So where are all these dead people, then?
Not everybody crashes and dies. You have to be hang/crash the control system when the last control output that was sent to the throttle was speeding up.
And you have to have a vehicle that has computer controlled shift, and ignition.
Brakes are besides the point, they won’t hold a car at full throttle.
I don’t think there are any cars with computer controlled electric steering in production right now, but I could be wrong....that would increase deaths higher, because now just basic speed and a computer crash = bad news.
There ARE deaths, but until the industry acknowledges that their basic approach is unsafe, they will be ignored as the cost of doing business.
Did you know how long car manufacturers FOUGHT seat belts and airbags?
Don’t get me wrong, they should NOT be mandatory ,but they should be offered!
As for me, I will PAY EXTRA for a redundant, fail-safe system.......I just want the option -— if someone else wants to trust a 50 cent microprocessor and some pimply faced programmer, then by all means, go right ahead.
By the way, Steve Wozniak, (the technical founder of apple, not the marketing guy), basically said what I am saying - that the microprocessor control is the risky part, and he thinks he can recreate the problem....
I used to test the “surviability” of our systems all the time getting a static electricity generated closer and closer to the equipment. By proper engineering, we could reduce the potential for failures due to voltage spikes, static electricity, electromagnetic interference, etc. Do you know there is a real reason they tell you on the airplane to “turn off you cell phones”?
No, the plane does not crash if someone forgets. But I can take some control electonics, and a cell phone, fail the right final stage transmitter on it, and cause a situation that interferes with radio based communicaiton on the plane. They don’t mess around with safety on planes.
We shouldn’t with cars, either. Each year there are ~ 40-80,000 people KILLED in car accidents. Who says maybe 200 or 300 a year have NOT been caused by microprocessor crashes?
All you have to do is crash the processor at the right time and you have the “event” that you probably won’t survive. This is essentially what Steve Wozniak demonstrated.
Let’s see - believe the Government, or believe the guy who basically invented the home microprocessor based computer.........
How long does the hard drive last in your PC? How many microprocessors crash with a power spike?
Cars that do all this stuff by electronics WILL eventually fail. Electronics don't last forever. If your hard drive crashes all you lose are pics and documents. If the PC running your vehicle crashes....