| Jan. 9, 2008 Update
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GM plans to manufacture driverless cars by 2018
This is not science fiction...the question is what does society want to do with it?
Larry Burns, VP of Research and Development for GM.[1]
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In June 1933, William Branham experienced a series of 7 prophetic visions. In the fourth vision, scientific acheivement produced a driverless vehicle, while cars continued to be shaped more and more like an egg.
This vision is being fulfilled.
With driver assist technologies being integrated into vehicles today, the promise of a fully autonomous individual vehicle on all or designated roadways is possible. The research for autonomous vehicles began in 1977 by the Tsukuba Mechanical Engineering Lab in Japan. The Bundeswehr Universität München in Europe experimented with video-driven cars in the 1980s, and the U.S. experimented with an automated highway system in the 1990s. Today, however, the most promise is in individually autonomous vehicles made possible by advances in computer technology.
The next time you read an article about the future of the automobile, remember this prophecy.
File:Cars.jpg
Retelling of the 1933 vision:
<playmp3>Seventy Weeks of Daniel, August 6, 1961|Driverless Cars.mp3</playmp3>
- Science will progress in such a way until they will make a car that will not have to be guided by a steering wheel, and the cars will continue to be shaped like an egg until the consummation," the end time. I seen American family going down the road in a broad way, riding in a car with their backs turned towards where the wheel should be; looked like they were playing checkers or cards. And we got it. It's on television. "Popular Science"--"Mechanics," rather, all have it; we got the car. It's controlled by remote control by--by radar. They won't even have to have any steering wheel in it. Just set your dial like this--like you dial your phone--your car takes you right on to it, can't wreck nor nothing. No other cars--the magnet keeps the rest of them away from you. See? They got it. Oh, my. Think of it. Predicted thirty years before it happened. (Seventy Weeks of Daniel, August 6, 1961)
- You won't be able to enter into a city then, a twenty-mile zone, you can just go twenty mile. You can't hit another car, because it's remote control. (Why are we not a Denomination? Sept. 27, 1958)
- Just set your radar to where you're going, it takes you yourself; you don't have to steer it. (Ephesian Church Age, Dec 5, 1960)
 Boy’s Life Magazine – October 1990 - VOLVO’S new XC60 sport-utility vehicle...[is] fitted with mechanisms to help avoid a crash in the first place, including an automated braking system. The Volvo system, called City Safety, operates at up to 30kph (19mph)...City Safety uses a laser sensor fitted behind the windscreen to scan the road ahead, calculating relative speeds and distances. It applies the brakes if a collision cannot be avoided. (The Economist, Dec 11, 2008)
- Bit by bit, the day is coming when it will be possible to jump into an empty car and say: “Home, James.” (The Economist, Dec 11, 2008)
- An S-Class Mercedes with all the extras can already be left largely alone to make its way along a moderately busy and fairly straight Autobahn. (The Economist, Dec 11, 2008)
- With radar-based automatic distance-sensing systems, imaging and lane-adherence technology, and the GPS system, we basically have the enablers to do fully autonomous driving. It's not out of the question to imagine that someday soon you'll be able to start the car, punch in the appropriate settings, then swivel the front seats around and play cards and eat lunch as if you're riding on a train. All in perfect comfort and safety, all the way to that niece's place in Chicago...If pressed to estimate just how far away that time is, I'd say a working system is ten years out, implementation maybe 20 years (Fortune Magazine, June 14, 2004, Bob Lutz, Vice Chairman of General Motors)
- This is not science fiction...Now the question is what does society want to do with it? You're looking at these issues of congestion, safety, energy and emissions. Technically there should be no reason why we can't transfer to a totally different world."(Yahoo News, Jan 7, 2008, Larry Burns, VP of Research and Development for General Motors)
Driverless Vehicles
 Stanley: Drivers not required DARPA (Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency)
On Sunday October 8, 2005 a modified Volkswagen Touareg named Stanley beat 23 other robotic cars and 150 miles of Nevada Desert to claim a $2 Million prize and the rights to be called the first autonomouns off-road vehicle. Stanley is guided by video, laser, radar and GPS signals, is run by seven on-board Intel Pentiums, and is able to tell the difference between a tumbleweed and a rock. Stanley was invented by a team at Stanford University. Visit the GrandChallenge website for more details.
On Saturday November 3, 2007, the Tartan Racing Team (Carnegie Melon) bested Stanley Jr. and Virginia Tech in a 60 mile mock urban course. Not only did these vehicles have to complete the course, they also had to navigate traffic (each other and stunt drivers) and obey all of California's traffic laws. DARPA handed out prizes totaling $3,500,000.[2] [3]
The U.S. military has a mandate from Congress to have 30% of all military vehicles unmanned by 2015. The DARPA Grand Challenge and Urban Challenge are part of the U.S. military strategy to achieve this goal.
Parkshuttle
Developed by Frog Navigation (2getthere) and built by Connexion (the Dutch Transit Authority), this bus runs driverless through onboard computers and sensors, together with guiding magnets embedded in the designated roadway. However, Phileas does occasionally need to be manually overridden by a driver. Phileas is already in operation in the Netherlands between the airport and an industrial park.
Egg Shaped Cars - Concept vehicles
Nissan Pivo
One of the stars of the 2005 Tokyo Auto Show, the Nissan Pivo concept is an electric car with drive-by-wire systems and a revolving egg-shaped cabin. See Nissan's Press Release for more information.
Peugot Moovie
The Moovie concept vehicle is driven by two large wheels, the centre of which serves as doors for the vehicle. The Moovie is an electric car designed by Andre Costa in the third Peugot Design Contest, and developed as a prototype by Peugot.
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