Alphabet’s autonomous car division Waymo still has a long way to before it actually manoeuvres in a regular traffic and road conditions. One of the problems they are focusing for now is the most persistent one — snow.
It was reported late last year that though the car has underwent series or tests in variety of climate conditions, but the problem of snow still remains an unsolved issue. Apart from creating a difficult riding conditions by affecting the traction and controlling system, snow also confuses lidar sensors and cameras by creating a difficult time for them to see the lane marks, which makes the navigation highly unsafe. So, this mess has to be dealt before Waymo makes a general public launch.
It is for this reason, that they have headed to an inclement area for some practice in snow. John Krafcik, CEO Waymo, made a tweet along with a pic of Waymo Chrysler Pacifica minivan, geared in its very own self-driving sensor technology, in a snowy setup of South Lake Tahoe in California.
Snow practice! pic.twitter.com/SvcpR23yOd
— John Krafcik (@johnkrafcik) March 27, 2017
The location of Lake Tahoe is suitable considering its license of testing autonomous cars on state roads, and in addition to this, it also provides the car a perfect test environment to evaluate itself in extreme climatic conditions.
The test rides of Waymo Pacifica vans began on January on the streets of both California and Arizona. Some other automobile giants working their way in autonomous car tech, like the General Motors through its Cruise acquisition, have stated their willingness of taking a test ride in Michigan, whose icy weather conditions will perfectly reveal the areas in which their drive needs some improvements.
