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That's tricky. So you need to be able to take control of the car quickly in an emergency, but at the same time you want the human pseudodriver to be free to be

by Pxtl 8y ago

That's tricky. So you need to be able to take control of the car quickly in an emergency, but at the same time you want the human pseudodriver to be free to be distracted or drowsy, and so in a state where they could accidentally hit this button.

bryanlarsen 8y ago
That would be classified as "Level 3" autonomous, aka "Driver must be available to take over controls". Waymo has publicly stated that it feels that Level 3 autonomous is unsafe and that it's goal is Level 4 "Driver not expected to take control". Waymo currently has Level 3 cars, which is why they employ safety drivers and haven't made their cars publicly available.
- dmoy 8y ago
  I thought they also had some l4 cars without steering wheels and stuff. Those must not have manual mode (right?! Or what? How?). I have no idea how to know exactly though. Waymo is pretty tight lipped about this. I work at Google and I don't know for sure.
  - williamscales 8y ago
    They had the little bubble cars running around for a while that didn't appear to have a steering wheel but I believe they were controllable via a joystick.
icebraining 8y ago
No. Waymo wants their test drivers to be attentive and alert, so that when the cars are ready, the passengers don't have to be. They should really have two test drivers there, though.
- loceng 8y ago
  Not in all cases perhaps though to mimic real-life usage, as then this scenario may not have been uncovered until mass adoption; I could understand a 'real test driver' and a passive/non-engaged safety person in passenger seat - what can they do but wake a driver who falls asleep though, and perhaps then wake them before they accidentally engage manual mode while asleep?
  - icebraining 8y ago
    They're not supposed to mimic real-life; Waymo's plan is to not have drivers at all. A passenger can hold the steering wheel until the driver comes to. Or they can even use a car with two sets of pedals, they're common in driving schools.

by Pxtl 8y ago

bryanlarsen 8y ago

That would be classified as "Level 3" autonomous, aka "Driver must be available to take over controls". Waymo has publicly stated that it feels that Level 3 autonomous is unsafe and that it's goal is Level 4 "Driver not expected to take control". Waymo currently has Level 3 cars, which is why they employ safety drivers and haven't made their cars publicly available.

dmoy 8y ago
I thought they also had some l4 cars without steering wheels and stuff. Those must not have manual mode (right?! Or what? How?). I have no idea how to know exactly though. Waymo is pretty tight lipped about this. I work at Google and I don't know for sure.
- williamscales 8y ago
  They had the little bubble cars running around for a while that didn't appear to have a steering wheel but I believe they were controllable via a joystick.

icebraining 8y ago

No. Waymo wants their test drivers to be attentive and alert, so that when the cars are ready, the passengers don't have to be. They should really have two test drivers there, though.

loceng 8y ago
Not in all cases perhaps though to mimic real-life usage, as then this scenario may not have been uncovered until mass adoption; I could understand a 'real test driver' and a passive/non-engaged safety person in passenger seat - what can they do but wake a driver who falls asleep though, and perhaps then wake them before they accidentally engage manual mode while asleep?
- icebraining 8y ago
  They're not supposed to mimic real-life; Waymo's plan is to not have drivers at all. A passenger can hold the steering wheel until the driver comes to. Or they can even use a car with two sets of pedals, they're common in driving schools.