The benefits of self-driving cars will likely induce vehicle owners to drive more, and those extra miles could partially or completely offset the potential energy-saving benefits that automation may provide, according to a new University of Michigan study. In the coming years, self-driving cars are expected to yield significant improvements in safety, traffic flow and…
All Things Could Be Part of the Internet of Things with New RFID System
Frying pans, pill bottles, yoga mats, coffee cups and countless other nonelectronic objects could be turned into a network of Internet of Things sensors with a new RFID-based technology from the University of Michigan. The system, called IDAct, bridges the gap between the estimated 14.2 billion “smart” electronic devices that are currently part of the…
Teaching Self-Driving Cars to Predict Pedestrian Movement
By zeroing in on humans’ gait, body symmetry and foot placement, University of Michigan researchers are teaching self-driving cars to recognize and predict pedestrian movements with greater precision than current technologies. Data collected by vehicles through cameras, LiDAR and GPS allow the researchers to capture video snippets of humans in motion and then recreate them…