After buying a Model 3, Vince was surprised to see a feature on the large touch screen in front of the dashboard that allowed him to play three video games while driving.
Mr. Patton thought that it couldn't be right.
He tried it out in a parking lot and was able to play a game on the Model 3. He said that he only did it for five seconds. I am astonished. It seems to me to be dangerous.
The games were added in a software update that was sent to most of the cars. They can be played by a driver or passenger in full view of the driver, raising fresh questions about whether the safety of the cars is compromised by the addition of new technologies.
Jonathan Adkins, executive director of the Governors Highway Safety Association, said that it was a big concern if it played in view of the driver.
For several years, safety experts have been critical of the autopilot system that allows drivers to take their hands off the steering wheel for extended periods, even though they are not supposed to. It doesn't have an effective way of making drivers keep their eyes on the road.
The combination of hands-free driving and drivers looking away from the road has been connected to at least 12 traffic deaths since 2016 in cars that were operating in autopilot mode. The addition of video games is crying out for NHTSA to provide some guidance and regulation.
The new video games and whether they could jeopardize safety were not responded to by the company and its CEO.
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The number of traffic deaths in the United States has increased due to distracted driving. According to estimates from the Department of Transportation, 20,160 people died in traffic crashes in the first six months of the year. It was the highest total since 2006 and was up 18.4 percent from the first half of 2020.
According to a senior General GM executive, distracted driving is the cause of 10% of traffic deaths. He and other safety experts believe the figure is much higher because crash investigations often overlook distraction while naming other causes.
The number is closer to 50 percent according to Mr. Kiefer.
Mitchel was killed in a car accident in Michigan in 2016 when a distracted driver rear-ended his car.
Distracted driving can be caused by activities that distract drivers from the task at hand. It's linked to using a phone while driving, but drivers sometimes read books and put on makeup. The use of cellphones while driving is not allowed in some states. Apple, Ford, and others have developed in-car software that makes it easier to use voice commands to place calls and send text messages.
There are mechanisms to reduce potential distraction from front-seat screens. If the car is shifted out of park, the entertainment system on the front screen will go dark. Many navigation systems don't allow addresses to be entered manually while a car is moving. Mazda vehicles don't allow the use of the dashboard screen while in motion.
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Mr. Patton said he only did it for a short time. I am astonished. To me, it just seems dangerous.
G.M.'s Super Cruise system, which can steer and brake, and allow drivers to take their hands off the steering wheel, has a camera that tracks the driver's eyes. Super Cruise will issue a warning or shut off the engine if they stray from the road.
The features can be enacted quite safely with driver monitoring and eye monitoring.
The cameras in some cars look at a driver's face, but they don't track eye gaze, and the cameras don't detect less in the dark. Four years ago, after investigating a fatal crash, the National Transportation Safety Board recommended that a camera be added to improve driver monitoring, but the company has not done so.
The chair of the safety board said it was incredibly frustrating. We are trying to warn the public and tell them that they need to put some safeguards in. But they have not.
The safety board can investigate accidents and recommend improvements, but it has no power to force companies to take action. NHTSA serves that role.
The NHTSA told the manufacturers that in-vehicle entertainment devices should be designed so the driver cannot use them to perform inherently distracted secondary tasks while driving.
Until this summer, video games in the software package could only be played while the car was in park. The update was beamed to the cars. Solitaire, Sky Force Reloaded, and The Battle of Polytopia: Moonrise were added. Mr. Patton said that he was able to get access to all three with his car in drive, and that he had filed a complaint with NHTSA.
Solitaire is a game for everyone, but playing while the car is in motion is only for passengers, according to a warning that appears before the game starts. A button asks for confirmation that the player is a passenger, but a driver can play by touching it.
In a second video, a person shows how the game can be played while the car is in drive. The owner says in the video that it's dangerous. Someone is going to use autopilot and then play Solitaire. Take notice of that,Tesla.
