January 2016 Newsletter
Police Warn Drivers About Warming Up Cars
Reading, PA. A warm car is more inviting when you get back behind the wheel, but it's also illegal if your doors aren't locked. "I pretty much go turn it on, run back inside and come back out when it's warm because it's just freezing," said Jennie Vasquez, who lives in Reading. Vasquez blasts the heat after she turns her car on, then she darts inside as it warms up.
"I always lock it and then I come back out, and I always bring my remote," Vasquez said. But many other drivers simply leave the keys in the ignition with the doors unlocked while the car is still running. "We see people leave their car on and they go back inside and have a cup of coffee, or they'll sit down for a little bit for the car to warm up and then they'll go right back out," said David Martinez, who didn't know it was illegal to leave a car running and unattended in Pennsylvania.
Thieves are on the prowl looking for vehicles that are easy to steal, and leaving it running to warm up can end up leaving you out in the cold. "Somebody walking by sees the opportunity to steal the vehicle and does so in that moment, so it's as quick as a second," said Sgt. Jacquelyn Flanagan, Reading Police Department. According to Reading police, a minivan was stolen on Jan. 8 in the 1000 block of Elm Street after it was left unattended.
During this bitter blast, patrol officers have been out looking for vehicles left running with no one behind the wheel because it's a vehicle code violation and against state law. "We issue a ticket or a warning to let owners know that this is a crime, and let them know ultimately they can become a victim," Flanagan said. Police recommended using an automatic start button to help your car warm up, or simply stay inside the car. Anyone who violates the law could be issued a summary offense, which could cost $88.
Ryan Hughes , Reporter, RHughes@wfmz.com
Article Source: http://www.wfmz.com/weather/police-warn-drivers-about-warming-up-cars/37517944
Time Now to Prepare Cars for Winter Storm
BLACKSBURG, Va. With a winter storm on the way, are you ready for the snow we could get? More importantly, is your car? Experts say drivers need to be ready because even a little snow can cause problems for your tires. Before the storm comes there are quite a few things drivers should check to make sure they have.
David Reynolds owns South Main Auto Service in Blacksburg. He said, "In your car you want to check your antifreeze, be sure the antifreeze has proper protection on it. Check your battery, be sure that your battery's not real old. If your battery is over three or four years old I would advise replacing it anyway because when the winter gets cold and when the battery is weak, it's going to go out."
"You want to be sure your oil is full, you want to be sure your windshield washer has antifreeze type fluid in it so it doesn't freeze up when you have to use it because you'll need it with the slush on the road. "One other big thing is always have your gas tank full of gas because all the gases have some water in them most of the time and if you get down to a quarter of a tank there's a possibility, if it sits overnight, it might freeze. So always fill up your gas tank.
"In your car you probably ought to have a bag of salt or you can have kitty litter that just doesn't clump. If you have an occasion when you might get stuck, you put it on your wheels for traction. I also advise you to have a small shovel in there with you. You should carry a blanket with you. You should maybe have some kind of road flare, especially a flashlight with you as well. And carry some money with you too just in case you have a problem.
A set of jumper cables would help too. "Another thing I recommend is at least a gallon of water to carry that with you too in your car. If you get all this stuff ready in advance, you'll be ready for the storm."
But the most important thing is that cars have the right tires that can handle the snow. "Biggest thing tire-wise is be sure you have plenty of tread on your tires, get them to full pressure, especially your spare, that's the most important thing that's in there," said Reynolds. "If you do all that, you should be okay. You can check it at home yourself if you'd like just be sure you know how to check your oil, check your antifreeze level before that it doesn't freeze."
While drivers can do the work at home, Reynolds said his shop has been busy all week with people getting help before the storm. "Been doing quite a few more tires the last few days, we've got more set up for [Wednesday] and it's a good idea to have good tires," he said. "We don't have the problem that we used to have, we used to put snow tires on all cars that were in but now we have so many all-wheel drive cars, so many 4-wheel drive cars, that that's not as big of an issue. Yes we've been selling more tires right now with the storm coming."
Eamon O'Meara, eomeara@wdbj7.com
Article Source: http://www.wdbj7.com/news/local/time-now-to-prepare-cars-for-winter-storm/37517692
How Future Cars Will Predict Your Driving Maneuvers Before You Make Them
Prototype car safety systems are learning to watch the driver, as well as the road ahead, to predict future maneuvers more than three seconds before a driver makes them.
Buy a new car these days and the chances are that it will be fitted with an array of driver-assistance technologies. These can match the speed of a car ahead, manage lane changing safely, and even apply the brakes to help prevent a collision.
