Since the early 1930's, the evolution of computer technology has come a long way. The past 70 years have been an amazing leap towards the technologic world we live in and will vastly continue to grow. In today's world, we have electronic devices that can be connected to other devices and networks such as WIFI, Bluetooth, 3 and 4g networks, which are commonly known as smart devices. Google is taking the next big leap forward with something that will change the world forever. It is an invention that might be their most innovative product yet, the Google driverless (smart) car. The autonomous car has always been an aspiration for technologic world. The idea of an autonomous car being science fiction is no more. "Google first announced its driverless car division in 2010, and has been testing its technology in modified cars built by other manufacturers."(Miller) When this technology is in full production around the world, it will impact our daily lives like never before. This paper will analyze the potential benefits, legal and ethical issues, security concerns, social problems, and further required research about the Google driverless car. .
Background .
What is a driverless car? A driverless car ultimately is an automobile on autopilot. It's a car that has a navigational system to allow passengers to move safely from one place to another, requiring no additional help from the driver. Google was not the first company to attempt this breakthrough technology. "It all started in the 1960s when scientist created the Stanford Cart, meant as a potential lunar rover, it was able to cross a room without help in five hours."(Carracher) What brought Google's autonomous vehicle to the public was the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's (DARPA) first challenge for the driverless car back in 2004. (Brown) The driverless car first started getting attention when Sebastian Thrun created the "Stanly", which won the DARPA challenge in 2005.