Acting like a plane on autopilot, it is designed to take over from humans in slow-moving heavy traffic or on a familiar route such as a school run.

 

　　The vehicle is activated via an iPad on the dashboard. By tapping on a prompt, the driver can make the car's onboard computer take the wheel.

 

　　Driverless cars are also known as autonomous vehicles and robotcars. The robotcar that is being developed by Oxford University and Nissan at Begbroke Science Park in Oxfordshire, uses a combination of external sensors and computer power to calculate the correct direction and speed.

 

　　Professor Paul Newman is one of the developers of this project.

 

　　"I absolutely believe that having machines in control of the car can make them safer otherwise they would not be a product. To say that machines won't be driving us in the future is much harder to believe and say we are condemned to a future of congestion time wasting and pollution and dangerous driving. It is hard to distract a computer."

 

　　Google and carmakers such as Audi AG, BMW AG, Ford Motor and Volvo have been working on autonomous car technology for years.

 

　　Several U.S. states have already passed laws that would allow such vehicles on public highways.

 

　　Colorado is the latest state considering legalizing autonomous vehicles.

 

　　Colorado's proposal states that automated cars must still contain licensed drivers and must have an override switch so they can be driven manually if needed. The "drivers" in automated cars would be allowed to text or type with hands off the wheel and feet off the pedals.

 

　　There is no legislation to allow the driverless cars to take to the road in the UK, but the designers are in discussions with the UK Department of Transport.

 

　　Smart technology is already a part of new cars produced around the world, with motion sensors, guided parking and cruise control.

 

　　The technology used in the robotcar currently adds $7,743 U.S. dollars to the cost of a typical vehicle, but researchers are confident prices will fall with mass production.

 

　　However, motoring writer Mike Rutherford cautioned that insurers might be reluctant to provide coverage for such vehicles.

 

　　"It's difficult enough to get cars insured when you're a driver with a decent record and you have no history of crashes or endorsements. Imagine contacting a comparison website and trying to explain that you don't actually want to drive it, you just want to ride as a passenger in it, and the car drives itself."

 

　　Autonomous cars use computers, sensors and other technology to operate independently, but a human driver can override the autopilot function and take control of the vehicle at any time.

 

　　For CRI, I am Li Dong.