear instructions on the driver's behavior. The article mentioned a "police cruiser in tow", but from pictures its not clear where or what function they played. For all we know, the police ensured no one came within 200ft in front or back, and the driver was told to take the wheel as soon as a car violated this zone. This is all hypothetical... but you can see how with coordinated effort they can set the scenario for safety.
jenkstom 10y ago
With the hours of service reform passed a few years ago, drivers are required to have so many off-duty hours and so many sleep hours per week and day. Being able to go off-duty or log sleep while the truck is traveling means higher fleet velocity, which means higher fleet utilization, which means higher revenue. A truck with a single driver has to sit idle (or off in California) a large part of the day. Capital costs don't take a break during those hours.

by kriro 10y ago

nathanvanfleet 10y ago

I don't think that the driver would be in the truck once this tech is finalized. If they needed a driver for a "last mile" scenario the truck would probably pull over to let them on. The only savings is if you only have 2 hours for a human instead of 20.

ricardonunez 10y ago

The driver wasn't sleeping "while the truck driver hung out back in the sleeper cab". Sleeping will not make much sense for such a small trip and during a test.

mkarazin 10y ago

Article mentions the driver was hanging out in the sleeper cab. Long term them may be able to sleep or completely tune out in the back, but for now it was a stunt. I bet there were clear instructions on the driver's behavior. The article mentioned a "police cruiser in tow", but from pictures its not clear where or what function they played. For all we know, the police ensured no one came within 200ft in front or back, and the driver was told to take the wheel as soon as a car violated this zone. This is all hypothetical... but you can see how with coordinated effort they can set the scenario for safety.

jenkstom 10y ago

With the hours of service reform passed a few years ago, drivers are required to have so many off-duty hours and so many sleep hours per week and day. Being able to go off-duty or log sleep while the truck is traveling means higher fleet velocity, which means higher fleet utilization, which means higher revenue. A truck with a single driver has to sit idle (or off in California) a large part of the day. Capital costs don't take a break during those hours.