Self-Driving Freightliner Licensed in Neveda

[ATeam]

For years I have been saying in various posts that self-driving trucks are on the way. We're getting closer to that reality as this story shows:

Self-Driving Freightliner Licensed in Nevada

While the technology is exciting and the social implications are interesting to contemplate, it is a big disappointment to see Freightliner cite questionable driver-fatigue stats in promoting this truck. Clearly, this truck manufacturer is saying drivers are the safety problem this technology can solve.

While the technology providers may sell the idea by highlighting safety issues (that may not actually exist), the technology will not be embraced by trucking companies because of safety. It will be embraced because of economics. When trucks can be built to operate without human beings, billions can be saved by eliminating sleepers, air conditioners, windshield wipers, hours of service limitations, and of course, driver pay. Fuel economy and truck availability will be greatly enhanced when the driver is eliminated.

Not wanting to be seen as the company that puts drivers out of work, Freightliner is holding drivers up as the problem that needs to be solved. Sad.

While this particular truck does not eliminate the driver, it is a major step on the path that leads to trucks that do.

 

[paullud]

It looks very cool and the technology is exciting. This could really help save a lot of lives and transform the industry for the better.

 

[TeamCaffee]

I am sure when Auto Pilot came along for Airline Pilots there was the same concerns. It is going to be interesting to follow this new technology and see where it does go.

Using the Hoover Dam for a back drop was pretty amazing...

 

[ATeam]

I am sure when Auto Pilot came along for Airline Pilots there was the same concerns. It is going to be interesting to follow this new technology and see where it does go.

As with cruise control in cars and trucks, auto pilot was not the end of the technology story, it was an early stage in the beginning. It won't happen overnight but Freightliner and other companies are clearly on their way to building highly-efficient trucks that do not need human drivers. Some such trucks are already in use in off-road applications like mines where regulatory approval is not needed since the trucks do not operate on public roadways.

In aviation, FedEx boss Fred Smith is a leading and enthusiastic advocate of self-flying planes. In that arena, it is highly likely that FedEx cargo planes will be the first drones to transport freight airport-to-airport. After Smith gains the ability to eliminate pilots, it is a logical next step to push for trucks that eliminate drivers.

FedEx profitability will soar when thousands of drivers are replaced with self-driving trucks that transport freight terminal-to-terminal (a step on the way to trucks that deliver door to door). Needing no dirvers, the trucks themselves can be built to run without all the things (seats, steering wheel, AC, cab space, windshield, etc.) that drivers require. Without changing a single bridge law, truck payloads can increase by thousands of pounds because weight associated with drivers is eliminated.

With driverless trucks, carrier safety departments, safety employees and and safety office space can be shrunk as compliance tasks become maintenance tasks. Think about all the resources that a carrier puts into driver recruiting, retention, training and ongoing qualification. Think about the money that can be saved if those functions are no longer necessary since drivers no longer exist. No drivers means no vacation and healthcare benefits. No drivers means no speeding tickets. No drivers means no personnel departments hire, fire and conduct performance reviews. Fewer employees means millions saved on wages, social security payments paid to the government, workers compensation insurance costs, and legal costs defending injury claims. Dispatch becomes easier too since a self-driving truck never disagrees. Need a truck to cover a load? Point and click.

It is not a pleasant future for drivers to entertain but you can be sure Fred Smith and others of his ilk are dreaming of the day.

Fred Smith Wants UAVs

 

[Moot]

What would a self-driving struck be without a self-unloading trailer.

 

[Greg]

What would a self-driving struck be without a self-unloading trailer.

Now I know why they never roll smoothly!

 

[gotto_03801]

and just what happens if the computer screws up and the truck hits something or kills someone who's responsible the manufacture or the owner?? I feel that once this tech is perfected insurance companies will plumit and go out of business as well as a lot of police will loose there jobs to

 

[paullud]

and just what happens if the computer screws up and the truck hits something or kills someone who's responsible the manufacture or the owner?? I feel that once this tech is perfected insurance companies will plumit and go out of business as well as a lot of police will loose there jobs to

The truck will still require a driver but it will limit how much attention is required on the open road.

 

[gotto_03801]

The truck will still require a driver but it will limit how much attention is required on the open road.

from reading the post some day they won't require a driver ( one day )

 

[scottm4211]

Fred Smith and his ilk are already doing a great job of getting rid of drivers.

 

[gotto_03801]

I am not worried here. The cost of these driverless truck will be very high also in the meantime before they pefect all of this technology, They are going to need a driver there for tasks such as fueling navigating city streets, Opening the doors, Clearing customs Etc,Etc.
By the time they are ready to go completely driverless I will be dead or retired, Whatever comes first. probably the latter rather than the former.

