Tesla have announced a new version if their self driving software, Tesla Autopilot 8 and it relies more on radar which will apparently ensure it is safer.
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Speaking to journalists about the software update, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said he believed this upgraded Autopilot system would have prevented the fatal autopilot crash that happened earlier this year.
Elon Musk has definitely bigger problems at his hands than writing down the new features of the upcoming Tesla software update that brings improvements of Autopilot using radar better and new user interface changes. He claimed that with the improved radar system of the technology, Autopilot would be able to see large metal objects across the road and determine if the object does or does not pose a threat.
In a Twitter post, Musk said he would be holding a Q&A session with the media on Sunday and would follow that with a post about autopilot at 3 pm ET. The update will make sure that the driver holds the steering wheel by issuing repeated warnings; if the warnings are ignored, the auto will force the driver to park the vehicle before re-engaging the autonomous functions, the BBC explains. According to the investigation, the Tesla Model S was traveling along a highway in Autopilot mode, but the system did not see a tractor trailer that was driving across.
Tesla’s Autopilot system can maintain a set speed, keep the auto within its lane and brake automatically. The radar technology should decrease accident numbers, he noted.
All radar-equipped Model S and Model X cars from the past two years will benefit from the downloadable update, due out in the next couple of weeks.
The administration has been investigating the matter to find out if the accident has taken place from any safety defect in the Autopilot.
“We’re making much more effective use of radar”, Musk was quoted as telling reporters on a phone call.
The company says it’s made more than 200 improvements to its software with this update, including a change that will lock inattentive drivers out of Autopilot mode if they don’t take the wheel when the vehicle issues an audible warning three times in an hour.
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Instead it’s merely the latest stage in Tesla’s continual improvement of its products.
