It's only when you see the Waymo depot in operation that it really highlights how far ahead Waymo are in providing a RoboTaxi service than Tesla with their FSD. Even if Tesla's FSD was capable there is so much more to providing a taxi service other than the automated driving. Waymo have made so many advances such as improving their interaction with emergency responders, allowing the emergency services to geofence an area from Waymo vehicles and having Waymo remote operators take over or give advice, and to train the emergency responders on how to interact or take control of a Waymo vehicle. There is a big difference going from an always supervised vehicle to one that has no driver. If a Tesla FSD disengages, the driver takes over, for a Tesla RoboTaxi after a disengagement there would be no one to take control, and that part of the service needs to be addressed before they can be let loose on the road. Waymo and Tesla FSD are often compared to one another when really there is no comparison. There is very little that Tesla FSD can do that Waymo can't, while there would seem to be a stack of things that Waymo can do, that Tesla FSD can't.
Tesla's robotaxi is to be unveiled in August. It's going to be the first car without operator controls such as a steering wheel. In the meantime, we're still waiting for robots to drive, clean, and work like slaves while speaking perfect English.
@@Worldofourown2024 Sorry but no vehicle mfg has level 4 autonomy. NO ONE. Even these Waymo's, which are hugely geo-fenced to San Francisco, and mapped thoroughly for local trips, still have steering wheels. And they are light years ahead of Tesla. Tesla's don't even have radar or lidar, but yet every other automaker that is putting money into autonomy is going the opposite route. We will not see a steering wheel-less vehicle for at least a decade. I had a Tesla but man, they are so full of BS.
Thank you so much for the detailed explanation. I used to drop off packages near the main location and I remember before when amazon had a warehouse and when waymo started buying that area. crazy how fast it changed and it’s a depot there now
Honestly what a fantastic video. I’m in Australia, & the thing of a driverless taxi is crazy. For a small channel I think you’ll expand good. Your quality is very good.
This was definitely super neat! The slow speed is probably to also ensure the safety of the many staff roaming that same parking lot. Really appreciate you putting this together!
Great video Kevin. I agree with your guesses at about 13:00 on data swapping going on during the trunk visits by the Waymo staff. I'd say the main reason for the disk swapping vs. wireless data transmission is speed (and maybe cost). Historically wired data transfers occurred at least an order of magnitude faster by wire than wireless. That ratio may have gone down somewhat recently with new WI-Fi and cell standards, but we don't know what they are doing with this data. If they just retain it briefly, then they might not even transfer it off the swapped drives Instead, they might just schedule the drives to be reused once the data was retained long enough to be sure there wasn't a big problem, like an accident that was reported somewhat later. BTW, two possibilities for the wired connection are USB or Ethernet. I believe most (if not all) of the 40 sensors (28 cameras, 6 radars, and 6 lidars) are networked to the Waymo computer in the trunk via one or more Ethernet switches, also located in the trunk. I believe the data drives you are talking about are external to the rest of the Waymo computer and either are connected via Ethernet (like a NAS unit) or as an external drive using USB or eSATA. Maybe some former Waymo or Cruise employees can comment on this, since those working with this onboard storage (probably mostly to archive the sensor data) would know best which drive types (although I'd guess big SSDs) and which wired communications (Ethernet, USB, or SATA?) are getting used in the latest self-driving systems like Waymo's.
@@PangDaDriver Yeah, that sounds right. I'd just guess they are using SSDs inside that NAS unit for the speed and reliability (especially regarding vibration) over spinning disks as used in the old Synology NAS units and even over the hybrid drives. Yeah, I guess that means all the Waymo computer peripherals (beside the car's system like steering, throttle, brakes, and the Waymo displays which must be wired by DisplayPort or HDMI) are connected by Ethernet, maybe all on one switch in the trunk.
They almost certainly keep all the data somewhere, offloading it to a data center at least. Whether that's by having a courier take the hard drives and just ship them right to the data center or by transmitting the data remotely is anyone's guess.
