Self-Driving Cars: How They Work and Their Applications

Self-driving Cars
Student’s Name
Institution
Course Number and Name
Instructor’s Name
Date
Executive Summary
The development of self-driving cars has revolutionised operations in the automotive industry to a great extent. With self-driving cars being inevitable in the industry, it is vital to understand their key features, how they work, and their opportunities and limitations. This report delves into the major aspects that surround self-driving cars. The report begins by providing the background of self-driving vehicles, including their main features, operating principles, and application scenarios. The main features covered in the report include the sensing system, the client system, the action system, and the human-machine interface HMI). The report also highlights the major operation principles as agreed upon by players in the industry. The business models that support the operations of self-driving cars are also covered in the report, with a focus on Transportation as a Servive (TAAS) and operating system-enabled value chain. The report also highlights the opportunities and challenges that self-driving cars provide.
Table of Contents Executive Summary. 2 Introduction. 4 Background of Self-Driving Cars. 4 Basic Features. 4 Operating Principles. 5 Application Scenarios. 5 Business Model 6 Limitation/Challenge and Opportunity. 6 Conclusion. 7 References. 8 Appendices. 10 Appendix 1. 10 Appendix 2. 11 Appendix 3. 12 Introduction
Self-driving cars are one of the major disruptive technologies of the 21st century, with automotive companies seeking to take advantage of new innovations to position themselves as pioneers in the industry. Self-driving cars are known as automotive vehicles and are characterised by the ability to sense their environment and travel safely without human intervention (Catulli, n.d.). Major companies in the automotive industry, such as Tesla, Ford, Baidu, and Alphabet Inc’s Waymo, have made significant progress towards fully autonomous vehicles. Given the major developments towards fully autonomous cars experienced recently, it is vital to understand how they work and their application in the modern and future world of self-driving cars.
Background of Self-Driving Cars
Basic Features
Four basic systems in self-driving cars facilitate their operation: the sensing/perception system, the client system, the action system, and the human-machine interface [HMI] (Martínez-Díaz & Soriguera, 2018). The sensing system collects data from the environment as well as other vehicles. Self-driving cars utilise sensors such as LIDAR that not only provides visibility in 360° but also measures distances with an accuracy of ±2 cm (Martínez-Díaz & Soriguera, 2018). The client system is characterised by an operating system and hardware necessary for data processing. The action system comprises the vehicle's mechanical system, such as the braking and steering systems. The HMI system is used by passengers and other road users. Its features include display screens, vehicle lighting, and loudspeakers that facilitate communication with passengers and other road users (Giacomin, 2023). These features make the operation...