• bampop@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    I have read a fan theory that Cars is set in a post apocalyptic world where all the humans are dead. I hadn’t thought it was very plausible but I guess I was wrong.

  • alaphic@lemmy.world
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    3 days ago

    Yeah, cuz my life isn’t fucked up enough already or anything, now I have to worry about random cars giving me the side eye because I don’t already like them enough?

    Tf weird ass dystopia even is this?

  • MigratingApe@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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    3 days ago

    There is a real psychological effect to it. I think Mercedes was first to test it years ago. not with eyes but with a long LED light strip in the upper area of the front window. The goal was to communicate the “attention” of the vehicle to a pedestrian waiting to cross the street in a similar way that real drivers catch eye contact with pedestrians. This reassures the pedestrian that it is safe to cross the street - hey the guy sees me, I can safely go.

    Without this feedback it has been found that people are overly cautious, not trusting the autonomous vehicles and it simply causes stress.

    This is a real problem discovered years ago that has a novel funny solution instead of LED strip :)

    • bleistift2@sopuli.xyz
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      3 days ago

      In partially automated production processes where robots move around alongside humans, robots may be programmed to “look” in the direction they intend to move before moving. This may be by rotating their chassis or via LEDs/screens. This allows the humans to anticipate the robot’s movements rather than be surprised by it.

      This is from a TV documentary I saw years ago, so you won’t get a source for me. Trust me, bro… or don’t.

      • dalekcaan@feddit.nl
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        3 days ago

        I’ve heard the same thing with robots giving people space. I heard about some study or another where humans working alongside robots (e.g. robotic arms in a factory) felt a lot more comfortable when robots exaggerated how much distance they put between themselves and the person to signal that they “know” the person is there and won’t run into them.

    • dmention7@midwest.social
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      3 days ago

      Yeah the idea is solid, the execution… unsettling!

      I think a better solution might be something like a few large lights with aimable lenses and about the level of brightness of a traffic light. The lenses allow you to direct the lighting such that a person being “focused” on sees a clear indicator on the vehicle, but someone outside that focus area would not see the light.

      Im sure there’s more to it than that, but a way to signal to pedestrians that the vehicle is aware of them and waiting for them to move solves a real problem.

  • thatradomguy@lemmy.world
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    3 days ago

    My local radio was saying that apparently my area is supposed to be getting more Waymos even though people from other places in the country called in just to reinforce that these things are not ready and have been recorded (as in video proof) of having operated in error.

    I do not get this country’s stubbornness to avoid putting down rail and just letting civilization progress the way it should be: WITHOUT driver-less AI mobile coffins. This is madness.

    • slaneesh_is_right@lemmy.org
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      3 days ago

      This is kinda dumb, and also jaguar. But doesn’t it make sense in a way. Imagine trying to cross the street and a driverless car is stopping. I would at least feel a little better if i knew the car was stopping because of me and maybe not run me over. But the obvious answer is to just wait and make a traffic jam.

      • Hagdos@lemmy.world
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        1 day ago

        It makes a lot of sense. I make eye contact with drivers, because then I’m mostly sure they’ve seen me.

        With a driverless car I’d like to know it has acknowledged me, so I can start crossing the road. Otherwise I’ll wait until it has completely stopped. So there needs to be some sort of feedback that’s intuitive. Might as well be eyes.

  • bleistift2@sopuli.xyz
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    3 days ago

    The problem with this approach is this: If the car indicates that it noticed me, how can I be sure that it won’t decide I’m just a tree within the next millisecond?