Tesla Shows Off Model S’ Autopilot Feature in Video

Tesla released a video that shows off the Model S’ Autopilot feature, which enables the car to drive semi-autonomously. In the clip, a Model S sedan is shown being summoned out of its parking garage using a smartphone app. On the road, the car’s Autopilot feature is activated, enabling the car to drive semi-autonomously, following the curves of the road, keeping up with traffic, and changing lanes by simply activating the turn signal. At the end, the Model S’ self-parking feature is highlighted with the car successfully parallel parking itself into a spot.

A few months back, we tested a Tesla Model S P90D with the Autopilot feature and we found it to be a step beyond advanced cruise control systems found in cars by Mercedes-Benz and Volvo. Compared to other adaptive cruise control systems, Tesla’s Autopilot requires the least driver interaction and uses a combination of sensors, radar, cameras, and real-time traffic updates in combination with the car’s cruise control. This enables the Model S to be near-autonomous since it can follow clearly marked lane divider lines on the highway with ease. Other unique features of Tesla’s Autopilot system include the ability to pass traffic after changing lanes if safe to do so. Recently, a software update for the Autopilot system was rolled out to place restrictions on its autonomous driving capabilities after some incidents where owners were making unsafe decisions when the Model S was in Autopilot mode.

In addition to the Model S, the Autopilot system should also find its way to the seven-passenger Tesla Model X.

Source: Tesla via YouTube

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