I'm willing to bet that the reason the cars use hazard lights and drive agonizingly slow is due to insurance guidelines. I notice similar activity at our local amazon depot.
They should have a Waymo always parked at the exit of the depot, so that it can get to customers faster rather than having to slowly navigate the entire parking lot. A standby car for the depot
Hear me out on this; we take the Waymo cars and replace their tires with metal wheels, then we create a track system that runs throughout an area, this can be a street level system very similar to a trolley. We remove the car engine and replace it with an electric powertrain that connects to an overhead wire that the waymo car can attach to via a telescopic boom. We create stops along the way similar to stations for a trolley. We also increase the capacity of the cars by extending them and adding more seating.
Since they're all on it should work like a taxi depot, cars are parked in line and when the first one leaves the other ones move 1 spot so there's always a car near the exit.
They likely (hopefully) are using an anticipated demand model where it keeps a distribution of cars around the service area without crowding. Uber in Chicago dispatches drivers to O'Hare from the waiting lot before they're assigned a ride. It's based on demand and minimizes the delay due to getting from the lot to the terminal.
wow kevin! loved the way you walk through the video and the audio , video , content quality is top notch !! loved the aerial view ... Hope to see you big !! cant believe 15 mins went by soo fast!
@@petecoventry6858 Awesome? Why? Today, you can call for an Uber or Lyft and they will pick you up in minutes. Robo-taxis are not needed, and nobody is asking for them.
You keep saying “slow” but I don’t understand if self driving should be like F1 racing or just normal safe driving. Idk but seemed just fine to me. Any faster without a person behind the wheel wouldn’t feel right to me.
3:15 There is a huge statue of a woman lying on her side on top of the building just on the left side. I noticed it from the freeway, and it seems that the amusing statue is on the top of a building inside the Waymo parking lot. I would be curious to know more about this strange statue story.
Burning Man art installation, I guess they found a good place for the public to enjoy it. It's amazing metal work, especially up close and illuminated at night.
My first thought was that they should have induction charging so that a human didn't have to plug them in. But since a human needs to check the car to make sure it's clean and ready, he might as well plug it in as well. It takes a second human visit to unplug it to put it back in service.
For smaller charging station with no human, inductive charging will still be needed. Then we can increase the number of robotaxi charging stations and spread them out.
@@boyangsong3091 theres no way induction charging will come even close to price competition with gas, allready hybrids in California are winning the price war. Induction losses would mean you would be better off driving a 16mpg dump truck
Induction charging isn't as efficient as wired charging. If they want to reduce the human aspect, they could build robot charging stations. About a month ago, I saw a video of a robot gas station.
Also, there's a charging station right in downtown on Jackson Street that I always see them stop(about 8 cars) at and a live person cleans them while they are being charged-FYI
I don't think it's a matter of not having figured it out. Automated security gates have existed for a long time already. I think having them be manned is more so a security/safety measure.
at the 10:28 the "custom" waymo goes to that high corner radius because the parking lines at the first parking spot, the track is on the way then the waymo does go trying not to cross the line.
Great video, Kevin. Greetings from Canada. I took one of these while on vaca in SF recently. It was very cool ride. I wondered where the depots were. Now I know. James.
13:13 -- There are plenty of wireless antennae on the building. Look at the edge of the roof. Each light installation along the edge has two wireless network access points on it. That's plenty of antenna coverage to do full wireless data transfers.
yeah they know when you're in there as the cars are equipped with 2-way Audio/Video, so they can talk to you and you can talk to them. source: i just talked to them from the back seat on 4/18 out in Phoenix.
@@phillyphil1513 in some of these videos I can see a couple of infrared LEDs blink towards the front and I assume it's lighting up the person in the car when they drop in to see what's going on, but no rider support call or anything, so it doesn't have to be two way unless they also record audio as well
@@trektn re: "so it doesn't have to be two way..." repeat: it's 2-way cause i just talked to them from the backseat of a Waymo out in Phoenix on South 52nd Street, date: 4/18.
