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Cory Martin
Debra Jizi
UWRT 1102
20 March 2016

Research Essay

I was watching television one day and I saw a commercial for a car company that was
introducing their newest vehicle model and it was able to sense its surroundings and brake on its
own if needed. Ever since seeing that commercial I have been interested in cars that have the
capability to sense their surroundings and act on the situation in the safest way. I didnt know
what to think about them because what if the sensors malfunctioned somehow and caused the car
to brake in the middle of the road/highway and cause a huge wreck? After thinking about that
possibility, I thought about the whole car driving by itself and the human not having control of
anything and if the car malfunctioned then it could possibly cause the people inside to be killed. I
proceeded to research self-braking and self-driving, or autonomous cars, and found lots of
information on how they work and what goes on inside to make everything work so smooth. I
introduce the question of How do Autonomous Cars work?
Everyone should be interested in learning as much as they can about autonomous cars
because self-driving cars are the next huge innovation that most individuals will have access to
in the next ten to fifteen years. Individuals that live in prosperous countries like North America,
Asia, and Europe will be the ones most affected by the innovation of autonomous cars because
they will be available to the public and everyone will most likely want a self-driving car because
its really cool and its one more thing that we humans dont have to do. A lot of people hate

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driving or being stuck in traffic so why wouldnt they want a car that does everything for them
and gets them to their destination in a safe and timely manner? I believe this particular question
to be significant because people should be informed on how these vehicles work and be able to
tell whether the car is running well or poorly before they purchase a self-driving car.
Several different car manufacturers and journalists have contributed to the conversation
of autonomous cars. All of the articles and information I have found on self-driving cars say
about the same thing. They discuss all of the different types of technology that is integrated into
the autonomous cars, the different levels of autonomy, how the cars drive in real time and what is
going on during the drive, and a big topic that I have seen is who will be responsible if the car
gets into a wreck or malfunctions and causes a death; the car manufacturer or the manufacturer
of the technology? The types of technology involved with the car relates to my research question
in the way that it literally tells me how the self-driving cars work and how the different
technologies work as a team to make the car function properly. The different levels of autonomy
can be related to my question because the information presented on the various levels tell the
reader what kinds of technology make the car a higher level of autonomy. For example, a 1980
Ford truck would be at level 0 because the driver is in control of everything and nowadays our
cars are at level 2 with a couple of primary controls having the option to be controlled by the car.
Level 5 is full autonomy where the car does everything and the driver is not needed at all
(Wired). Important questions that I have thought of after learning all of this are What are the
biggest complications with building an autonomous car? The biggest complications with
autonomous cars happen to be the software, maps, sensors, communication, and ethical
decisions. The software at this point in time is not capable of operating for a long period of time
without freezing or crashing so that needs significant improvement. The maps portion needs to

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be improved because Google has only mapped about 2,000 out of the 4 million miles of United
States roads and the only reason the autonomous car does so great in that little portion is because
Google Maps has basically put the area of Mountain View, California on steroids so that the
autonomous car can sense every little detail. Right now driverless cars have limited
communication and this will need to be greatly improved so that all of the autonomous cars can
communicate effectively and sync while driving. If there is a glitch in the communication
between several cars it could cause a huge accident. As far as ethical decisions go, the car would
need to be able to outweigh the different outcomes of certain decisions as a human would while
they are driving and caught in a sticky situation such as swerving right or left to avoid an
accident (LiveScience). How much does the technology required to build a car cost? The cost
of the equipment used to construct an autonomous car adds up to be around $150,000. Which
company has made the most progress in the manufacturing of a self-driving car? From all of the
research that I have read I believe Google to have made the most progress in self-driving
technology but I have read that Volvo, Daimler, Tesla, and Apple are also in the race to have the
first autonomous vehicle (Tech Insider). How many years will it be before autonomous cars will
be available to the public? After reading all of the articles about autonomous cars I have come
to the conclusion that autonomous cars will be available in the area of the year 2020 to as late as
2032. I would prefer they wait for a later year so that the manufacturers can make sure the cars
are as perfect as they can be.
I believe that the most convincing and helpful answer to my research question was the
actual answer that I was looking for. I asked the question of How do Autonomous Cars work?
and the information that I found informed me about all of the different pieces of technology
involved and how they all connect together to make the car function as a whole. Lasers are shot

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out of the car to determine what kind of object is surrounding the car and how far away or close
it is to the car. There are several sensors and cameras attached to the car and GPS is also
programmed into it (MakeUseOf). All of this is technology is installed for one reason and that is
so that the car can function properly and safer than humans. Autonomous cars are supposed to
reduce the deaths related to car accidents drastically due to the fact that they will all be in a
continuous network and can sense each other driving around so there will most likely never be a
wreck (Investopedia). I dont know if I can add anything to the conversation of autonomous cars
since I am not professionally educated with all of the factors involved with autonomous cars but
I would like to say that I believe they are a great innovation and can help society safety and
economy wise.
After all of the research, I have come to appreciate the idea of the autonomous car instead
of being sketched out about it. I just didnt like the fact that a pieces of electronics would be
controlling a vehicle that I was riding in and there was always, and possibly still is, the
possibility of the car malfunctioning and causing something bad to happen. The differences that
the discoveries will make in my life are that I will be informed about self-driving cars and more
open to possibly investing in one when they come to be on the market for the public. If this was
an interesting topic and the readers go home and research autonomous cars and find out more
about them for themselves then they should have the same difference in their lives as I do. I am
still curious, and will probably always remain curious, about the fact of the car malfunctioning. I
want to know how the car manufacturers will build the car so that there is a little to no chance of
the car ever malfunctioning and what safety precautions they are including in the car so that if a
malfunction does happen, the humans inside the car will still remain safe at all times. If I was to
continue researching my inquiry topic, I would start to research the subjects that I am still

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curious about in the conversation with autonomous cars, which right now happen to be the
malfunctioning of a car.

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Works Cited

"Fords Skipping the Trickiest Thing About Self-Driving Cars." Wired.com. Conde Nast

Digital. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.

"How Self-Driving Cars Work: The Nuts and Bolts Behind Googles Autonomous Car

Program." MakeUseOf. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.

"How Google's Self-Driving Car Will Change Everything | Investopedia." Investopedia.

2014. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.

Ghose, By Tia. "Self-Driving Cars: 5 Problems That Need Solutions."LiveScience.

TechMedia Network, 14 May 2015. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

Muoio, Danielle. "These 5 Companies Will Dominate Driverless Cars." Tech Insider.
N.p., 07 Dec. 2015. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.