[Year 12 IT Apps] Will Increasing Automation Make Jets Less Safe?

[ken price]

Somewhere I have an old article about a controversy around the data stored
in car onboard computers (as fitted to most cars made in the last decade).

These computers continously monitor various inputs (road speed, engine
speed, accelator position, gear, clutch and brake actions etc etc) as part
of the car's normal operation.. In the event of a crash there is typically
20 seconds or so worth of data stored still, representing the driver's
actions up to the crash. If this is recovered it could inform investigators
as to what happened to cause the crash.

At the time the article was written, retrieving this data was deemed an
invasion of privacy as owners were not advised that the engine management
computer could be used as a black box data recorder. Police at that time had
no idea on any of this stuff - presumably that has changed.

Nice dilemma for students to consider.

These articles provide some of the information.
http://www.allbusiness.com/automotive/automotive-research-vehicle-crash-testing/6241031-1.html
http://www.edn.com/article/CA529380.html

Ken

On Tue, Aug 4, 2009 at 8:15 AM, Mark Kelly <kel at mckinnonsc.vic.edu.au>wrote:

> Including ABS and related technology in cars... !
>
> Timmer-Arends wrote:
>
>> There is a long history of deadly situations involving the Airbus and its
>> fly-by-wire systems. Back in the late '80s early '90s Perry Morrison and Tom
>> Forester were documenting lots of computer failures resulting human injury
>> or death. They argued that computers should not be put in charge of complex
>> situations wherein an error could result in disaster.
>> Regards
>> Robert T-A
>>
>
>
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