@@phillyphil1513 repeat: I've seen the camera ir leds blink in some of the videos so it's possible they're tabbing in without you needing to talk to them
I suspect the "unusual" signal behavior is protocol to communicate turning intent to the human workers in the depot. One of the issues that Autonomous vehicles will have to solve is what will be the universal language that these vehicles will use when interacting with pedestrians and other human drivers out in the world.
In the US parking lots are usually private property rather than public, so generally government-mandated traffic laws do not apply. Owner-posted traffic speed in a parking lot is usually around 10 to 15 MPH, or 16-24 KPH. You are still required to be cautious of pedestrians, vehicles backing out, and the like, so in busy areas the driving speed is somewhere between stopped and say 5 KPH. Traffic speed postings in the US (not necessarily actual traffic speed) are generally faster than in European cities, except on main highways: Parking lot: 10-15 MPH Residential area: 25 MPH Business district: 35 MPH Main street with limited on-street parking: 45-50 MPH Highway speed: 55-65 MPH In some fairly rare cases 70 MPH on designated stretches of some freeways. This roughly corresponds to: Parking lot: 16-24 KPH Residential: 40 KPH Business: 56 KPH Main street: 72-80 Highway: 88-104 Freeway: 88-104, sometimes to 112.
Those cars are a menace on the streets. Stopping unexpectedly, not proceeding through intersections, driving through accident scenes and randomly drifting back and forth between lanes while traveling
Fascinating to watch but I couldn't help wondering is this even legal and not trespassing if your drone is on top of Waymo's building air space? I'm surprised Waymo hasn't sent you cease and desist letters yet.
I'd say the biggest problem with how they aimlessly drive around the parking lot is wear and tear on the front end. At slower speeds turning is more difficult. You're also not using regen below 5 to 10 miles an hour, so you're putting wear on the brakes. I'd say a steering rack and all the ball joints and front-end parts are probably 5 to 10k installed. Not to mention the tire wear
First IN First Out queues are all they need, it is a robo taxi. The depot could easily accommodate 5 or 6 such lines. Mall like parking is meant for random parking IN or taking out.
There are some cities in the US that prohibit solar panels on roofs of large industrial buildings. Solar panels only produce 15% electricity but 85% heat. The principle being that a large array of solar panels on industrial buildings can cause heatwaves in the city.
@@robri87-hh4gr I remember reading somewhere that commercial solar panels are about 90% efficient at turning sunlight to energy, so I don't see how they can produce so much heat. Please educate me.
@@sambitdas9416 I get my information from various source’s. This one is from Copilot IA. It’s true that solar panels convert a portion of the sunlight they receive into electricity, and the rest is converted into heat. However, the efficiency of solar panels is generally measured by the percentage of sunlight they convert into electricity. Most modern solar panels have an efficiency rate of around 15% to 20%. This means they convert 15% to 20% of the sunlight into electricity, and the remaining 80% to 85% is not necessarily converted into heat but is rather lost due to various factors, including reflection, transmission, and other inefficiencies. The heat produced by solar panels is a byproduct of their operation, but it’s not accurate to say that 85% of the sunlight is converted directly into heat. Instead, the heat is a result of the panels absorbing sunlight and the inefficiencies in the conversion process.
@@sambitdas9416 I get my information from various source’s. This one is from Copilot IA. It’s true that solar panels convert a portion of the sunlight they receive into electricity, and the rest is converted into heat. However, the efficiency of solar panels is generally measured by the percentage of sunlight they convert into electricity. Most modern solar panels have an efficiency rate of around 15% to 20%. This means they convert 15% to 20% of the sunlight into electricity, and the remaining 80% to 85% is not necessarily converted into heat but is rather lost due to various factors, including reflection, transmission, and other inefficiencies. The heat produced by solar panels is a byproduct of their operation, but it’s not accurate to say that 85% of the sunlight is converted directly into heat. Instead, the heat is a result of the panels absorbing sunlight and the inefficiencies in the conversion process.
