On March 26th, a Volvo SUV model used by Uber for autonomous driving test was in a car accident in Tempe, Arizona. In the accident, Uber automatically drove the car and the other car was seriously damaged. Uber has now suspended autopilot car testing in the state. The accident happened to the recently troubled Uber encounter with gravity.
The company responded that there were two Uber spare drivers in the front seat of the accident. There were no other passengers and no one was injured. The company did not disclose the fault, saying the investigation is still in progress.
Car accident details: the responsible party is not in the car
In a photo exposed on Twitter, a Uber Volvo autopilot SUV collided with another car, the front window was broken, and the body was recessed into a large piece. A Uber spokesperson confirmed the incident and the authenticity of the photo, and said Uber had suspended the autopilot test in Arizona until the investigation was completed and the operation in Pittsburgh was suspended.
In an interview with Bloomberg News, Tempe City Police Information Officer Josie Montenegro said that in this car accident, Uber Volvo did not have the responsibility to automatically drive the SUV, and no casualties were caused. According to police reports, another car failed to give Uber a self-driving car, causing the latter to roll over. Montenigro said: "Uber has a driver on the self-driving car, but it is not clear whether they control the vehicle in the event of a collision."
A Uber spokesperson said: "We are still investigating the accident. What we can confirm is that there are no passengers in the back seat in the event of a car accident."
Autopilot projects are constantly controversialUber began testing self-driving cars in Pittsburgh in 2016. But in December last year, the California Motor Vehicle Authority banned Uber from testing autonomous vehicles on the streets of San Francisco, and soon Uber expanded the test to Arizona. The test of self-driving cars is designed to demonstrate Uber's progress in this new technology.
In February, Uber began offering passenger services in Tempe, and Arizona Governor Doug Ducey took the car when it started operations. Doug Dusie is also a staunch supporter of autonomous vehicles.
However, the Uber self-driving car project has recently been controversial. At the beginning of the year, Alarm unmanned driver Waymo sued Uber, and Waymo also tested driverless cars in Arizona, claiming that Uber had stolen the lidar design information, and Uber responded that the lawsuit was unfounded. Uber called Waymo's allegations "unfounded."
The photo shows that the Uber autopilot SUV has rolled over, indicating that it was a relatively violent impact, in stark contrast to several previous accidents in Waymo. In more than 2 million miles of road tests, Waymo's self-driving cars are mostly small car accidents, often causing vehicles to chase the Waymo vehicles in the bustling area.
ConclusionThis car accident is aggravating for Uber. Recently, Uber's internal personnel turmoil and scandals continue, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick is becoming the focus of public opinion due to a series of scandals. After the president resigned, Uber Maps and Business Platform Vice President Brian McClendon also confirmed his departure. Uber's corporate culture is criticized for discriminating against women.
As can be seen from the severity of the photo display, this should be a more serious example of an unmanned vehicle series accident. However, whether it is Uber, Google or Tesla, in most autopilot test accidents, the main responsible party is not on the autopilot side, and more often it is the pedestrian and other driving vehicles.
Nantong Boxin Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. , https://www.ntbosen.com