Investigators say Tesla driver Joshua Brown received multiple visual and audible warnings before his Model S crashed into a truck last year in the first fatal self-driving automobile accident.
Brown was killed in the May 2016 accident, which took place in Florida.
The National Transportation Safety Board released a 538-page report on the accident after opening an investigation into whether the Tesla’s Autopilot system had been faulty. The report showed no evidence that Brown was watching a video at the time of the crash, as had been rumored previously, USA Today said.
It was not clear why Brown ignored the seven visual warnings and six audible warnings to put his hands on the wheel and take back control from the autopilot.
The autopilot system was not found to be faulty, the report said.
Tesla has said drivers of self-driving cars should keep their hands at the wheel and be ready to take over at a moment’s notice. Tesla CEO Elon Musk said previously that software upgrades since the accident probably would have prevented it.
During the car ride preceding the accident, Brown was reported to have only had his hands on the wheel for about 25 seconds of the 37 minutes the car was on autopilot, Reuters reported. The accident raised concerns about the safety of self-driving cars.
The car’s cruise control was set at 74 miles per hour before the crash, which was above the speed limit of 65 mph, Reuters reported.
The report showed Brown should have seen the truck for at least seven seconds before the crash, but took no action to steer or brake to avoid it. The truck driver also took no action to avoid the crash and was charged with a right of way traffic violation.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.