Volvo has announced it will be developing its own self-driving cars, adding it will build 100 autonomous vehicles in a pilot project slated for 2017.
The Swedish-based, Chinese-owned automaker joins the ranks of Google and Nissan as companies vying to create the car of the future wherein vehicles drive by themselves, with virtually no guidance from the driver. These self-driving cars would benefit people with disabilities, as well as minimize accidents due to driver error, at least that is its noble intention.
The project will test Volvo’s autonomous cars on selected roads within the Swedish city of Gothenburg, spanning 30 miles (50 kilometers) in total. Not only Volvo’s concept vehicles will be tested on all automated driving functions (with “occasional control” from the driver), the company also plans to make its cars park by themselves, allowing drivers to just leave them on the lot as the cars find a vacant spot.
Automated cars drive by themselves with the help of cameras and computers equipped within the body. Apart from the technology, the legal stuff takes a long way to go before we will see these self-driving cars in your local showroom.
Source: Associated Press (via Yahoo!)
