Nissan turns to technology to keep folks from driving the wrong way
By Donald Melanson 
posted Jan 30th 2009 5:48PM
posted Jan 30th 2009 5:48PM
As is becoming increasingly clear, Nissan seems to be intent on having cars do everything short of drive themselves, and it's now taking yet another step in that direction with a proposed system that would prevent drivers from going the wrong way. While it's all still in the planning stages at the moment, the system would apparently make use of a cellular-connected GPS unit that would not only be able to be able to warn the driver if they're headed into the wrong lane, but alert them if they should be slowing down on a downhill stretch, or if they're approaching an area prone to congestion. There's not much else in the way of details just yet, unfortunately, but Nissan has apparently enlisted the help of the West Nippon Expressway Co. (or West NEXCO), and it's promising to demo the system for the press as soon as they have something ready.
Reminds me of every racing game ever.
Well I'm glad they thought of it. Until know unless I saw this turtle riding a cloud while holding a fishing rod with a sign hanging from it I wasn't able to know I was going the wrong way.
Since it's japan should that not be: "WONG WAI!"
if the big one way signs didn't do it for you, i have a feeling a flashing LED may well be lost on you aswel.
There's always roads where the forgot to put the sign, or forgot to replace it after some work, or where a hurricane took it away.
Mind you an electronic system to warn the road-engineers to do their stuff would be handier in those cases.
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
Stupid people are stupid.
Yeah, and dumbing down roads just makes dumber drivers. They try to make driving safer, but it just makes drivers dumber. You can't legislate smart.
If you don't know when you are going the wrong way, you shouldn't be driving. Full Stop.
This is true. I know when I'm going the wrong way, but that's because it gets me home faster at 2 am. 100 feet of one way road with no cars, or a 2 mile detour... I'll take the saved gas over time thankyou.
No matter how much automation you put into it, people will still find ways to drive like fucking morons.
@iEye
I think you forgot to say something about iPhones.
Those cars better have iPhone cradles and the warning should be muted while you use your iPhone, first things first!
A call:
- Hi, honey! Are you on beltway now?
- Yes, dear.
- Be careful then! The radio says some idiot on beltway is driving against the traffic!
- Only one idiot? There are hundreds of them around!
What a complex solution for a simple problem. Simply encourage those zany Japanese engineers to cease designing autocarriages shaped like boxes.... I mean!! Who can tell which direction these little rattletraps are bound to go if you can't even tell where they're pointed in the first place?
This reminds me of that picture that was on Ace Hardware of the male/male plug with the line through it. How many people actually have to this in order for someone to stop it? Are there really that many people driving down the wrong side of the road? Ive been driving in major cities for the last 12 years, and I can honestly say, ive never seen anyone drive down the wrong side of the road.
then you haven't been driving in san francisco
How do they know where we're going?
Yeah, how would they know?
Thank you. Thanks a lot.
Terrific.
Thank you.
What a bunch of morons.
-jp
Caution of increased vehicle speed because of downhill grade?
At some point we have to stop enabling ever stupider people from driving.
I say if they don't crash and burn when they make a mistake, they'll never learn better.
Oh, yeah. The innocent bystanders will also have to learn to not let themselves be victims.
"You're going the wrong way!!"
"He says we're going the wrong way."
"Oh, he's drunk. How would he know where we're going?"
"Yeah, how would he know."
I have a better idea - don't give idiots a license. Make the driving test really, really hard, like they do in Europe. No amount of technology will overcome incompetence.
I agree, but the US isn't Europe. Aside from a few major cities, you HAVE to drive here. Not having a license would devastate most people in the US because they simply wouldn't be able to get around whatsoever. You dont have a license in Europe? No big deal. At least in most their cities. Here, not so much.
It would be different if we all had a choice & could either drive, walk or take public transport to our destination, but most cant because this country was dumb & built everything around the automobile instead of around people. We're currently paying dearly for that mistake & its finally came back to bite us all in the ass. Lucky us.
I have not heard of anyone who couldn't get the card. Some of my friends had to retake the driving test and some the theoretic test, but it just took them a week or two longer to get the card.
Longer mandatory driving school helps keeping everyone safer. Now if only they didn't just sit there and drink coffee and watch cool crash videos on the theoretic lessons..
Over the years, driving has come to be thought of as a "right" to many people in this country, especially teenagers.
The tests should be harder, especially parallel parking. I have seen many drivers run over the curb, hit the cars in front and behind them, and pull into parking spaces crooked. Horrible driving skills in America and I fear its getting worse and more and more people get the "right" to drive.
I can't parallel park. So you know what? I don't.
Caution.. Wrong Way!!!
Caution.. Uphill...
Caution.. Downhill..
Caution.. left turn...
Caution.. right turn..
Caution.. stop..
Caution.. straight..
Caution.. Caution.. Caution..
I have a wife sitting next to me to do all that.
I don't need a machine to nag me as well.
It's the reason I've never bought a GPS gadget. I don't want to be ordered around while I am driving.
So, doesn't that first frame look like a rather futile warning?
"Caution: Wrong way!"
"Hey, why's the text in Japa---?!"
*BOOM*
Nissan is working on GPS Enabled Cruise control, the ECO Pedal thing and now this. i dont know whether to think they are way over doing it on the safety or if this really is a good thing.
i suppose everyone thinks everyone else needs this except themselves. i read that 75% of people consider themselves above average drivers. just think about that for a minute
I wonder if it actually says 'caution wrong way!', it could just as effectively say 'erm, you know you ARE driving against traffic, just saying', why always use those military style warnings? That stuff only creates panic and annoyance, plus bush is gone and it's a more gentle time right?
... because those military style warnings are SHORT, TO THE POINT, AND QUICK TO READ which is why the military uses that style? Three words vs. an entire sentence (or two words by getting rid of the caution) - gee, tough choice.
Then again, you're also the avatar of brilliance that posted a language crack that wasn't even the right language to mock and a pointless jab at Bush (which wouldn't even be a factor in Japan), so I guess I should have expected further idiocy when you made your own topic.
Oh dear, you seem to have something stuck in your ass, try a proctologist instead of a comment section.
P.S. I assumed the warning would be spoken since it's 2009 and people aren't suppose to read messages while driving.