@@sambitdas9416 Information from ECOFLOW and Copilot Ecoflow: What Is Conversion Efficiency for Solar Panels Conversion efficiency refers to the proportion of sunlight a photovoltaic panel can convert into usable electricity. It’s an essential performance specification for a photovoltaic (PV) system, as it measures the maximum amount of electricity a panel can generate under peak conditions. Solar panel efficiency measures the maximum percentage of the sun’s rays that a PV panel can turn into electricity. Higher values indicate better conversion rates. Over the years, solar panel efficiency has improved significantly due to advancements in materials, manufacturing techniques, and design innovations. Today, the efficiency of consumer photovoltaic panels typically ranges from 15% to 23%. Laboratory tests have achieved even higher efficiencies - exceeding 40% in some cases. However, these high-efficiency panels are not yet available for the average consumer. Copilot This one is from Copilot IA. It’s true that solar panels convert a portion of the sunlight they receive into electricity, and the rest is converted into heat. However, the efficiency of solar panels is generally measured by the percentage of sunlight they convert into electricity. Most modern solar panels have an efficiency rate of around 15% to 20%. This means they convert 15% to 20% of the sunlight into electricity, and the remaining 80% to 85% is not necessarily converted into heat but is rather lost due to various factors, including reflection, transmission, and other inefficiencies. The heat produced by solar panels is a byproduct of their operation, but it’s not accurate to say that 85% of the sunlight is converted directly into heat. Instead, the heat is a result of the panels absorbing sunlight and the inefficiencies in the conversion process.
I guess the weird lights and the slow driving is a security measure inside the depot. You could see that a car stopped if a worker was not that far away in front of the car.
I have watched enough of these Waymo videos to realize that I am looking forward to being a passenger one day. Suppose, for example, one could subscribe for 12,000 miles per year for $9,999 annual subscription. Go anywhere, anytime, without any other cost. I could save the cost of a car, insurance, maintenance, and the aggravation of owning and maintaining a car. In addition, I could be chauffeured around without needing to worry about looking for a parking spot. Sounds reasonable to me!
The Waymo driverless cars seem to be better drivers than many humans. Maybe people who lose the drivers license for being bad drivers or DUI could be ordered by the court that they may only use driverless cars.
Interesting there is no EV Charging (Opportunity Charging) at the first parking lot. Their intention is to only have them wait there briefly and they wait until later to charge 🔋
My questions now: who matches rides with customers, does the car take all these decisions on its own, like what to do now since it does not have anything to do..... does each car have someone behind it from the depo such as a controller, like someone who fly a drone using some FPV gogles of some sort.....? I know these question might have top secreet answers....
I don’t know anything about Waymo but here are my guesses: Matching a rider with a car is automated by servers that know where all cars are, and their status. Similar to Uber etc. It’s not decided by the car or a human. If and when a human is needed, that is done on demand, once again similar to Uber when you want customer service.
![Felix "Unfair" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oswujxm2Ag0/mqdefault.jpg)
As a huge "car guy", I never thought I'd be so interested in watching a 15min video about a parking depot. Lol
The "time out" spot is where cars that need to be deep cleaned are sent, for example if someone spills something or damages the interior.
How do they know that a passenger has spilled something or damaged something inside the vehicle? Camera detects it and alerts Waymo team or what?
@@NassimSYD i believe they are inspected via camera feed after each ride by a real human... or it could be ai
No solar panels on that giant roof ??? Wasted opportunity
@@rosspatterson44 Or wind turbines.
Incorrect. That's where cars go if they've been naughty. To think about what they did.
Eating breakfast on a Sunday morning, watching a video about depots... Doesn't get better than this.
Painfully accurate 😂
I'm doing the exact same thing 4 months later. We all live the same lives.
U must be rich lol
It doesn't?
Poor you.
☮
@ Bless your heart 😘
typically youtube recommends me tiny channels that have boring or low quality videos, but this is clearly an exception. nice work!!
What RUclips have you been on?
@@aaabbb-py5xdhe’s not wrong, RUclips does recommend shitty videos .
15 minutes flew by, amazing coverage and insights!!
