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80 Comments
- mogebier, on 11/10/2009, -0/+39I saw some testing lab years ago coming up with something like this. But in their test, the cars were driven by computers and there were sensors in the road in a special lane in the middle of the highway median. The cars were doing 90+ mph about 1 foot apart. It was amazingly cool.
- nickaster, on 11/10/2009, -3/+25Love the concept, but you've got to have dedicated lanes for this sort of thing, and if you're going to do that, you might as well have rails
- badqat, on 11/10/2009, -4/+25lol...tailgating for positive effect? I mean, it works so well in NASCAR...what's the worst that could happen?
- chewitt, on 11/10/2009, -0/+17The problem with rails is you can only go where the train goes.
- Chewie67, on 11/10/2009, -0/+13Love the concept.
Ultimately, this is just a stepping stone until we have "smart cars" that know our destination and do that highway driving for us. My guess is that we're still a decade or two away from that, but it will happen. - beatleman, on 11/10/2009, -0/+9I'm pretty sure the point of this is that you don't actually control your own car while you're a part of the "road train." That's what the wireless sensors are for. In other words, if the "professional driver" in front slams to a stop, all the cars simultaneously slam to a stop.
- RooC10, on 11/10/2009, -0/+9So long as the ***** in the back has brakes.
Every car doesn't have the same stopping power, otherwise a cool idea. - FunFactor100, on 11/10/2009, -0/+8Taiyoryu: That is one problem among many others that can probably be solved. Suppose there are sensors on the brakes. If your brakes are not up to par then the train will not allow you to join. Problem solved.
- choopie911, on 11/10/2009, -0/+7Well it's only a matter or time until something like this happens anyways, so seeing concepts is interesting. I'm not saying it will be anytime soon, but we'll be driven around eventually.
- doctechnical, on 11/10/2009, -0/+7Computer controlled drafting.. woof. Doesn't sound like a good idea to me, you're essentially multiplying the number of things that can go wrong, no? If you've got a 5 car "train" that's 16 tires aside from your own that you have to worry about blowing out. Lead car loses a tire (or tie rod, or what have you) and the result would be like car slapstick. "Why you! Why I oughta...!"
Intriguing idea, but I'll let someone else beta-test it. - Ricochetbiscuit, on 11/10/2009, -1/+8doesn't seem feasible or practical at first glance but a worthy investigation.
- pauldy, on 11/10/2009, -2/+9An initial trial run produced the following result.
http://i30.tinypic.com/5af8zq.jpg - ocean17, on 11/10/2009, -1/+8Ouch, reminds of the Smart-car that was carried on the autobahn for 40 mins before the truck driver noticed he'd something stuck on his front bumper.
- migitalwarfare, on 11/10/2009, -0/+7Is it really that difficult to have the vehicle's on-board computer measure stopping power and vehicle weight, and transmit those calculations to the lead vehicle's computer? If each car's variables are included in the initial contact, the lead vehicle's computer could determine whether or not that car is allowed to join based on the current speed being traveled by the road train.
Based on the variables, each car would need to maintain different "optimal" distances from the car ahead. Far enough for safety, but close enough for efficiency. If your car requires too much distance from the car ahead that it would ruin the slip stream, your car would be refused permission to join. If you really want to partake in these, and you're refused often enough, you'll get off your ass and get your car fixed. - zip000, on 11/10/2009, -0/+7I've actually been talking about something similar for years. My idea wasn't for fuel efficiency though, it was just to allow me to not have to drive.
- BoneStamp, on 11/10/2009, -0/+6That's the same problem with airplanes, but they're pretty popular. If cars could ride on rails and there were rail lines along major highways and interstates then I could go really fast in automatic mode during those long sections and do the manual driving when I'm on regional and city roads.
- TheMuffinMan16, on 11/10/2009, -0/+6Cool concept but I think there are too many malicious people out there who could hack this wireless "train" convoy and cause tons of problems/destruction. Your car could be yet another system susceptible to viruses, hacks and all that kind of bad stuff.
- geesamba, on 11/10/2009, -2/+7Great concept, but there's a few problems.
- Very limited safety buffer. Mechanical failure or human-inspired miscues would be very dangerous
- Mixing "free-roaming" cars with these "car trains" means the intentionally distracted drivers in the car trains would not be in a position to quickly react. e.g. A truck tire tread comes flying at you, a drunk driver swerves into you, or a deer/animal runs into the road.
