Data Likely to Show Teslas In Autopilot Crash More Than Rivals –

DETROIT (AP) – The government will soon release data on collisions with vehicles with autonomous or partially automated control systems, which may not be proportionate to Tesla’s of such accidents.

In the coming days, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration plans to publish the data it has gathered in nearly a year. The agency said in a separate report last week that it had more than 200 accidents involving Tesla using autopilot, “fully autonomous driving,” traffic-sensitive cruise control or other partially automated systems. ‘agency.

Tesla’s rate and its accident rate per 1,000 vehicles are much higher than the corresponding figures for other automakers that provided such data to the Associated Press prior to NHTSA’s publication. The number of Tesla accidents was announced as part of an NHTSA investigation into a Tesla autopilot that collided with an ambulance and other vehicles on parked roads.

Tesla has more vehicles with partially automated systems on U.S. roads than most other automakers-about 830,000, since model year 2014. And it collects real-time data from cars online, so it has a faster reporting system. Other car manufacturers, on the other hand, have to wait for a report from the field and sometimes you don’t hear about accidents for months.

In a mandate in June 2021, NHTSA told more than 100 automakers and vehicle maintenance companies to report major accidents within one day of their study and report less serious accidents. on the 15th day of the next month. The agency assesses how the systems work, whether they pose a threat to public safety and whether new regulations may be needed.

General Motors said it reported three accidents when using its “Super Cruise” or other partially automated systems. The company says it has sold more than 34,000 vehicles to Super Cruise since its 2017 debut.

Nissan, which has more than 560,000 vehicles on the road with its ProPilot Assist, has no reports of accidents, the company said.

Stellantis, formerly of Fiat Chrysler, said it reported two incidents related to its systems. Ford said it doesn’t have any “Blue Cruise” driver assistance systems, which went on sale in the spring, though Ford didn’t say if there were any accidents with less efficient systems.

GM said the three crashes were not Super Cruise’s fault. He also reported two incidents that occurred before the order in June 2021, the spokesman said.

Some automakers and tech companies, including Toyota and Honda, refused to release their numbers until NHTSA data was released.

He left a message asking for comment to Tesla, which disbanded the media relations department. NHTSA did not comment on Tuesday’s data.

Raj Rajkumar, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Carnegie Mellon University who studies automated vehicles, said he would not be surprised if Tesla discovered that a large number of accidents were caused by assistance systems. in driving. Tesla, based in Austin, Texas, has stopped using radar in its system and instead relied solely on cameras and computers, a system Rajkumar called “essentially dangerous.”

According to him, the computer system can only recognize what is in its memory. Rajkumar said the ambulance lights could confuse the system, as well as anything the computer had not seen before.

“Ambulances can be very different to any data trained by Tesla software,” he said.

In addition to publicly reported accident data, NHTSA sent investigation teams into more accidents involving Tesla using electronic systems than any other automaker. As part of a broader investigation of accidents involving advanced driver assistance systems, since 2016 the agency has sent teams to 34 accidents where these systems are believed to have been used. According to the NHTSA document, Tesla was involved in 28 of 34 accidents.

NHTSA said in documents it received 191 accident warnings on Tesla’s autopilot and off-road vehicles, along with 16 more parked ambulances or warning lights, out of a total of 207. Of the 191, the agency removed 85. because of actions. Other vehicles or insufficient data for a reliable accident analysis. This left 106 involved in the autopilot investigation.

It’s unclear if the 207 Tesla matches the total number of accidents reported to NHTSA in the sequence. An NHTSA spokesman did not comment.

The agency instructed car manufacturers and maintenance companies to report accidents with driver assistance systems and fully autonomous steering systems.

To protect partially automated systems, Tesla said autopilot and “full self-check” cannot be done alone and that drivers should always be willing to intervene. The systems can keep cars in their line and away from other cars and objects. But in documents released last week, NHTSA raised doubts that drivers could intervene quickly to prevent accidents.

Tesla’s “complete self-management” is designed to complete the path independently under human supervision, to lead and control the autonomous robotic fleet for the ultimate goal. In 2019, Musk promised to launch Robotax in 2020.

Tesla’s autopilot driver assistance system detects hands on the steering wheel to make sure drivers are paying attention. But this is not enough, Rajkumar said. Conversely, systems like GM monitor the driver’s eyes with a camera, he said, to make sure they can’t wait.