( Fly-by ) or say "15 minutes of drone footage"
It's only when you see the Waymo depot in operation that it really highlights how far ahead Waymo are in providing a RoboTaxi service than Tesla with their FSD. Even if Tesla's FSD was capable there is so much more to providing a taxi service other than the automated driving.
Waymo have made so many advances such as improving their interaction with emergency responders, allowing the emergency services to geofence an area from Waymo vehicles and having Waymo remote operators take over or give advice, and to train the emergency responders on how to interact or take control of a Waymo vehicle.
There is a big difference going from an always supervised vehicle to one that has no driver. If a Tesla FSD disengages, the driver takes over, for a Tesla RoboTaxi after a disengagement there would be no one to take control, and that part of the service needs to be addressed before they can be let loose on the road.
Waymo and Tesla FSD are often compared to one another when really there is no comparison. There is very little that Tesla FSD can do that Waymo can't, while there would seem to be a stack of things that Waymo can do, that Tesla FSD can't.
Tesla's robotaxi is to be unveiled in August. It's going to be the first car without operator controls such as a steering wheel. In the meantime, we're still waiting for robots to drive, clean, and work like slaves while speaking perfect English.
@@Worldofourown2024 Sorry but no vehicle mfg has level 4 autonomy. NO ONE. Even these Waymo's, which are hugely geo-fenced to San Francisco, and mapped thoroughly for local trips, still have steering wheels. And they are light years ahead of Tesla. Tesla's don't even have radar or lidar, but yet every other automaker that is putting money into autonomy is going the opposite route. We will not see a steering wheel-less vehicle for at least a decade. I had a Tesla but man, they are so full of BS.
@@Worldofourown2024 How's going with that August reveal :))))?
@@MirceaGoia Elon Musk postponed it.
@@Worldofourown2024 I know, that's why I asked :)
Thank you so much for the detailed explanation. I used to drop off packages near the main location and I remember before when amazon had a warehouse and when waymo started buying that area. crazy how fast it changed and it’s a depot there now
Honestly what a fantastic video.
I’m in Australia, & the thing of a driverless taxi is crazy.
For a small channel I think you’ll expand good.
Your quality is very good.
This was definitely super neat! The slow speed is probably to also ensure the safety of the many staff roaming that same parking lot. Really appreciate you putting this together!
Great video Kevin. I agree with your guesses at about 13:00 on data swapping going on during the trunk visits by the Waymo staff. I'd say the main reason for the disk swapping vs. wireless data transmission is speed (and maybe cost). Historically wired data transfers occurred at least an order of magnitude faster by wire than wireless. That ratio may have gone down somewhat recently with new WI-Fi and cell standards, but we don't know what they are doing with this data. If they just retain it briefly, then they might not even transfer it off the swapped drives Instead, they might just schedule the drives to be reused once the data was retained long enough to be sure there wasn't a big problem, like an accident that was reported somewhat later.
BTW, two possibilities for the wired connection are USB or Ethernet. I believe most (if not all) of the 40 sensors (28 cameras, 6 radars, and 6 lidars) are networked to the Waymo computer in the trunk via one or more Ethernet switches, also located in the trunk. I believe the data drives you are talking about are external to the rest of the Waymo computer and either are connected via Ethernet (like a NAS unit) or as an external drive using USB or eSATA. Maybe some former Waymo or Cruise employees can comment on this, since those working with this onboard storage (probably mostly to archive the sensor data) would know best which drive types (although I'd guess big SSDs) and which wired communications (Ethernet, USB, or SATA?) are getting used in the latest self-driving systems like Waymo's.
I understand that Waymo vehicles have a mobile storage device similar to that of Synology
@@PangDaDriver Yeah, that sounds right. I'd just guess they are using SSDs inside that NAS unit for the speed and reliability (especially regarding vibration) over spinning disks as used in the old Synology NAS units and even over the hybrid drives. Yeah, I guess that means all the Waymo computer peripherals (beside the car's system like steering, throttle, brakes, and the Waymo displays which must be wired by DisplayPort or HDMI) are connected by Ethernet, maybe all on one switch in the trunk.
