Honda is now also working on self-driving cars
First we told you about Google’s and Volvo’s self-driving car experiments, and now some may find it interesting to know that Honda is also in the process of experimenting with a prototype of its self-driving cars.
Honda Cars has shared its vision of the hands-free highway commute, a car that can safely drive itself on a freeway while the driver’s hands are off the wheel. This car is only a prototype, but Honda stated that it may roll on into production by 2020 already.
The prototype that Honda is testing is called an Acura RLX sedan and features things such as cameras that monitor lane lines and multiple radar sensors on the front and sides. On top is a beacon that uses laser beams to continually scan the car’s surroundings, similar to self-driving prototypes already introduced by Google, Ford and Toyota. GPS also helps the car stay on a previously mapped course and obey speed limits.
Hironobu Kiryu, the car’s chief engineer said, “Honda is aiming to eliminate accidents,” he said. “Not just for the driver but for pedestrians and drivers of other cars.”
The company was showing the car in Detroit this week as part of an Intelligent Transport Systems World Congress, an annual gathering of engineers and other researchers.
It might also be important to note that a lot of people actually don’t want to drive autonomous cars. Wonder if the car manufacturers are taking these stats into account?