Google Self-Driving Car

Google is full of surprises! The Google convention, Google IO 2014, will take place on June 25 where many great things will be revealed, such as a new version of Android and maybe even the Google Smartwatch. Until then, Google thought we might get bored so it gave us the Google self-driving car to take a gander at, admire and pine over.

In 2010, there were 2.24 million injuries related to car accidents and 35,332 deaths in the United States alone. Texting, eating, speeding and other driver decision errors are largely to blame. Google wants to fix this, so that in the future, the roads and cars will be safer.

The Google self-driving car isn’t Google’s first prototype of a driverless car, but it is the first one to not have a wheel or pedals. This model is the only true driverless car! Humans play a very small role in the operation of this vehicle. There are two buttons: one to start and pullover and one for emergency stop. That’s about it!

The car’s computer uses Google Maps to arrive at the destination. It does so by laser and radar sensors along with a very powerful sensor on top of the car. That sensor has a camera that monitors the surroundings in all four directions. Between the three sensors, blind spots for this vehicle are virtually eliminated.

This Google self-driving car is an electric car built from a foam-like material and has a plastic (thus flexible) windshield. The front of the car has what seems to be eyes, a nose and a mouth, giving it an almost cartoony face. We hope those features don’t stick forever, as we’d like to have a more serious Google self-driving car in our garage.

Although this is just a prototype, it is a very good one that promises to make driving a much safer and pleasurable experience. We have no idea when these cars become commercially available and what their price will be, but we hope that happens soon.

What are your thoughts on the Google self-driving car? Would you want one? Do you think this is the future for cars or do you think driving is a pleasure that people will not want to give up? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below, we’d love to hear what you think about this new car!