So an interesting question is how much better these safety systems can become before the inevitable occurs and the car takes over completely. Today we get a partial answer thanks to the work of Ashesh Jain at Cornell University and a few pals, who have developed a system that can predict a human driver's next maneuver some three seconds before he or she makes it. This information, they say, can then be used to identify and prevent potential accidents
The approach is straightforward in theory. Jain and co point out that a comprehensive knowledge of the driving environment, both inside and outside the car, can be used to make a pretty good guess at the driver's immediate intentions. For example, drivers usually check the lanes next to them before making lane changes.
So monitoring driver head movements helps predict whether the driver intends to change lanes in the next few seconds. Equally, GPS and street map information show when a car is approaching an intersection where a left or right turn become an option. And speed is an important indicator too since drivers usually slow down before making a turn.
But this data is disparate. Head movement data is entirely different to speed data or map data. The difficulty is in combining and analyzing these information streams in a way that allows good predictions to be made. The solution that Jain and co have come up with is to analyze these streams together using advanced artificial intelligence algorithms that learn to spot the telltale signs that a maneuver is impending.
The first part of their work was to gather the data needed to train their machine. Jain and co fitted a car with one camera to monitor the driver and another to monitor the road head. They also used GPS data along with street maps and a speed logger to keep track of the vehicle's velocity
They then gathered data from 10 different drivers who clocked up over 1,000 miles of freeway and city driving over two months. They annotated the data by hand to indicate what maneuvers were occurring. In total they identified 700 "events": some 300 lane changes, 130 turns, and almost 300 randomly chosen instances of driving straight.
They used this data to train a number of different number-crunching machines to identify the conditions under which a driver would turn left or right, change lanes to the left of right, or just keep on driving in a straight line. The results make for interesting reading.
The best performing algorithm was able to correctly determine a future maneuver most of the time - some 90 percent of is predictions were correct. And on average it was able to make its prediction 3.5 seconds before the maneuver actually occurred.
Of course, there is more work ahead. One potential problem is to determine how well the algorithm works in the most hazardous driving conditions, particularly at night or when visibility is poor because of snow or rain storms or when the sun is low in the sky.
Accidents are more likely under these conditions so a predictive algorithm could have the most benefit. But how the system performs under these conditions is not clear.
Another question is what to do with this information once it has been gathered. How can it be used to prevent accidents? Again, it is not clear how car makers can exploit the data. Nevertheless, the new approach could herald an interesting change in the approach to driver safety.
Accurate prediction of driver maneuvers will surely help to make cars safer in the near future. Unless, of course, the self-driving car technology makes humans, and the technology to predict what they will do in future - redundant more quickly than anybody expects.
Article Source: http://www.technologyreview.com/view/545506/how-future-cars-will-predict-your-driving-maneuvers-before-you-make-them/
How to Make a Winter Car Emergency Kit
Winter weather can change travel plans quickly. It's best to be prepared before heading out during the winter months so that if you do run into problems and are stranded, you won't be completely down on your luck.
Having a cell phone is one key item for a winter car emergency so that you can call for help, but if you don't have reception or if your phone's battery dies, you'll want to be prepared and as comfortable as possible while you wait for help to arrive.
Be prepared for winter driving by putting together a winter car emergency kit. This supply list is adapted from University of Illinois Extension:
Windshield scraper and brush
Shovel
Jumper cables
Tow rope
Basic car tool kit (with screwdrivers, wrenches, sockets, vice grips, pliers, tire pressure gauge)
Compass
Road map
Blankets and/or sleeping bags
Extra clothes, including socks, gloves, a scarf and face mask
Non-perishable, high-calorie food like energy bars, granola bars, dried fruit or MREs
Bottled water
Flashlight
Extra batteries
First aid kit
Knife
Phone charger
Bag of sand or container of cat litter
Road flares
Duct tape
Large empty can with plastic lid (for sanitary purposes)
Tissues
Paper towels
You may also want to include:
Waterproof matches (to melt snow for drinking water)
Small can (to hold melted snow)
Notebook and pen
Your car likely came with a car jack and jack stands, but if it didn't, make sure you have them in case you need to change a flat tire. Likewise, you'll need a tire iron to change a flat.
A tire sealant like Fix-a-Flat can help in a pinch to get you home or to a location nearby. You may want to keep an empty gas can in your vehicle in case you run out of gas and can get to a gas station and back to your vehicle safely
Other tips
You never know when or where you may get stuck in a snowstorm or when your car may break down in inclement weather. Take these tips into consideration this winter:
Winterize your car
Take precautions and make sure your car is in its best working condition by winterizing your car. There are also steps you can take to avoid a dead car battery during cold weather.
Drive Safety
Icy, slushy or snow-covered roads can be hazardous to drivers. Keep these tips in mind when you're driving during winter weather. You may also want to download the free Winter Survival Kit, an app for iPhone and Android that stores emergency contact numbers, finds your location keeps you safe from carbon monoxide poisoning. It was developed by North Dakota State University Extension Service and Myriad Devices.
Article: http://www.farmanddairy.com/top-stories/how-to-make-a-winter-car-emergency-kit/311185.html