GM envisions driverless cars on horizon

A short while back I featured a post about the DARPA meeting in Victorville and this article is somewhat a continuation of the effort..one of the areas this could address is the possible elimination of intoxicated drivers on the road...something we would all like to see. The car was powered by 2 Intel quad core servers and actually did a very good job, but it's not there yet...but it was amazing to watch the car park, stop, and even center itself in traffic lanes better than a human can do....less traffic deaths and care in hospitals due to a decrease of traffic incidents...BD

DETROIT - Cars that drive themselves — even parking at their destination — could be ready for sale within a decade, General Motors Corp. executives say.

GM, parts suppliers, university engineers and other automakers all are working on vehicles that could revolutionize short- and long-distance travel. And Tuesday at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas GM Chief Executive Rick Wagoner will devote part of his speech to the driverless vehicles.

Sebastian Thrun, co-leader of the Stanford University team that finished second among six teams completing a 60-mile Pentagon-sponsored race of driverless cars in November, said GM's goal is technically attainable. But he said he wasn't confident cars would appear in showrooms within a decade. "Where it shakes out remains to be seen but there is no question we see a lot of potential there," said Rae Tyson, a spokesman for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.