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Transportation Government United States

Federal Car Fleet To Become Test Bed For High-Tech Safety Gear 24

Posted by samzenpus from the don't-crash-on-me dept.
coondoggie (973519) writes "Future autos leased by the federal government will be equipped with some advanced high-tech safety technology in an effort to test the equipment in real-life situations. The General Services Administration (GSA) and the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said they would team up on the program to further develop high-tech driver and vehicle safety technology."
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Federal Car Fleet To Become Test Bed For High-Tech Safety Gear More

Federal Car Fleet To Become Test Bed For High-Tech Safety Gear

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  • Hope they have good security... (Score:4, Insightful)

    by mlts ( 1038732 ) on Wednesday May 14, 2014 @06:58PM (#47004539)

    V2V sounds good, but I wonder about people who will hack it. For example, making a fake "traffic is gridlocked here" alert might make one's commute a lot better, or triggering a car to panic stop because it thinks another is doing the same can cause actual harm.

    Security isn't something that can be strapped on anymore. It has to be "baked in", in multiple layers, and thoroughly tested as well as every other feature. I hope the makers of V2V technology has this in mind that is being deployed.

    • Is "guinea pig" in Federal employment contracts, now?

      • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

        by Jane Q. Public ( 1010737 )

        Is "guinea pig" in Federal employment contracts, now?

        I sure hope so.

        On a side note: now, when Congress refuses to declare war but stands by while the President sends troops overseas, it is the sons and daughters of Congress members who must go first.

        Hey, I kind of like this idea.

        • Yeah, why not have these cars chauffeur our Senators and Congressmen around...

        • On a side note: now, when Congress refuses to declare war but stands by while the President sends troops overseas, it is the sons and daughters of Congress members who must go first.

          Uh, how about the President goes first? He can lead the battle from atop a noble battle-horse or something.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by dcw3 ( 649211 )

        Probably not, only "pork barrel".

    • For example, making a fake "traffic is gridlocked here" alert might make one's commute a lot better

      You mean I can do "Watch Dogs" but for reals?

      Oh boy, this is gonna be great.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by tlhIngan ( 30335 )

      V2V sounds good, but I wonder about people who will hack it. For example, making a fake "traffic is gridlocked here" alert might make one's commute a lot better, or triggering a car to panic stop because it thinks another is doing the same can cause actual harm.

      Security isn't something that can be strapped on anymore. It has to be "baked in", in multiple layers, and thoroughly tested as well as every other feature. I hope the makers of V2V technology has this in mind that is being deployed.

      The problem is th

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by plover ( 150551 )

        Security isn't "worthless", it's simply not 100% perfect.

        You're absolutely right in that when you have millions of endpoints installed in untrustworthy clients, you'll have no way to conclusively prove that a specific vehicle wasn't transmitting bogus data. It's not just security, but faults and errors that need to be dealt with. Therefore the system needs redundancies: if a vehicle reports it's coming at you at 100MPH, that should be but one input in a system of data: radar reports from other vehicles c

  • MSV HERE WE COME! (Score:3)

    by beltsbear ( 2489652 ) on Wednesday May 14, 2014 @07:03PM (#47004577)

    Now I just need to get my Red Barchetta.

    http://www.2112.net/xanadu/art... [2112.net]

    • I've heard the song many a time but never read the story behind it, thank you.

      On another topic, they talk about adoption rates in the article, as the US vehicle fleet apparently takes about 20 years to turn over. I imagine there'll be significant insurance benefits in vehicle to vehicle systems that will encourage adoption in existing cars. Even more so if enabled cars are permitted a higher legal speed limit, or left/commuter lane only permissions.

      I would really like a minimap showing me nearby vehicles

    • Now I just need to get my Red Barchetta.

      http://www.2112.net/xanadu/art... [2112.net]

      What, so your brother's son can try and wreck it for you?

  • ... and I'm not suggesting this become normal or anything but.

    If I could make a million drivers use 4-point harness safety belts, and drive wearing helmets and nomex coveralls, how would accident mortality be affected?

    I'm not talking about frequency. A warm, cozy helmet cutting down on visibility and increasing drowsiness will probably increase frequency. But what about the injury severity and fatality rate?

    I doubt we will ever know, but I've always wondered.

    I also wonder if high-tech safety gear will cut i

  • At least if some politician gets injured or killed because of the failure of some feature of the car (think Toyota sticking throttles, Ford Pinto gas tanks etc) then it won't get swept under the carpet like it might if it happened to some ordinary person.
    • You are suggesting that those in power would let their ride get tampered with? That's funny. More likely the mail trucks and police cars will be the test beds for this.

  • find out if safety gadgets will help them improve their maintenance standards

  • Was anyone else reminded of Paranoia [wikipedia.org] when they read the synopsis?

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