The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is assessing autopilot performance after identifying the first a dozen accidents
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is assessing autopilot performance after identifying the first a dozen accidents
US auto safety regulators on Thursday asked Tesla Inc. to answer questions about its in-car cameras intended to monitor driver awareness as part of an investigation into 830,000 Tesla vehicles that the carmaker called Autopilot. Employs advanced driver assistance systems.
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National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is Autopilot performance assessment Having previously identified a dozen accidents in which Tesla vehicles stopped emergency vehicles.
In June, it upgraded its investigation to an engineering analysis — a necessary step before potentially being recalled.
The nine-page letter from the NHTSA calls for Tesla to answer questions by October 12 about “the role of the cabin camera in enforcing driver engagement/attention.”
According to Tesla, the cabin camera – a camera located above the rear view mirror – can detect driver inattention and provide audible alerts to remind drivers to keep their eyes on the road when Autopilot is engaged.
NHTSA said it was seeking information on the cabin camera’s “driver engagement alert type and timing of impact” as well as “recoverable data elements indicating its impact.”
The agency said it wanted an explanation for the “design decision” on driver engagement enforcement, “including evidence that justifies the length of time the driver is allowed to keep his hand off the steering wheel before receiving a warning.” Is.”
The regulator is reviewing whether Tesla vehicles adequately ensure that drivers are paying attention. The agency said in June that evidence showed drivers in most of the crashes under review had complied with Tesla’s cautious strategy, raising questions about its effectiveness.
Tesla, which has dissolved its press office, did not respond to a request for comment.
Consumer Reports said that when it evaluated Tesla’s driver attention monitoring camera in late 2021 “we found it was not sufficient to ensure that the driver was driving when the driver was using the Autopilot and Full Self Driving (FSD) features.” The driver was completely paying attention.”
The magazine said it “could block the in-cabin camera, and the car would not issue a warning, slow the car down, or shut down the system.”
In June, Consumer Reports said the company had installed an over-the-air update that issued a warning if the camera was covered when the FSD was engaged, but not with Autopilot.
Autopilot is intended to enable cars to automatically steer, accelerate and brake within their lane, while FSD enables vehicles to obey traffic signals and make lane changes.
In addition to defect investigations, NHTSA has since 2016 opened 38 special investigations into accidents involving Tesla vehicles and where Autopilot or other advanced systems were suspected to be used. Those investigations related to Tesla have resulted in a total of 19 deaths.
Separately, California’s state transportation has accused Tesla of falsely advertising the features as providing autonomous vehicle control.
Tesla said in a notice filed with the state issued Thursday that it is seeking a hearing on the complaints and intends to present a defense.
California’s Department of Motor Vehicles is exploring measures that could include suspending Tesla’s license to sell vehicles in the state and requiring the company to provide reinstatement to drivers.