Jaguar Land Rover has embarked on a project for researching natural driving behaviuors in order to instill human-like reactions in autonomous cars. They expect this will have an impact on the acceptability of autonomous cars on the roads.
The project entails data gathering from a fleet of test vehicles deployed in various parts of London. The drivers of the fleet vehicles engage in different real-life driving situations which include heavy traffic, busy intersections and weather conditions. Major areas of focus include lane merging, roundabouts and handling emergency vehicles.
The results of the research will be tested out in a specially designated area near JLR’s operations in the UK. There are 41 roads that have been ear-marked by the UK government for the testing of autonomous cars.
In addition to aiding in the acceptability of autonomous cars by motorists, the research is also expected to address the critical area of insurance policies for autonomous cars. The data collected will be analyzed by insurance experts to determine liabilities in real-world scenarios.