The innovation leader in real-time 3D vision systems in autonomous vehicles Velodyne Lidar, Inc. held the first ever World Safety Summit on Autonomous Technology last week in California, convening leaders from public safety, government, communities, and businesses to advance the future of roadway safety. With MythBushers host Jamie Hyneman emceeing the event, the summit provided a venue for open discussions on how autonomous technology can be deployed for greater roadway safety, reducing the 40,000 plus annual traffic fatalities that occur.
The former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and former deputy director with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Christopher A. Hart spoke about the aviation industry’s history of safety improvements that should be applied in the implementation of autonomous vehicles.
“Collaboration was key for the airlines’ success. That same collaboration among the leaders in autonomy is also the key for its success. Autonomy needs to be human-centric,” stated Hart.
Marta Hall, president of Velodyne Lidar, advocated for clearer language when talking about autonomy in order to reduce public confusion. A sentiment that Mircea Gradu, a senior vice president at Venodyne Lidar and president of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE International), supports. As an example of greater industry transparency, he proposed that companies go through a neutral third party to provide test results, or explore ways to generate fact-based AV information from consumer organizations and SAE.
The Summit also included university students participating in the AutoDrive Challenge that tasked teams from eight different universities to develop an autonomous Level 4 vehicle that can operate without human input or oversight.
