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Parking shouldn't be a difficult task for a self-driving truck; but I suspect there will be a 'driver' along for the ride well after the task is mostly automat

Parking shouldn't be a difficult task for a self-driving truck; but I suspect there will be a 'driver' along for the ride well after the task is mostly automated, just to deal with exceptional circumstances (eg. flash flood has made road impassable in some way the automated truck cannot deal with) and also to act as a security guard so nobody robs the robo-truck.

smm2000 12y ago
I doubt security guard is really required, at least in US, Europe and most other developed countries. Container is closed and it's easy to install device that calls police in case it's opened mid-way. Also most trucks transport goods that are difficult to steal and sell profitably (low price, high weight - think groceries, furniture, etc).
- 6d0debc071 12y ago
  Theft from HGVs isn't hugely rare. People will cut right through the side of them. I think it was on the order of £25-30 million a year in the UK, last I checked (2010-ish) And then there's the value of the fuel in the vehicle.
- msane 12y ago
  Oh I definitely think any sort of time spent stationary by a truck full of goods is a security concern. The places you mention are obviously the safest in the world but there are certainly people who will rob (burglarize?) trucks if given the right opportunity.
msane 12y ago
I was thinking about this. Straightforward parking is easy to automate. With big-rig parking there are a lot of really variable situations around loading bays. Often ramps and poles and dumpsters that could potentially roll around. I think of a lot of suburban shopping complexes in the middle of residential areas where neighborhood kids may be playing in the lot. So yes, I could see parking needing to be human-supervised. Though not necessarily even needing to be by someone in the truck. Perhaps just by someone at the receiving area. Probably an employee of the receiving bay who has a special license. When the truck arrives they have to "authorize" the parking, which acknowledges they inspected the the loading area and will watch the truck perform docking. Whether there is someone in the truck at all times is a hard prediction. I also think that these trucks will have remote operation override, which was mentioned elsewhere on this thread (even as an alternative to / cultural introduction to / slippery slope for - full automation). Remote operation is the ideal solution for any kind of exception, short of failure of the remote operation system :P

smm2000 12y ago

I doubt security guard is really required, at least in US, Europe and most other developed countries. Container is closed and it's easy to install device that calls police in case it's opened mid-way. Also most trucks transport goods that are difficult to steal and sell profitably (low price, high weight - think groceries, furniture, etc).

6d0debc071 12y ago
Theft from HGVs isn't hugely rare. People will cut right through the side of them. I think it was on the order of £25-30 million a year in the UK, last I checked (2010-ish) And then there's the value of the fuel in the vehicle.
msane 12y ago
Oh I definitely think any sort of time spent stationary by a truck full of goods is a security concern. The places you mention are obviously the safest in the world but there are certainly people who will rob (burglarize?) trucks if given the right opportunity.

msane 12y ago

I was thinking about this. Straightforward parking is easy to automate. With big-rig parking there are a lot of really variable situations around loading bays. Often ramps and poles and dumpsters that could potentially roll around. I think of a lot of suburban shopping complexes in the middle of residential areas where neighborhood kids may be playing in the lot. So yes, I could see parking needing to be human-supervised. Though not necessarily even needing to be by someone in the truck. Perhaps just by someone at the receiving area. Probably an employee of the receiving bay who has a special license. When the truck arrives they have to "authorize" the parking, which acknowledges they inspected the the loading area and will watch the truck perform docking. Whether there is someone in the truck at all times is a hard prediction. I also think that these trucks will have remote operation override, which was mentioned elsewhere on this thread (even as an alternative to / cultural introduction to / slippery slope for - full automation). Remote operation is the ideal solution for any kind of exception, short of failure of the remote operation system :P