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BMW unveils a video of an autonomous bike leaning into corners and braking to showcase an AI it hopes will prevent accidents for riders


 

  • The bike is powered by intelligent software that can accelerate, lean around corners, brake and park
  • BMW hopes the AI can one day keep bikers safe by operating as an autonomous driving assistant 
  • Automaker is developing an AI that automatically brakes and adjusts the steering during dangerous situations 
BMW has revealed a self-driving motorcycle that can speed around a racetrack and even park itself without anyone sat on top.The vehicle is powered by intelligent software that can turn, accelerate, lean around corners and brake with no human input.BMW hopes the AI can one day keep bikers safe by operating as a driving assistant that automatically brakes or adjusts the steering during dangerous situations on the road. 

  

In a new video, BMW Motorrad - the German automaker's motorcycle division - showed off a self-driving version of its R1200GS, a vehicle it has spent more than two years developing.
The driverless bike is shown starting its own engine, accelerating and then making turns on a racing track at breakneck speed before returning to a complete stop - all without a rider perched on its seat.
BMW claims the vehicle was not built for consumers, but to learn more about how it can work new safety features into its motorcycle range.


  

It is developing these tools to support inattentive drivers, providing 'more stability' in emergency situations.
These include scenarios at crossroads, during sharp turns or when braking quickly, according to the BMW Motorrad video.
'The prototype helps us to expand our knowledge about the vehicle's dynamics so that we can classify the rider's behaviour,' Stefan Hans, a Motorrad safety engineer, says in the video.

  


'This helps us determine if a future situation will become dangerous or not.
'If so, we can inform, warn or intervene directly.'
Researchers have already spent hundreds of hours developing the technology, and hope it could be installed in BMW motorcycles of the future.
The automaker has not revealed what technology it uses to help the bike see, but it likely involves use of motion-sensing cameras, lidar and AI technology - like almost all autonomous cars.
As self-driving technology grows, it appears our roads are destined to be filled with cars, trucks and other vehicles driven by robots.
  


But while the technology is improving, it seems the general public still isn't fully convinced.
A survey last month found that almost half of Americans have no interest in buying a fully self driving car. 
The Cox Automotive Evolution of Mobility Study found that consumer awareness of driverless vehicles has skyrocketed - but that people still want to be able to drive themselves.
Forty-nine per cent of respondents said they would never own a fully-autonomous car, known in the industry as a Level 5 vehicle, researchers found, up from 30 per cent in 2016.
It also found 84 per cent want to have the option to drive themselves even in a self-driving vehicle, compared to 16 per cent who would feel comfortable letting an autonomous vehicle drive them without that option.
  


 

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