- Perception of mistakes made by computers vs humans. It may be that humans have a likelihood of 1% to get into an accident while the computer makes mistakes that cause .01% (made these up). The first accident caused by the computer that could have been avoided had the human been driving would be tougher to accept despite the odds being greatly in its favor. That number would have to be 0% to be acceptable, and 0% is impossible to achieve. - gartsteve, on 11/10/2009, -0/+5Mythbusters is a cool show, but I wouldn't consider their results to be the final say on something like this. Their results only prove one thing - they weren't able to get it to work.
- Taiyoryu, on 11/10/2009, -0/+5And the train is dependent on everyone maintaining their car. Suppose the owner of one of the cars didn't get their brake pads replaced when they should.
- capheine, on 11/10/2009, -0/+5"...allowing those in the other vehicles to sit back, sleep or read a book whilst they travel along motorways."
Well, that would certainly institute a new excuse for being late to work. Sorry, boss, I fell asleep in the road train and when I woke up I was in Indianapolis. - solecize, on 11/10/2009, -2/+7yeah- the NASCAR model works well since the road is full of ***** that think they are competing with everyone around them yet lack the ability or years of training of a professional driver.
- terestenyi, on 11/10/2009, -0/+4I believe this concept would only work in HOV lanes. Right lanes, as the video implies, would not allow for non-following vehicles to exit on the right, without waiting for the caravan to pass.
- KahRahTay, on 11/10/2009, -0/+4lol, it's funny 'cause he's talking about sodomy
- boeingb17, on 11/10/2009, -0/+4Interesting, but I have several questions:
What keeps the drivers awake? I'd be passed out.
What happens when the "professional" driver exits?
What happens when the 4 cylinder car can't keep up with the train going uphill?
Is the "train" relegated to one lane? How do they merge for closed lanes or slow traffic? Each car will have to decide if it's safe to merge on their own.
What happens if the lead signal fails?
Will the guy in the train behind me be so close he can see me picking my nose? - FunFactor100, on 11/10/2009, -0/+4I am all for making learning to drive a much longer and more involved process....at least around here...there are way too many bad drivers who seem to have had little to no training.
- sm4k, on 11/10/2009, -0/+3I'd love to take this idea halfway: Let us synchronize cruise controls between cars. I hate taking long trips with friends/family members in different cars, and seemingly always being 2mph faster or slower than the lead car.
If you're worried about tailgating, make it sense the distance between the cars and only sync at safe distances. - poppingweasels, on 11/10/2009, -0/+3The way it sounds in the article you could have a truck at the front, and a bus can join later 5 spaces back... in order for this to be the safest, new vehicles need to join in order of calculated stopping distance.
i.e. Lead: Semi-truck, 2nd: Bus, 3rd: SUV, 4th: compact, 5th: smart car... this would at least make it so if the lead vehicle has a failure and slams on the brakes like no tomorrow, all followers should automatically apply their brakes and should each respectively stop without rear-ending.
I think that people will become too comfortable though... falling asleep, unbuckling, etc. - capheine, on 11/10/2009, -0/+3You wouldn't be (at least on a highway) if these things worked.
- gartsteve, on 11/10/2009, -0/+3By most, do you mean actual scientists and engineers?
When people put faith in the results of a TV show over the scientific method, it shouldn't be surprising that there are people that believe the world is 6000 years old. - BoneStamp, on 11/10/2009, -0/+3Ya, or some type of rail transporter than can also handle passenger trains.
- zombo, on 11/10/2009, -1/+4Why not just load the cars onto a transporter? It's guaranteed to cut fuel costs and it would be a whole lot safer.
- sgxyay, on 11/10/2009, -0/+2That's pretty cool. If there are enough of those around, you could just set out on your road trip and if you happen upon one, or see one indicated on you GPS, you just join in.
- doctechnical, on 11/10/2009, -0/+2"Ejected from the convoy" - that sounds safe :)
- Jeff901, on 11/10/2009, -1/+3VERY feasible with today's computers......
The lab should try the following:
*Lead vehicle has a catastrophic mechanical/computer/communications failure.....What happens to the tailing cars? --Try a combination of failures in differing orders and timing....
*A middle vehicle has a catastrophic mechanical/computer/communications failure....what happens --Try a combination of failures in differing orders and timing....
*Free running vehicle crashes into train....now what?