They almost certainly keep all the data somewhere, offloading it to a data center at least. Whether that's by having a courier take the hard drives and just ship them right to the data center or by transmitting the data remotely is anyone's guess.
Really cool. Great narration as well.
Thanks for sharing this. Great video, great production values!
I'm willing to bet that the reason the cars use hazard lights and drive agonizingly slow is due to insurance guidelines. I notice similar activity at our local amazon depot.
Thanks, really good point about insurance
Amazon Delivery Station DCK6 is just down the street!
They should have a Waymo always parked at the exit of the depot, so that it can get to customers faster rather than having to slowly navigate the entire parking lot. A standby car for the depot
Hear me out on this; we take the Waymo cars and replace their tires with metal wheels, then we create a track system that runs throughout an area, this can be a street level system very similar to a trolley. We remove the car engine and replace it with an electric powertrain that connects to an overhead wire that the waymo car can attach to via a telescopic boom. We create stops along the way similar to stations for a trolley. We also increase the capacity of the cars by extending them and adding more seating.
Since they're all on it should work like a taxi depot, cars are parked in line and when the first one leaves the other ones move 1 spot so there's always a car near the exit.
@@25566 Oh yeah, that's smart, why are they parking the cars inefficiently like personal vehicles anyway
@@popcorn8153trains are shit.
They likely (hopefully) are using an anticipated demand model where it keeps a distribution of cars around the service area without crowding.
Uber in Chicago dispatches drivers to O'Hare from the waiting lot before they're assigned a ride. It's based on demand and minimizes the delay due to getting from the lot to the terminal.
That is interesting and informative! I have many questions about Waymo and this is a good start to understanding the technology 👍🏾
wow kevin! loved the way you walk through the video and the audio , video , content quality is top notch !! loved the aerial view ... Hope to see you big !! cant believe 15 mins went by soo fast!
I live down the street from this depot, it's really cool to watch sometimes.
Small contribution to say thanks
I love this boots on the ground reporting! Great!
never had issue with waymo in arizona. like it
Too bad that 99.99% of America does not have Waymo service.
@@DerekDavis213 agreed but when it does it's going to be awesome.
@@petecoventry6858 Awesome? Why?
Today, you can call for an Uber or Lyft and they will pick you up in minutes. Robo-taxis are not needed, and nobody is asking for them.
@@petecoventry6858lol, Waymo will go bankrupt before that.
The approach of Waymo is not Scalable. Tesla robo taxi will be cover the US within the next 12-24 Months though. @@petecoventry6858
i guess waymo is keeping the ipace line alive.
Probably mean paying a premium for that.
I heard a rumor they own a majority of all ipaces 😂
@@KevinChen5 Do you know what the power output on those dc fast chargers is?
@@boostav the ones in Arizona are 60 kW (check out JJRicks interview with someone who works in Waymo depot). Don’t know about these.
@@KevinChen5 Thank you
I assume the slow driving in the lot is a safety measure for the people working there.
One of the best innovation of this decade!
You keep saying “slow” but I don’t understand if self driving should be like F1 racing or just normal safe driving. Idk but seemed just fine to me. Any faster without a person behind the wheel wouldn’t feel right to me.
3:15 There is a huge statue of a woman lying on her side on top of the building just on the left side.
I noticed it from the freeway, and it seems that the amusing statue is on the top of a building inside the Waymo parking lot.
I would be curious to know more about this strange statue story.
Burning Man art installation, I guess they found a good place for the public to enjoy it. It's amazing metal work, especially up close and illuminated at night.
Damn, feel surreal seeing so many cars drive and parking by itself.
this is awesome !
thanks for showing this
My first thought was that they should have induction charging so that a human didn't have to plug them in. But since a human needs to check the car to make sure it's clean and ready, he might as well plug it in as well. It takes a second human visit to unplug it to put it back in service.
For smaller charging station with no human, inductive charging will still be needed. Then we can increase the number of robotaxi charging stations and spread them out.
