A driverless Tesla summoned by its owner is mistaken for a runaway

Hero to zero in 60 seconds! Man is left red-faced after chasing ‘runaway’ car before realizing it’s a driverless Tesla being Smart Summoned by its owner

• An onlooker is Phoenix, Arizona, leaped into action to chase down a driverless Tesla that he mistook for a runaway car
• The owner of the Tesla was testing out the Smart Summon in a packed parking lot on September 28
• Autonomous expert is laughing at Elon Musk’s promise for robot taxis in 2020
• Said Tesla’s Smart Summon has proved to be  ‘far from perfection
• ‘Tesla owners have shared close calls and fender benders using the feature 

An Arizona man sprung into action and chased down a driverless Tesla being summoned by its owner because it looked like a runaway car. 

On September 28, a Tesla owner in Phoenix decided to test out his electric car’s new ‘Smart Summon’ feature in a packed parking lot.     

The Smart Summon feature was meant to be a surprise tucked away in Telsa’s latest software Version 10.0, which was released last week.

The technology enables cars to navigate a parking lot and come to their owner or a destination of choice, as long as their car is within their line of sight.

An unidentified man in Phoenix, Arizona, tested his Tesla’s Smart Summon mode (pictured) and freaked a passerby out

In the video, the car appears to have backed out of the parking space without a hitch and was beginning to drive towards his owner a few feet away. 

That’s when a shocked passerby sees the car moving with no driver and runs after the empty car. 

The owner said: ‘We tested out our Tesla Model 3’s Smart Summon in a parking lot in Phoenix. We did not expect someone to run after the car seeing that no one was inside.’

When the passerby (pictured) noticed the moving car didn’t have driver he quickly chased after the car in an attempt to stop it 

The passerby (pictured) manages to grab the cars rear end before the Tesla owner lets him know the self-driving car is okay

 The man manages to get a hold of the Tesla’s side door when the owner yells, ‘it’s okay!’

 Relieved, the man throws his hands up and walks back to his own car.  

‘They did the right thing! This is, however, a sign of the times which are rapidly progressing tech-wise,’ the owner said. 

The Tesla completes the driverless function flawlessly when it appropriately stops at the parking lot’s intersection and then drives towards the owner.  

But this successful example of the Smart Summon mode seems to be one of many other hiccups and crashes. 

The owner said: ‘They did the right thing! This is, however, a sign of the times which are rapidly progressing tech-wise’

Elon Musk has been ridiculed for claiming he’s on the brink of perfecting a fleet of self-driving taxis after Tesla owners reported that their cars crash on summon mode. 

The CEO of Tesla says that the fleet will be ready by the end of next year, but that has been called into question after the release of Tesla’s Smart Summon technology.

Raj Rajkumar, from Carnegie Mellon University, says that the California company’s new feature is ‘far from perfection’ and he can ‘only laugh’ at Musk’s timeline.    

Many Tesla owners using the summon function, which calls their car to them without anyone in, have experienced several close calls and nasty fender benders.

Scroll down for videos 

The release of Tesla’s Smart Summon technology has CEO Elon Musk promising a fleet of self-driving taxis by the end of next year. However, an autonomous technology expert is calling his bluff as many owners have experienced issues with the technology and shared them on Twitter

‘If Tesla is having some trouble in an uncontrolled situation [like a parking lot], and that [Smart Summon] feature is far from perfection, then Tesla having full self-driving cars at the end of next year? I can only laugh at that,’ Raj Rajkumar, who studies autonomous technology at Carnegie Mellon University, told Wired.

Raj Rajkumar, from Carnegie Mellon University, has argued that Tesla’s Smart Summon has proved to be ‘far from perfection’ and he can ‘only laugh’ at Musk’s timeline

Smart Summon was meant to be a surprise tucked away in Telsa’s latest software Version 10.0, which was released last week. The technology enables cars to navigate a parking lot and come to their owner or a destination of choice, as long as their car is within their line of sight 

He noted that one of the hurdles is Tesla’s self-driving speed.

According to Aarian Marshall with Wired, in order for Tesla’s Smart Summon feature to work, sensors only need to be capable of ‘seeing’ ‘a few dozen feet’ away.

And in parking lots going about 5 mph, the technology can function somewhat.

The comments come after many owners experienced several close calls and nasty fender benders

However, it becomes more complicated when the vehicle is on an open road doing much faster speeds — as it can not process what is ahead of it in time to maneuver properly.  

The sensors used in the vehicles are equip with eight cameras, 12 ultrasonic sensors and a forward-facing radar unit, and it works by using the Autopilot system. 

