It might sound like magic, but it is really true. Nigerians couldn't get enough of a self-driving car spotted in Lagos state.
The driverless car being test run by Tech Plus, will provide millions easy access to effortless movement. Many people who mobbed the car thought it was magic. Some even thought the car was being controlled spiritually.
The amazement on the faces of people said it all. People brought out their phones to record while others tried to peep through the window to see if someone was hiding to control the car.
What you need to know about self-driving cars
According to ucsusa.org, self-driving vehicles are cars or trucks in which human drivers are never required to take control to safely operate the vehicle. Also known as autonomous or “driverless” cars, they combine sensors and software to control, navigate, and drive the vehicle.
Various self-driving technologies have been developed by Google, Uber, Tesla, Nissan, and other major automakers, researchers, and technology companies.
While design details vary, most self-driving systems create and maintain an internal map of their surroundings, based on a wide array of sensors, like radar. Uber’s self-driving prototypes use sixty-four laser beams, along with other sensors, to construct their internal map; Google’s prototypes have, at various stages, used lasers, radar, high-powered cameras, and sonar.
Software then processes those inputs, plots a path, and sends instructions to the vehicle’s “actuators,” which control acceleration, braking, and steering. Hard-coded rules, obstacle avoidance algorithms, predictive modeling, and “smart” object discrimination (ie, knowing the difference between a bicycle and a motorcycle) help the software follow traffic rules and navigate obstacles.
Partially-autonomous vehicles may require a human driver to intervene if the system encounters uncertainty; fully-autonomous vehicles may not even offer a steering wheel.
Self-driving cars can be further distinguished as being “connected” or not, indicating whether they can communicate with other vehicles and/or infrastructure, such as next generation traffic lights. Most prototypes do not currently have this capability.
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