Every driver — human or autonomous — can encounter the unexpected. The best time to work out how to respond to an emergency is before it happens.
Automated vehicles operate in dynamic environments where unexpected events can occur. Beyond collision avoidance, AV fleets need tools to prepare for and respond to major emergencies that can affect multiple vehicles — from natural disasters to complex transportation events. To help advance preparedness across the industry, Waymo researchers and incident readiness experts published a new paper introducing a first-of-its-kind framework to help AV developers plan, test and strengthen incident-management capabilities.
The framework adapts established emergency-management practices, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s established Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program, for automated vehicle operations. It provides a shared approach for AV developers, operational partners, first responders and public-safety agencies to design exercises, evaluate response and continuously improve emergency playbooks. (....)