Are self-driving features in cars an afterthought? Or is it something that can be retrofitted? We suppose some forward planning is always a good idea, which is why Tesla has announced that starting from today, all Tesla cars that are produced in their factory, including the Model 3, will come with all the necessary hardware needed to make it a full self-driving car.Before you get too excited at the idea that your future Tesla car will be self-driving, we’re not quite there yet. Basically Tesla is thinking ahead and is equipping their cars with the necessary hardware in order to ensure that in the future when self-driving becomes legal, Tesla owners won’t have to worry about buying new cars. In a way Tesla is future-proofing your vehicle.
According to Tesla, “Eight surround cameras provide 360 degree visibility around the car at up to 250 meters of range. Twelve updated ultrasonic sensors complement this vision, allowing for detection of both hard and soft objects at nearly twice the distance of the prior system. A forward-facing radar with enhanced processing provides additional data about the world on a redundant wavelength, capable of seeing through heavy rain, fog, dust and even the car ahead.”
In order to process all of this data, Tesla will also be introducing a new onboard computer with more than 40 times the computing power, and it will also be drawing some power from its new GPU which comes from NVIDIA in the form of the Titan. Tesla claims that before the new hardware in their cars can be activated, they will have to calibrate the system using millions of miles of real-world driving data, meaning that you probably shouldn’t expect it anytime soon.
Of course there will be regulatory hurdles to overcome to legalize self-driving cars, but hopefully that will be cleared up to make way for the new technology.
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