@@boyangsong3091 theres no way induction charging will come even close to price competition with gas, allready hybrids in California are winning the price war. Induction losses would mean you would be better off driving a 16mpg dump truck
They could have internal cameras to detect spills, dirt and lost items. Surely they aim to be completely autonomous at some point.
Induction charging isn't as efficient as wired charging. If they want to reduce the human aspect, they could build robot charging stations. About a month ago, I saw a video of a robot gas station.
They could also use some kind of pantograph charging system like those electric busses have. Induction is very inefficient.
Also, there's a charging station right in downtown on Jackson Street that I always see them stop(about 8 cars) at and a live person cleans them while they are being charged-FYI
the slow speed is probably the most efficient way to move vehicles in/out. if they're constantly stopping and braking, it would just cause traffic.
And I always thought that spinning thing on Robbie the Robot's head was some kind of nonsense. I was wrong all these years!
I think there may partially be a safety speed limit in the parking lot - any loading zone at Amazon is signed at 5mph.
I love the idea of the naughty corner 😂
Lawyers are going to have a good time with this one !
Been looking for a video like this!!
Thanks for the video. It seems like Westworld. Trying to find out what’s going on inside the facility 😊
Very painfully interesting
Great stuff! So silly that the autonomus vehicle service hasnt figured out how to automate the security gates lol
I don't think it's a matter of not having figured it out. Automated security gates have existed for a long time already. I think having them be manned is more so a security/safety measure.
at the 10:28 the "custom" waymo goes to that high corner radius because the parking lines at the first parking spot, the track is on the way then the waymo does go trying not to cross the line.
Thanks, was curious about this.
Great video, Kevin. Greetings from Canada. I took one of these while on vaca in SF recently. It was very cool ride. I wondered where the depots were. Now I know. James.
13:13 -- There are plenty of wireless antennae on the building. Look at the edge of the roof. Each light installation along the edge has two wireless network access points on it. That's plenty of antenna coverage to do full wireless data transfers.
I've seen some of your other videos of them driving, but I think it's much more interesting to see the systems they're using to scale.
GREAT VIDEO MATE
The coolest thing about these cars is you don't have to worry about tipping
Great comment!
No, theyll come up with that next. Shhh!
I don't think you could hide in the back seats, the rider support camera can probably see what you're doing so it wouldn't be effective
yeah they know when you're in there as the cars are equipped with 2-way Audio/Video, so they can talk to you and you can talk to them. source: i just talked to them from the back seat on 4/18 out in Phoenix.
@@phillyphil1513 in some of these videos I can see a couple of infrared LEDs blink towards the front and I assume it's lighting up the person in the car when they drop in to see what's going on, but no rider support call or anything, so it doesn't have to be two way unless they also record audio as well
@@trektn re: "so it doesn't have to be two way..." repeat: it's 2-way cause i just talked to them from the backseat of a Waymo out in Phoenix on South 52nd Street, date: 4/18.
@@phillyphil1513 repeat: I've seen the camera ir leds blink in some of the videos so it's possible they're tabbing in without you needing to talk to them
Good work Kevin
Terrific job, Kevin
As someone who can feel carsick in the backseat behind a lead foot stop and go cab or uber driver, I look forward to trying this ride!
I drove a Tesla Model Y in the UK for six months - the phantom braking was so annoying.
We have those in Las Vegas how to call them for a ride
I suspect the "unusual" signal behavior is protocol to communicate turning intent to the human workers in the depot. One of the issues that Autonomous vehicles will have to solve is what will be the universal language that these vehicles will use when interacting with pedestrians and other human drivers out in the world.
Great coverage. I'm looking forward to when they get to my city.
Isn’t that the normal speed for a parking lot? In Germany at least, it needs to be at “walking speed” so about 4-7 km/h
5 mph around cars, walking speed. Unfortunately some people have low IQs and speed.
Yes though it is rare anyone here drives at that speed, about double is what is more common in a flat parking lot.
