On 5/8/22 13:48, David Batho wrote:
> My Volvo’s system also warns me of joints in the tar, and shadows on

> the road surface, but only very occasionally!

That problem was solved years ago - using 'sensor fusion'. Our self
driving Rav4 (Uni research project) was dodging shadows when using
vision only, but they added LIDAR and RADAR to the sensor mix and it
stopped dodging shadows. That was over 10 years ago. Much research has
passed since then.

I do not that more recently a certain showman of a CEO stated his cars
would 'self drive' using vision only. Good enough for people, good
enough for the robots.

Both France and Germany are trialing autonomous 'country' trains - where
they go out on mixed traffic lines, mixed with other passenger trains,
freight, level crossings, farm crossings, etc.

Sydney Suburbans running automated is certainly with in possibility.

The French project is interesting in that the French Rail unions make
our RBTU look like ineffective amateurs. Maybe the game plan is have a
train drivers strike and the trains all depart their depots and do their
runs anyway... :-)

The French also did a trial of autonomous stabling in a Paris tram
depot. The drivers stepped off at the gate and the trams took them
selves to the stabling road and shutdown.