System Performance Assessment Under Low Road Visibility
Fatal Accidents Related to Tesla FSD Also Mentioned
Fully Autonomous Robo Taxi Service to Launch in Austin, Texas in June
Reuters reported on May 12 (local time) that Tesla, the American electric vehicle company, is undergoing a safety evaluation by U.S. transportation authorities ahead of the launch of its Robo (driverless) taxi service in Texas next month.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) stated in a letter released that day that it is requesting additional information about Tesla's Robo taxi development, explaining, "This is to assess the system's ability to respond appropriately under conditions of reduced road visibility."
NHTSA requested that Tesla provide details about its Robo taxi deployment plans and the technologies used. In particular, the agency asked Tesla to explain what measures it plans to implement to ensure the safety of Robo taxi operations under conditions of reduced road visibility, such as sunlight glare, fog, airborne dust, rain, and snow. In addition, NHTSA inquired whether the Robo taxi vehicles are supervised or monitored in real time by Tesla.
NHTSA also mentioned in the letter that it has been investigating since October of last year collisions caused by Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) software?used for supervised autonomous driving?under conditions of reduced road visibility.
In October of last year, NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) launched an investigation related to pedestrian fatalities and other incidents that occurred while Tesla's FSD was in operation, stating, "There have been reports that the system engineering controls failed to respond appropriately under conditions of reduced road visibility."
At that time, NHTSA announced that there had been four reported traffic accidents involving Tesla vehicles operating with FSD in situations where the road was not clearly visible due to sunlight glare or fog.
Elon Musk, Tesla's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), previously announced that fully autonomous Robo taxi operations would begin in June in Austin, Texas.
This service will operate similarly to ride-hailing services like Uber. Initially, 10 to 20 existing Tesla vehicles will be equipped with the latest version of FSD and operated in an unmanned mode, according to Musk.
The registration of the Robo taxi trademark is also facing difficulties. According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the Robo taxi (Robotaxi) trademark application Tesla filed in October of last year received a "nonfinal office action" decision. A nonfinal office action is a stage in which the applicant is given time to respond before the trademark registration is completely rejected. Tesla may submit rebuttal materials within three months, or six months if a fee is paid.
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