As the world rushes toward an autonomous vehicle future, Australia stands out in that it faces obstacles which make self-driving technology particularly difficult to bring about or introduce.
From the spindly roads of the Outback to wildlife that confounds even the most advanced sensors, Australia’s unique landscape and infrastructure pose their own sets of challenges which are now hindering manufacturers and regulatory agencies.
Despite the world advancing rapidly in self-driving vehicles that promise safer roads, Australia does not seem any closer to an autonomous future.
The question remains: Can we overcome these uniquely Australian obstacles, or will Australia be left behind in a global revolution?
Native Wildlife Meets Computer Vision in the Kangaroo Conundrum
Kangaroos the iconic marsupials of Australia that have become foreign objects in self-driving technology
Unlike predictable pedestrians or deer encountered in North America roads, let alone any other wildlife, kangaroos move in ways that completely baffle even the most sophisticated autonomous vehicle systems
Their distinctive hopping gate and erratic movements create lethal detection problems for computer vision systems.
“Movements here made by kangaroos simply do not interface with how self-driving vehicles observe the world,” says Dr. Sarah Chen, an autonomous vehicle expert out of Melbourne University in Australia
Their jumping makes them instantly larger et what they eat and move unexpectedly, which thoroughly muddles our distance- measuring algorithms
However, while this problem was detected by the Australian test, the solutions remain largely elusive.Australian contextual problemsThis uniquely Australian problem also underlines how autonomous technology designed for Northern Hemisphere conditions does not take into account Southern Hemisphere realities.
Outback Challenge: Vast Distances, Varied ConditionsOutside the major cities spread Australia’s characteristic–its vast area and diffuse population.Detailed mapping and constant connectivity are an integral part of self-driving technology. Yet neither feature exists across extensive areas deep into the Australian interior.
Its sheer scope means special difficulties for self-driving vehicles that have been developed mainly for the densely populated urban environment or well-maintained highway network.”It’s not just about the road surface,” remarks RMIT transportation policy expert Michael Rodriguez.
“We’re talking hundreds of kilometres without services anywhere to be seen, no mobile reception and not even lines on the carriageway that match up decently.”
These conditions call for extraordinary independence and resilience in autonomous systems.Current technology has yet to solve the problem of roads becoming dirt tracks which change appearance after rainfall.
Sensors are further troubled by the extreme weather patterns, and whether the car turns into an oven on wheels or is enveloped by dust there are no sensor readings at all.
The environmental conditions are only getting worse and with them electronic components are being made to work beyond their rated operating parameters; reliability issues not encountered in much milder marketsResults C A, From Infrastructure Deficit to Disconnected LinesAustralia’s road infrastructure poses quite different challenges for self-driving systems even in big cities.
Most suburban and some highway approaches have line markings that are so inconsistent or poorly maintained as to present major difficulties for complex cameras and sensors.
“Autonomous vehicles need clear, reliable visual signals to travel the roads safely,” points out Dr. Amanda Holden, a traffic engineer.Faded line markings, temporary construction detours, and inconsistent signs all add up to trouble for systems which expect standardization.
In many places, the lack of investment in maintaining roads means that drivers have to use experience and intuition to imagine all possible road conditions–qualities which autonomous systems do not possess.
State-of-the-art self-driving technology from other countries may not work in an Australian context without considerable local adaptation due to this infrastructure deficiency.
But accounting for this deficit by upgrading road infrastructure to suit autonomous vehicles across the entire land mass would be absolutely unaffordable, creating paradoxes everywhere within development policymaking.A Speedbump in Policy: Regulations Lag TechnologyNow even minor roadblocks can create big complications.
When it comes to Autonomous Vehicles, what arc the rules that bind Australia’s actual operation environment while also reflecting technological trends and legal reforms in neighboring countries?
The legal framework for autonomous vehicles in Australia is actually unique within western society.
Unlike the European Union or even the United States we know, Australia’s federal system can also mean fragmentation in regulation between states and territories.
“We ’ re seeing different approaches in different jurisdictions, which makes compliance extremely complex for manufacturers, ” explains Thomas Chang who specializes in transportation law.Whatever the National Transport Commission manages to break through for consistency in its framework, other efforts across state bodies still falter.
