Consumer Reports, A non-profit organization, figures out that tricking Tesla’s autopilot functionality into running without drivers.
After a fatal Texas crash on 17 April, consumer reports decided to go in depth of the matter. They tried to trick a driver’s hands on a wheel to stay on a car with an empty driver’s seat. With weights attaching to the steering wheel and the driver’s seat belt still hung, the vehicle kept driving Autopilot.
Engineers of Consumer Reports examined arguments that Autopilot would run without a driver. They checked Model Y on a closed course and concluded that the autopilot system could be tricked easily.
It’s coming days after a deadly Texas Tesla crash. Nobody was in the driver’s seat, the police say. The Autopilot Tesla is a state-of-the-art driver aid device that Tesla claims about increased safety and comfort behind the wheel.
‘Measures are Not enough to prvent tricking the Tesla’s AutoPilot.’
The Consumer Reports team said they succeeded several times in tricking Tesla’s AutoPilot into driving without any driver.
“In our assessment, the machine not only failed to make sure that the driver was aware of this, but it also could not say that a driver was there,” said Jake Fisher, Auto Testing Director of Consumer Reports.
“It was very scary when we realized how easy it was to overcome those protections, which we proved to be inadequate.” The Tesla website says that the Autopilot system requires a completely careful driver, and the system does not make the car independent.
Some autopilot mode requires the driver’s hands on the steering wheel, the buckling of the seat belt and the closing of doors. Police discovered victims in the back of the car, which led the police to conclude that nobody was in the driver’s seat.
According to BBC , Tesla boss Elon Musk, however, said that recovered data have failed to activate the Autopilot. Besides, the regular Autopilot would require lane lines in streets
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