*complete spin-out of one or more members of the train. (black ice?) - pilot3033, on 11/10/2009, -0/+2I think the main weak point here is the transition of control during both the joining and de-coupling process. Your driver has to take control at high speed, continue the drift, and then successfully merge into slower traffic. You also have ***** drivers, imagine someone drunk or distracted plowing into a train, yeouch. To implement this (at least in the US), you would need to not only dedicate lanes, but also re-train drivers and make learning to drive a much longer and much more involved process. With all this in mind, I think it would be more beneficial and a better return to invest in dedicated high-speed rail. You can take a far larger amount of passengers at a far high rate of speed for much longer on much less cost to the environment.
- lynx44, on 11/10/2009, -0/+2They have radar cruise control, which will keep you a safe distance from the car in front of you. Unfortunately, it's not a very common feature, but my uncle's Toyota Sienna has it, and it's a few years old so it has been widely available for a little while now.
- djhash, on 11/10/2009, -2/+4First of all, the road train wouldn't be going 100MPH on the highway. It'll basically do the speed limit, maybe less, about 55MPH, since that is about when cars are most fuel efficient. (some tests showed 40)
Second, cars that can participate in the road train will need a specific system installed. Which would require that the car be maintained on a regular basis. Otherwise the computer will simply not allow the car to join the road train... (DENIED)
Third, laws will be passed regarding the road train, for example if they're all making a turn at an intersection, cars should allow the lead vehicle and all its followers to pass, and not do a 1x1 cross passing. This is ofcourse assuming the road train will get off main highways, which is avoidable since they have specific routes. Also assuming that there is some indicator as to the last car in line to the road train, otherwise people might take advantage.
All in all, I see it as a great concept, and yes as some have mentioned earlier, we might still be a decade away from seeing it implemented. Hopefully we get to see some real road tests.
But ofcourse now car manufacturers will be like.. "Now Road Train compatible." yet you'll still pay an arm and a leg to get the "compatible" systems installed. Which in turn uses more electricity and takes up more of the MPG. - MikeFromAmerica, on 11/10/2009, -0/+2I assume the professional driver would know the proper way to honk and flip the bird. Problem solved.
- iamdan1, on 11/10/2009, -0/+21. You have a gps with an alarm to wake you up
2. The professional driver might not exit, just keep going along the major highway until a known spot
3. The lead vehicle probably will need to slow down also
4. good point
5. There has to be some sort of fail safe that either the car uses a gps signal to bring it to safety or the car has external sensors to control it.
6. Tinted windows?
I like this idea, maybe as a gateway to sensors in the road controlling traffic. - Badfish2, on 11/10/2009, -0/+2what happens with the truck driver throws his piss bottle out the window?
- BoneStamp, on 11/10/2009, -0/+1@doctechnical
lol. Well, I picture the same process as when they want to leave the convoy, except the exit process is initiated by the convoy instead of the driver. Obviously, this wouldn't solve the safety problem but it would help combat issues that can be detected before they become a problem for everyone in the convoy. - jbmcb, on 11/10/2009, -0/+1It's easier and cheaper to add a lane to a highway then to add railroad track, as long as you factor in the added lane to the regular resurfacing schedule. IE, if the workers are out there anyway, it's not that much more expensive to tack on a lane, relatively speaking.
- UniversalGuy, on 11/10/2009, -0/+1I was just thinking, wouldn't this cause lots of needless accidents?
What if something happens in front of the "Road train" and it has to suddenly stop?
It's a pile up waiting to happen. - dalittle, on 11/10/2009, -0/+1Having been to cities with functioning subways and real trains between cities, I would rather wait for a good solution rather than read about some inept driver freaking out in some half-baked road train and killing 20 people.
- poppingweasels, on 11/10/2009, -0/+1I can imagine people driving around in search of trains, just to send them dummy signals from their own car to cause chaos. It could be as simple as just randomly ejecting people from the train, or even telling the followers that the leader is speeding up, for instance. I'm sure someone already thought of something more insidious.
- gkiltz, on 11/11/2009, -0/+1In places like Australia, The rural parts of the Western US, and in Western Canada, it has merit, at least in certain places and certain situations. Too much of Europe is just too crowded to seriously consider it.
- charlietuna, on 11/11/2009, -0/+1What of the liability of the "professional" driver? Insurance companies would freak out on this point. I think this might happen when we can develop autonomous machines as designated lead cars.
- tgc1, on 11/10/2009, -0/+1I think i'll pass thanks.
- andyboyd, on 11/10/2009, -5/+6I'd rather take the back road thank you very much :)
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