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Hannibal X 8 years, 3 months ago.
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New Tesla S software allows the car to drive itself
Well, authorities in Hong Kong aren’t going to like this one bit. Back in November, they told Tesla to remotely disable its semiautonomous driving technology until they can confirm that the features, released in mid October, are safe. They were concerned (sort of understandably) by widely reported hijinks by drivers who were using Tesla’s new Autopilot software to shave and sit in the backseat of the car, among other things.
Tesla complied. That doesn’t mean the company isn’t moving forward at full speed, though. Today, it released version 7.1 of its software for the Model S and X that includes a “Summon” feature that enables the car to drive itself without anyone inside.
More specifically, using their key fob, Tesla owners can now direct their cars to park themselves in a spot within 39 feet, and to drive themselves into and out of their parking garages.
In a nod to safety concerns, the company has also now restricted its Autosteer technology on residential roads and roads without a center divider. When Autosteer is engaged on a restricted road, Model S’s speed will be limited to the speed limit of the road plus an additional 5 mph.
The site Elektrek was first to publish the news. We’ve since reached out to Tesla for more information and will update this post as soon as we can.
Back in October, when Tesla’s last software update enabled cars to steer, change lanes, and park on their own, Tesla CEO Elon Musk had said he envisioned fully driverless cars.
He added in a mid October press briefing that while its still “important to exercise great caution at this early stage,” in the long term, he added, “people will not need hands on the wheel — and eventually there won’t be wheels and pedals.”
For now, the wheels and pedals remain. For the beginning and end of the drive, however, the humans are now optional.
You can check out video of the Summon feature in action here, courtesy of an undoubtedly excited Tesla owner.
by Connie Loizos
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This topic was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by Hannibal X.
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This topic was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by
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