 

[ATeam]

I am not worried here. The cost of these driverless truck will be very high also in the meantime before they pefect all of this technology, They are going to need a driver there for tasks such as fueling navigating city streets, Opening the doors, Clearing customs Etc,Etc.
By the time they are ready to go completely driverless I will be dead or retired, Whatever comes first. probably the latter rather than the former.

That is true but it's not like someone will throw a switch and the change will be instant. Notice in the history of expediting, the drivers who got paid the most were those who operated with the least technology. The big-money loads existed before GPS, cell phones, automatic transmissions, internet, etc. An expediter back then kept a supply of coins and communicated with his carrier by pay phone. Back then, the driver, not technology, provided the truck's location and other data. Part of what a carrier sold back then was information. It was not just about transporting the load, it was about keeping a schedule and keeping the load info flowing. Now much of that is automated.

The more technology appeared in the trucks, the lower driver pay went. Bit by bit, technology is transforming drivers into steering wheel holders, and over time technology will replace drivers.Trucks today are more expensive and higher-tech than ever before but driver pay is lower.

The higher-tech truck you drive, the less valuable you are. It's not the drivers that customers and carriers value, its moving the load and obtaining information about it. If a load can be moved without a driver and information about the load freely flows, why have drivers?

I have nothing to base this on but it is my opinion that before we see driverless trucks common the road we will see driverless taxi cabs common in New York and other cities.

 

[ATeam]

Great article here, in the EO Industry News section, about this Freightliner truck and autonomous vehicles.

 

[Deville]

I am sure when Auto Pilot came along for Airline Pilots there was the same concerns. It is going to be interesting to follow this new technology and see where it does go.

Using the Hoover Dam for a back drop was pretty amazing...

I was hoping it would transform into Optimus Prime and fight a suddenly appearing Megatron.

 

[davekc]

I like the concept in certain applications. Anyone reading this will likely be retired before they have to worry about being replaced. More apt to be replaced by foreign illegals before automation of any kind.

 

[Larry Scott]

I like the concept in certain applications. Anyone reading this will likely be retired before they have to worry about being replaced. More apt to be replaced by foreign illegals before automation of any kind.

That's OK. I don't think they will do so well after a while. There won't much freight to move as most people will be layed off and won't be able to buy anything. You could say that this will be "the long term results of short term thinking"!

 

[xiggi]

I think many people will be caught off guard by the speed we begin to see these type of trucks in use. Sooner rather than later comes to mind.

 

[Turtle]

Absolutely. It's in trucking where the financial incentives are the greatest, and it's where implementing driverless vehicles with the fewest problems exist.

Media coverage of driverless vehicles does a great job of explaining current technology, but hasn’t done enough to reality-check what we’ll actually be using in the next two, five, or even ten years. So, left to our own imaginations, we envision a future where we simply utter, “Take us to the movies, Mr. Car,” and off wevroom, with drinks in hand. But the unromantic truth is that such technology won’t hit the roads for at least the next two or three presidential administrations—if by then.

And until then? Keep your eyes on the road, and mind the automated {truck} convoys.

The First Driverless Cars Will Actually Be a Bunch of Trucks

 

[str8trk]

Frankly, I believe reasonable arguments can be made that this technology ... In a real world setting .... Would actually create more safety issues than it would solve. By real world setting, I mean an environment where 100% human operated vehicles are still part of the equation ... Cause let's face it, as a society we're not likely going to give up our freedom to drive personal vehicles if we so desire without a fight. I simply cannot see a robot truck being able to effectively detect and react to road hazards ... And by road hazards I include drivers of 4-wheelers who can't put their smartphones down for 5 minutes, motorcycle riders who create their own lanes, all manner of wildlife, debris in the roadway, the roadways themselves, etc., etc., etc. One particular aspect of this whole discussion that gives me pause is the notion that a human would be or could be in position to take over physical driving duties in circumstances where the technology isn't best equipped to handle the conditions (traffic, weather, terrain). Seriously ? We are already given the steering wheel holder label far too casually ... Can you image the type of person and corresponding skill level of someone tasked with sitting in the driver's seat for hours and hours on end with little to do other that "wait" for the truck to tell him or her it needs help ?

 

[paullud]

People will be the problem as the Google cars are finding out but they still have a great record considering all of the miles that they are running. The system is actually "thinking" more than I thought it would and this article goes into an example. I'm not sure how the trucks could anticipate poor drivers that cut trucks off but there are probably some factors that they could use to get the truck ready for those instances.

http://thenextweb.com/google/2015/0...been-in-11-accidents-because-humans-are-dumb/