Volkswagon Unveils Their Temporary "Auto-pilot"

I am pretty sure we have all dreamed about cruising that 300 mile trip on the highway while we are ready to knot off to have an auto-pilot. Being able to "ride" while in the driver seat would surely be a glorious thing indeed. We could chat away on the phone, play a computer game, or watch a movie. I'd go for a ride just to relax...LOL

Anyways, clearly we aren't anywhere near having a road full of cars that drive by themselves and doing it safely. My knees are still going to have to cover for me on that straightaway with nobody around when I want to change my coogi clothing, but Volkswagon at the final presentation of the EU research project HAVEit (Highly Automated Vehicles for Intelligent Transport), Prof. Dr. Jürgen Leohold, Executive Director Volkswagen Group Research, has presented the “Temporary Auto Pilot” by Volkswagen: Monitored by the driver. The car can drive semi-automatically up to a speed of 130 kilometres per hour on motorways. It represents a link between today’s assistance systems and the vision of fully automatic driving.

“Above all, what we have achieved today is an important milestone on the path towards accident-free car driving,” emphasises Leohold at today’s final presentation of the EU research project HAVEit in the Swedish city of Borås. The Temporary Auto Pilot (TAP) bundles semi-automatic functions, i.e. functions monitored by the driver, with other driver assistance systems, such as ACC adaptive cruise control and the Lane Assist lane-keeping system into one comprehensive function. “Nonetheless, the driver always retains driving responsibility and is always in control,” continues Leohold. “The driver can override or deactivate the system at any time and must continually monitor it.” full story