Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) held a press conference to share more details about the upcoming capabilities of the Autopilot with v8.0 software updates.
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CEO Elon Musk says a new software update to its car’s autopilot system could have prevented a fatal accident that happened past year. Tesla added radar to its Model S cars in late 2014 and rolled out upgraded software in 2015.
Asserting that the improvements unfold by the updated autopilot technology will make Tesla’s cars “by far” the safest on the road, Musk also added alongside that the updated technology “does not mean flawless safety”.
In a call with reporters, Mr Musk said the NHTSA appeared to be “happy” with the Autopilot update. The major change is a shift to primary dependence on data from the car’s radar sensor rather than relying on its camera image processing with radar as a supplement.
The update will reportedly be available in the next few weeks.
An over-the-air update will lean heavily on the car’s radar systems in order to give the electric cars a better sense of what is going on on the roads around them.
In addition to these critical changes, Tesla says there are over 200 other, smaller ones as part of the Version 8.0 update.
Until now the radar has been used as an auxiliary sensor to the vehicles’ main cameras. Due to their concave design, dish-shape objects like soda cans were reflecting back to the vehicles’ radar sensor as being large and risky.
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In the new upgrade, “Autosteer” will repeatedly warn drivers to keep their hands on the steering wheel. The updated system will temporarily prevent drivers from using it if they fail to respond to audible warnings to take back control of the auto.
“When the data shows that false braking events would be rare, the auto will begin mild braking using radar, even if the camera doesn’t notice the object ahead”.
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Musk has also added that the new update will allow the vehicle to brake automatically when it believes it will collide with an object it doesn’t recognise. The Tesla chief estimated that the new system was a three-fold improvement of safety, while stopping short of considering the update a recall of the old system.
