Google's Driverless Car and the FAA

Google's "driverless" car program has been getting some attention in the media over the last few months and I have started to wonder about the parallels between it and our hobby. According to the article these vehicles have been operating on our streets albeit with a driver in them to take over in case of an issue and have raked up thousands of miles of successful driving.

I could not find any reference to the how Google went about getting permission to operate a robotic vehicle on our streets. Did the request permission from CalTrans or the Department of Transportation (is there a COA process?). I certainly feel comfortable sharing California roads with them..well maybe.

Anyway if it is not obvious where I am going with this here it comes. How can Google operate a small fleet of robotic cars on our streets (oh all those children running about chasing balls) and we have this fundamental policy block at the FAA which prevents civilians moving UAS technologies forward.

A one ton UAV on a street near you...

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Jonathan Lussier October 28, 2010 at 6:44am

Despite having the name 'driverless cars,' these actually have two people inside. One driver and one engineer. The driver is there as a backup/failsafe and can override any and all computer inputs.
The cars were built by the same people who built the DARPA grand challenge-winning entry and these cars are simply 'proof of concept' or technological demonstrators.
With regards to similarity to the FAA, this is similar to a commercial plane autopilot, not a UAV. There is still a pilot in the seat ready to take action.
Developer

Doug Weibel October 28, 2010 at 6:43am

The primary reason it is probably easier to get authorization is that you can stay within state regulation for an on the road activity, while an in the air activity falls under federal regulation. Google probably has a lot more influence with the State of California than say Procerus does with the federal government.

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Google's Driverless Car and the FAA

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