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The ISS is extremely difficult to "berth" (not dock) with an automated spacecraft due to safety rules to protect a $150bn asset. Berthing with the ISS is curren
by neurotech1 12y ago
The ISS is extremely difficult to "berth" (not dock) with an automated spacecraft due to safety rules to protect a $150bn asset. Berthing with the ISS is currently assisted by a remote control arm, Canadarm2. An actual automated docking (Dragon v2) is even more difficult.
What Elon is saying is that he knows the steps towards an operational automated driving system, and can expand its capability at each step. Most of the limitations are "regulatory" and not technical.
- sjtrny 12y agoDifficulty and regulatory requirements are not the same thing. The difficulty of berthing with the ISS is technically quite low. There is a single object to contend with (the ISS) of which the full parameters are known. There are no other objects to get in your way. Visibility is good. All in all it's a highly predictable and very static environment. I completely disagree. The limitations are technical not regulatory. Elon Musk might think he knows at a high level how to slowly introduce the technology. That's great and all but the technology doesn't exist yet and won't for a long time. I'm talking about 100% driving duties here, not just cruising on the highway and parking in a controlled environment.