Google is taking over the world. Whether that’s a good or bad thing, I’m not sure. What used to be an internet search engine is now a fully- fledged technology company… and here’s the proof. It’s moved into motoring. What’s more, it used its blog to tell the world. What happened to the days of putting out press releases?
The company has revealed its engineers have been test-driving a fleet of Toyota Prius hybrid cars. They’ve racked up 140,000 miles already.
What’s interesting is none of the cars had a driver. There was somebody sat behind the wheel in case something went wrong, but they weren’t actually controlling the car.
This has caught everyone on the hop. Nobody knew Google was working on such a project. The blog explained the company was founded to help solve problems using technology. “And one of the big problems we’re working on today is car safety and efficiency. Our goal is to help prevent traffic accidents, free up people’s time and reduce carbon emissions by fundamentally changing car use.”
Automated cars that rely on video cameras, radar and a host of other electronic wizardry to find their way around are relatively new. But the technology is moving fast, literally. In 2004, 15 teams entered the DARPA Challenge, a 150-time-trial for full-sized robotic cars in the Nevada desert. Seven miles was the furthest any competitor got before crashing. The following year, five out of 23 starters finished the whole thing. It was won by Stanley (pictured), developed by California's Stanford University.
Mainstream car makers are too focused on cleaning up their engines with hybrid and hydrogen technology to be worried about automated vehicles. It’s being left to university researchers, and now Google, to lead the charge. Would you bet against a car with a big G on the bonnet in a showroom near you in the next 20 years? Not sure I would.
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