However, Rajukumar does not think the technology is far from a present, but a disaster waiting to happen. This Tesla owner from Frisco, Texas tested out the Summon feature in a parking lot. His red Model 3 Tesla pictured above 

The Autopilot follows the car owner’s phone GPS or a specific pinpoint on a map and drives towards them while navigating around obstacles, within a maximum distance of 200 feet.

Unlike the popular opinion, Musk has not included a lidar unit — a device many believe is the secrete to perfecting a real autonomous vehicle; 

Because of the issues Smart Summon is experiencing, other experts believe putting under a ‘full self-driving package’ could add confusion and ‘prove dangerous’, according to Matthew Johnson-Roberson, a director of the University of Michigan and Ford Center for Autonomous Vehicles and CEO of the food delivery robot startup Refraction AI. 

Tesla owner David Guajardo tried the Summon feature on his blue Model 3 car and it bumped into another vehicle exiting a parking space, leaving the Tesla with front bumper damage because it failed to yield

Smart Summon ‘ultimately may negatively impact the perception of full self-driving if it doesn’t work flawlessly,’ he said. 

And since the release of the technology, many Tesla owners have flocked to Twitter to share their frustrations, close calls and fender benders. 

For Tesla’s Smart Summon feature to work, sensors only need to be capable of ‘seeing’ ‘a few dozen feet’ away. And in parking lots going about 5 mph, the technology can function somewhat. But, it becomes more complicated when the vehicle is on an open road Aftermath: Guajardo followed up sharing these pictures showing damage to the fog lights

One man shared a video on Twitter engaging the new feature on his blue Model 3 Tesla in a busy parking lot. 

His car automatically eases out of its parking spot but as it turns and drives towards the owner, it fails to yield to another car backing out of the spot and its it. 

‘So day 1 with V10 Smart Summon was working beautifully. But someone didn’t notice my M3 and made a front bumper damage. We will claim our insurances but who’s fault do you guys think it’ll be ?’ David F Guajardo captioned his video testing out the new feature on Twitter.  

He shared photos showing the scratches and dents suffered in the brief bump. 

‘It’s hard to notice in these pictures but yes, it is damaged including the fog lights,’ he captioned his damage photos.  

Another man took to Twitter to show his test in Frisco, Texas.

The video shows him summon his red Tesla Model 3 from a parking lot across the street as he watches on. 

The car seamlessly navigates out of its spot and the parking lot, but when its time to cross the main street it fails to yield to a passing car with the right of way. The Tesla doesn’t stop until the other vehicle comes to a screeching halt.  

‘Be forewarned @Tesla @elonmusk Enhanced summon isn’t safe or production ready. Tried in my empty drive way. Car went forward and ran into the side of garage. Love the car but saddened,’ the Twitter user said shared

This Twitter user says her Tesla turned into a golf cart when she engaged the Summon feature

https://youtube.com/watch?v=-dfpnL9OpzM%3Fstart%3D162

Driver Roddie Hasan shared the video on Twitter with the caption: ‘So, @ElonMusk – My first test of Smart Summon didn’t go so well.’

Another user shared a picture of their badly dented blue Tesla Model 3 that got hit while using the Summon function. 

‘Be forewarned @Tesla @elonmusk Enhanced summon isn’t safe or production ready. Tried in my empty drive way. Car went forward and ran into the side of garage. Love the car but saddened,’ the Twitter user said shared.  

One  user uploaded video to YouTube testing out the feature and showing the black Model 3 smart car get confused by passing traffic and pedestrians along the way. 

However not all Summon test drives were failures. For many Tesla owners the feature worked seamlessly. However challenges tend to come when it’s dark outside. 

Tesla says that the Smart Summon is best used in well-lit and less busy areas like private parking lots and driveways

Even Tesla CEO Elon Musk acknowledged that parking lots are a ‘remarkably hard problem’ to solve in a previous interview, but is still hopefully that he can release a fleet of taxi robots by end of next year

‘Smart Summon is designed to allow your car to drive to you (using your phone’s GPS as a target destination) or a location of your choosing, maneuvering around and stopping for objects as necessary. Like Summon, Smart Summon is only intended for use in private parking lots and driveways,’ Tesla explained in release notes for the update. 

‘You are still responsible for your car and must monitor it and its surroundings at times within your line of sight because it may not detect all obstacles. Be especially careful around quick moving people, bicycles, and cars,’ it added. 

Even Tesla CEO Elon Musk acknowledged that parking lots are a ‘remarkably hard problem’ to solve in a previous interview.  

Source: Read Full Article