U.S. Regulators Propose Black Boxes for All Cars
US regulators have proposed that new cars be fitted with black box devices.
Planes are outfitted with special recording devices that help investigators figure out what went wrong in case of an accident. These 'black boxes' are recording devices that record audio from the cockpit as well instrument readings from the plane's controls and sensors. If U.S. regulators get their way, these devices may soon be in modern cars, too.
Wired reports that federal regulators are proposing that new cars sold after September 2014 be fitted with event data recorders that would record speed, number of passengers, seat belt usage, throttle, location, and more. These devices aren't designed to record the goings on inside your car at all times. Instead, they'll kick in for about half a minute if the car detects behaviors conducive to a road accident (such as sudden breaking, swerving or acceleration).
According to Wired, the National Transportation Safety Agency is looking for feedback for mandating that all auto manufacturers install these devices in cars. However, there are also concerns regarding drivers' privacy. The NTSA has yet to fill in the blanks on some very important details. This includes who has access to the recording data and how long the data will be kept for.
The NTSA is accepting comments on the proposal through to February 11. Read all about it and leave your feedback here.
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They already do it, now this is a "mandate" to the manufacturers for something they already do....
If you are concerned about it, and want to remove it, and gain control over the engine/transmission so that you can fine tune it, there are aftermarket systems such as MegaSquirt, that do a real good job, and are surprisingly, OpenSource... =D
More government intrusion into our daily lives. It's all about control.
There is nothing currently in use that does what these "black boxes" do. The powertrain and other control systems only store data relevant to system malfunctions.
GPS, no, these "black boxes" aren't used for tracking the vehicle. The purpose is to determine the cause of accidents. Basically, it'll give insurance companies more excuses for increasing rates....
I'm sure we all expect this....and don't be surprised if you turn out to be right.
Yes, the auto insurance companies are supporting this because it gives them yet another excuse to raise rates or deny claims (in states where they legally can).
There's even been rumors of integrating heart rate monitors into this "black box" system so it can detect "anomalies" in your heart rate while driving.... By the time it's done, it'll even know when you have bowel movements and whether your digestive tract is functioning properly....
If you're in an accident, probable cause allows for search and seizure without a warrant....
Riiiight. 'Cause if someone runs a red light at an intersection and T-bones you, neither box will record anything useful, and it'll still be word-versus-word unless there's a witness.
Yea I wouldn't dream of riding one of those around my military infested area, those guys merge first and ask questions later
Nothin against the military, just sayin
you have a cell phone? congratulations you're already being tracked as all cell phones since going digital have GPS built into them it not only goes with you in your car but as you walk down the side walk, to your drug dealers, to you're ex's window, inside your home and other places you go
all GM vehicles with 'onstar' have gps built into them as well.
a black box set up the way they have them in aircraft is the least they SHOULD DO, driving is not a right it is a privelge i would like it to go a little further than just aircraft black boxes and have camera or video snap shot or full video but that is where the potential for abuse comes in.
it would be great for legal purposes if a car thief stole your car and got into an accident. would also stop alot of lying in auto accidents, would prevent life insurance fraud and some crime, would be great for auto insurers, not completely so great for their customers if they are bad drivers. excellent for the people put into a coma in an auto accident who can not testify in court.
would be very incriminating for you drug using drivers and people grooming themselves while going to work, people disobeying traffic control devices or breaking other vehicular laws.
i think video out the front window point of view with the rear view mirror included in the picture capture would be good.
to those of you with the hanky panky going on in the back seat, it's nothing i couldn't have video'd and put on a porn site thru one of your windows.
They have too been tracking you, haven't you heard of OnStar?
Even if you cancel your subscription, they still track you.
Thats one, the others do it too....
And the "black box" thing? They've been doing it since the 00's, they just call it by a different name:
Diagnostic Snapshots... Grab a nice SnapOn scanner and you can see all the crap they store and even create your own snapshots for whatever you want at whatever condition. Like say you want to have the computer start recording for 5 mins when the engine hits 2000 rpms for example....
Why do I know this?
I used to be a service manager, not just a computer freak >_>
OnStar is specific to GM vehicles.
Yes, a technician can configure the powertrain control modules to make recordings under specified conditions. However, aside from these rather rare occasions, the only time the system itself creates recordings is when faults occur. The recordings are even specific to the fault that occurs. The system is designed to store maximum speed and maximum RPM for warranty purposes, but that data is off-limits to law enforcement and insurance companies.