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What are smart cars?

Vehicles that can perform tasks on their own, such as parking and driving, with minimal driver interaction

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Smart cars of today

Some modern cars feature high-tech capabilities.

Cruise control

Ability for a vehicle to travel at a constant speed without the driver pressing the accelerator
Useful on long road trips

Automatic parking

Vehicle’s ability to move itself into a parking space on its own
Bumper-mounted sensors, cameras, and radar detect nearby cars and obstacles so the vehicle can steer around them

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Smart cars of the near future

Roof-mounted camera; creates real-time 3d image of surroundings

Self-driving cars are currently being tested by companies like Google. These vehicles aim to be able to travel completely on their own, with no driver operating the controls.

Bumper-mounted radar; detects obstacles, other vehicles, and road lanes

GPS

Wheel encoder; works with GPS to keep track of coordinates

Anatomy of a self-driving vehicle

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Social impacts

Safety of traditional drivers

Drivers of ordinary cars can be put in danger if they are near a driverless car that malfunctions

Job security of driving-related occupations

Careers that heavily involve traditional driving could become obsolete

Cab driving
Bus driving
Postal delivery

Shift in societal concept of transportation as a whole

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Ethical impacts

There are ethical considerations that are directly related to the social impacts.

Is it ethical to produce and use automated vehicles, knowing that they could pose a threat to the safety of other drivers?

Is it ethical to knowingly create vehicles that could put employees of driving-related occupations out of work?

What new sets of rules and ethics will emerge as smart cars become more prevalent?

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Additional resources

How Google’s smart cars work

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/features/390085/how-do-googles-self-driving-cars-work

Cadillac’s upcoming advanced cruise control system

http://www.nydailynews.com/autos/cruise-control-steroids-gm-ride-shotgun-article-1.1931742

Advancements in smart car technologies at General Motors

http://www.nbcnews.com/business/autos/sci-fi-driveway-driverless-smart-cars-hitting-road-soon-n201456

How a self-parking car parks itself

http://www.parking-net.com/parking-industry-blog/how-does-a-self-parking-car-park-itself

Other smart car technologies

http://www.fastcoexist.com/3035307/the-computer-controlled-driving-experience-is-about-more-than-just-self-driving-cars