Consent to test, liability structures and safety operational requirements vary greatly between states.To date, legally uncertain environments have turned away both investment and field testing.
If well approached however under real-world conditions the kind of technical challenges distinct to Australian circumstances stand some clear chance of being overcome.
Not until there’s widespread time-consuming local testing will any adjustments necessary for successful deployment exist. Until then, it’s all still on paper.
The prudent regulatory approach may be for safety and understandable. But it also means that Australia runs the risk of failing to keep pace with global development in autonomous vehicles.”Two Strategies, Two Australias”Urban-rural divide building autonomous.
A lack of good initial conditions for implementing the Universal Autonomous strategy some economically advanced countries have chosen to follow sets Australia apart from these and actually creates difficulties which do not exist anywhere else in a similar fashion,More “There is no one size fits all Autonomous Vehicle Strategy for Australia
It ’ ll be July before there’s a chance to see that it is on.”Major cities such as Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane more closely resemble the international urban environment where current autonomous technology works reasonably well. They only reflect different parts of human society.
While these may bring advantages to some 70% of all drivers if adopted on a wider scale they can only benefit the small minority who live in inner city areas.
Rural and regional areas suffer the very highest rates of fatal accidents, which is where autonomous vehicles stand to have a big safety impact.
However, those same areas pose enormous difficulties for technology that is still technically immature.
This conundrum arises from a number of factors–the most likely place for technology to go first, urban and suburban markets, is also where it is more or less superfluous. Meanwhile rural communities, where the greatest potential return from new technologies like autonomous vehicles clearly lies, are completely unsuitable as yet.
Moreover, economic realities further complicate matters as manufacturers are bound to seek markets where they can just adapt their existing technologies with less effort necessary.
The estrangement between city and rural areas risks deepening rather than reducing the existing basic inequity in transportion.
Skepticism among the Australian Public and Cultural Factors Described on a chart, of the top twenty nations Australia stands alongside Ecuador as one least receptive to robot cars becoming proponents.
Not surprisingly most Australians are very doubtful about self-driving technology whereas this is not so of people in any other advanced country surveyed.
Observes Dr. Rachel Martinez, a sociologist, “Driving is strongly linked to our culture particularly in regional areas and among certain age groups.”
The first and greatest obstacle is this skepticism. Nor is it confined to technical, regulatory issues either. Yet when local tests are unsuccessful that perception gets even stronger and any information about the ability of these cars to handle Australian conditions becomes self-perpetuating.
Furthermore, news reports of accidents involving self-driving cars abroad have only further reinforced the public’s misgivings in this country about their safety and performance.
This cultural aspect can only be resolved by something other than technology no matter the mean: demonstration of capabilities under 30 Australian conditions.
Even the most technically sound solutions face this kind of roadblock if public perceptions are not changed.
The Way Ahead: Australian Innovation For Australian Conditions However despite all these formidable challenges there are signs that answers tailored to Australia’s unique needs in the field of automated driving systems are now appearing.
Local startups and researchers have begun developing specialised systems which cater specifically to Australian conditions.
The Australian Centre for Field Robotics has pioneered machine learning models that better recognize kangaroos and other native wildlife.
At the same time, telecommunications companies are looking for expanded connectivity to remote areas that could support some limited autonomous features independent of any major population center.
“The answer will probably be an international technology combined with Australian applications,” forecasts automotive technology consultant James McPherson.
Here we employ this mixed strategy because while redesigning Melboume for autonomous navigation alone may not be viable in economic terms, pragmatic changes can resolve the most critical problems.
Progress will be seen not in a sudden transformation, but step by step.
Semi-autonomous features customised for Australian conditions could act as a transition to fully automated technology.
Challenges unique to Australia’s self-driving implementation point to broader issues concerning technology transplanting in diverse global situations.
Solutions evolved here could ultimately benefit other areas facing the same kind of difficulties, such as rural America and developing nations with varying infrastructure.
By meeting these challenges head-on instead of waiting for panaceas to arrive, Australia has an opportunity to make a real contribution to the global debate on autonomous vehicles–and to solve its own transportation problems as well.
The road ahead remains far but novel approaches adapted to Australian conditions promise to point neo-mobility into this difficult environment forwards.