Autonomous driving company Cruise and US regulators said today that Synthetic engine The subsidiary recalled software deployed on 80 vehicles after two people were injured in a crash in June involving a Cruise vehicle operating on autopilot in San Francisco. The incident comes a day after the state of California granted Cruise a license to start a commercial ride-hailing service in the state. The flawed software was updated in early July, Cruise said in a statement submit with the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The accident happened when a Cruise vehicle was trying to make an unprotected left turn across a two-lane road when it was hit by a speeding and oncoming vehicle. Cruise said in its NHTSA filing that its software predicted that the other vehicle would turn right and determined that heavy braking was required when its vehicle turned left to avoid a frontal collision. But the other car continued to go straight through the intersection, T-boning the Cruise car was standing still.
At least one person in the speeding vehicle and one Cruise employee who was traveling in the self-driving car were treated for injuries, according to a report. report that Cruise filed with the California Department of Motor Vehicles in June. Cruise responded to the incident by placing its robotic cars in tighter tethers until their software was updated. The company reduced the area of San Francisco for vehicles to operate and banned them from turning left altogether.
Cruise said in its NHTSA filing that the software update improves the self-driving software’s predictions, especially in situations like the one that led to the crash. The company said it had determined that if the vehicle involved in the June 3 incident had been running current software, no crash would have occurred.
The recall is only the second by NHTSA involving fully self-driving software. In March, self-driving car developer Pony.ai remember three self-driving vehicles after discovering a software bug that caused the system to shut down unexpectedly while their vehicle was in motion. The company said all affected vehicles have been repaired. The growing amount of software in vehicles means that more vehicle recalls can be performed — even among human-driven vehicles — through Online update.
In a written statement about the Cruise recall, NHTSA head Steven Cliff said the agency continues to investigate accidents involving self-driving vehicles and will “ensure that manufacturers and developers vehicle development that prioritizes the safety of pedestrians, cyclists and other vulnerable road users”. Cruise met with NHTSA officials several times to discuss the crash, according to the recall filing.
Cruise spokeswoman Hannah Lindow said in a written statement that the software issue has been resolved. “Cruise AVs are even better equipped to prevent this particular, special event,” Lindow writes. Currently, Cruise’s service operates in 70% of cities from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., except when it’s raining or foggy. Interested passengers must register to use the service. The robot can turn left again.
