 have trouble detecting darker, less-reflective paint colors like black. You might think that white would be the best exterior for a vehicle, but […] "'Pin It")
Autonomous Tech Could Mean Less Colorful Cars
Photo: PPG
Self-driving cars promise to lend greater convenience to daily life. However, they might also mean less colorful car exteriors in the near future. This is because the LIDAR systems on autonomous vehicles (AVs) have trouble detecting darker, less-reflective paint colors like black. You might think that white would be the best exterior for a vehicle, but that too can cause trouble for LIDAR; too much light reflecting off the car on a sunny day can potentially blind the sensors.
Besides the color of car exteriors, the color of road signs and markings might also need to be modified. For example, white lane lines or parking spot lines, or the white text on stop signs will need to be updated so the sensors can pick up the images.
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More bland colors for cars and transportation is just a prediction, however. (One that hopefully won’t come true.) In more positive news, companies like Axalta and PPG are currently testing an array of colors that LIDAR can “see,” both in clear and inclement weather.
A major challenge to developing these new AV-friendly paint colors is the lack of rules and testing methods. “We’re working as aggressively as the industry will let us, but right now there is no pass or fail.[…] So, we are looking at how do we best detect things,” said Nancy Lockhart, color marketing manager at Axalta Coating Systems in Clinton Township.
Despite these obstacles, Axalta and PPG are confident that vehicle paint technology will soon come up to speed so modern drivers have the best of both worlds: self-driving technology and colorful car exteriors.
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News Sources: Uticaod, Detroit Free Press
Whitney Russell is a current resident of Dayton, though her spirit can be found beach-bumming on Puerto Rico (the land of her half-Puerto Rican heritage). When not adventuring through the exciting world of car news, she can be found hiking with her fiance and their 1-year-old Labrador, motorcycling, reorganizing and/or decorating some corner of the world (most likely in yellow), researching random things, scribbling on her blog, and escaping into a great movie, poem, or short story. See more articles by Whitney.
