Recent advances in autonomous vehicles, specifically self-driving cars and drones, are turning what was once merely a pipe dream of having a vehicle that can drive itself without human input into something that has the potential to be an achievable goal someday. As long as most essential transportation functions are automated and do not require human input, virtually any vehicle can qualify as an autonomous vehicle, including cars, buses, freight trains, trams, delivery vehicles, or anything in the middle. Plenty of companies are working to develop AVs that need zero human interaction to function.
Autonomous Vehicles: Level of Automation
When it comes to autonomous vehicles, there are several different levels when it comes to considering how much of the mode of transportation is automated. This automation combines what the human in the driver’s seat must do, what is automated, and what kinds of driver support features are in the autonomous vehicle.
The level of automation can range from having a human driver actively engaged with the system the entire time to having a driver who supervises and supports the system to maintain safety, up to having the vehicle do 100% of the driving (unless the system requires a human to take over due to the nature of some specific automation feature). An autonomous vehicle can fall into one of two categories: enhance driver input or fully replace it with automated systems.
Benefits of Autonomous Vehicles
Autonomous vehicles can boast several benefits over traditional automobiles driven by humans. These include enhanced delivery speed, cost efficiency, and various environmental benefits. Delivery speed enhancements are easily achievable. The computer systems of a self-driving automobile can calculate the optimal route from one point to another to minimize traffic congestion issues; at the same time, the systems can receive updates about changing road conditions and make on-the-fly changes as needed. These systems are imperfect, however, and even as they continue to improve, they will experience issues, so the benefits they provide will depend on how well the computer systems handle sudden changes to conditions and unexpected losses of network connectivity.
Cost efficiency will inevitably be a double-edged sword, as it is likely to result from a reduction in human personnel in various industries and from having to pay the salaries of fewer employees. The ability of automated vehicles to optimize their travel routes will likely have some environmental and financial benefits. Shorter travel times will allow us to stretch fuel budgets further and require less fuel, which will mean reduced carbon emissions.
Automation: Drones & Robots
When it comes to drone automation, the obvious example is package delivery. Drones are transforming how goods are delivered, providing faster, more cost-efficient delivery. This specific use case for drones and automation is being actively tested by several companies, including Amazon and UPS, to speed up deliveries and deliver packages to remote destinations more efficiently. However, it is far from the only potential use for drones and robots in automation.
Another primary industry beginning to embrace automation is logistics and freight due to the potential of autonomous vehicles to optimize supply chains. Self-driving trucks have the potential to increase efficiency while also reducing operation costs and improving safety. Given the ongoing issues with driver shortages and transportation network inefficiencies, many companies in the logistics industry are choosing to embrace automation as a possible solution to their woes.
Final Thoughts
As the technology matures, the benefits of autonomous vehicles will become more apparent, as will their drawbacks. Many aspects of this technology that were overlooked in the early stages of its existence will need to be given more significant consideration. There are also likely to be impacts beyond what can be predicted. Currently, the technology is more of a theory than a widespread practice; until it advances to the commercially viable stage, much of what is being speculated about the benefits and uses of self-driving cars will remain merely theory-crafting.
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