Sure, no one follows it though
In the US parking lots are usually private property rather than public, so generally government-mandated traffic laws do not apply. Owner-posted traffic speed in a parking lot is usually around 10 to 15 MPH, or 16-24 KPH. You are still required to be cautious of pedestrians, vehicles backing out, and the like, so in busy areas the driving speed is somewhere between stopped and say 5 KPH.
Traffic speed postings in the US (not necessarily actual traffic speed) are generally faster than in European cities, except on main highways:
Parking lot: 10-15 MPH
Residential area: 25 MPH
Business district: 35 MPH
Main street with limited on-street parking: 45-50 MPH
Highway speed: 55-65 MPH
In some fairly rare cases 70 MPH on designated stretches of some freeways.
This roughly corresponds to:
Parking lot: 16-24 KPH
Residential: 40 KPH
Business: 56 KPH
Main street: 72-80
Highway: 88-104
Freeway: 88-104, sometimes to 112.
@@robertyoung8615yeah, but robots don't "cheat", and it's probably a safety requirement (OSHA or insurance)
Naughty car ... take a TIME OUT LOL
Thanks for such an awesome video and narration.
Wait do u get your money back after you cancel your trip?
Weird seeing Waymo do it's thing on its own around in the parking lot. We need Waymo here in the Orange county, Ca area
Those cars are a menace on the streets. Stopping unexpectedly, not proceeding through intersections, driving through accident scenes and randomly drifting back and forth between lanes while traveling
I wish that charge lot were open to the public, we need it! 😂
The cars get charged in the parking lot right? Do people go onto the parking lot and cause trouble?
Awesome video of behind the scenes
This just makes me realize how much complexity needs to be solved beyond "just" driving itself
Fascinating to watch but I couldn't help wondering is this even legal and not trespassing if your drone is on top of Waymo's building air space? I'm surprised Waymo hasn't sent you cease and desist letters yet.
Is spray paint free in the US or something? What a mess…
does this go into TENDERLOIN?
I'd say the biggest problem with how they aimlessly drive around the parking lot is wear and tear on the front end. At slower speeds turning is more difficult. You're also not using regen below 5 to 10 miles an hour, so you're putting wear on the brakes. I'd say a steering rack and all the ball joints and front-end parts are probably 5 to 10k installed. Not to mention the tire wear
First IN First Out queues are all they need, it is a robo taxi. The depot could easily accommodate 5 or 6 such lines. Mall like parking is meant for random parking IN or taking out.
I am surprised that the roof of the building at the charging site is not absolutely covered in solar panels !
There are some cities in the US that prohibit solar panels on roofs of large industrial buildings.
Solar panels only produce 15% electricity but 85% heat. The principle being that a large array of solar panels on industrial buildings can cause heatwaves in the city.
@@robri87-hh4gr I remember reading somewhere that commercial solar panels are about 90% efficient at turning sunlight to energy, so I don't see how they can produce so much heat. Please educate me.
@@sambitdas9416 I get my information from various source’s. This one is from Copilot IA.
It’s true that solar panels convert a portion of the sunlight they receive into electricity, and the rest is converted into heat. However, the efficiency of solar panels is generally measured by the percentage of sunlight they convert into electricity. Most modern solar panels have an efficiency rate of around 15% to 20%. This means they convert 15% to 20% of the sunlight into electricity, and the remaining 80% to 85% is not necessarily converted into heat but is rather lost due to various factors, including reflection, transmission, and other inefficiencies.
The heat produced by solar panels is a byproduct of their operation, but it’s not accurate to say that 85% of the sunlight is converted directly into heat. Instead, the heat is a result of the panels absorbing sunlight and the inefficiencies in the conversion process.
@@sambitdas9416 I get my information from various source’s. This one is from Copilot IA.
It’s true that solar panels convert a portion of the sunlight they receive into electricity, and the rest is converted into heat. However, the efficiency of solar panels is generally measured by the percentage of sunlight they convert into electricity. Most modern solar panels have an efficiency rate of around 15% to 20%. This means they convert 15% to 20% of the sunlight into electricity, and the remaining 80% to 85% is not necessarily converted into heat but is rather lost due to various factors, including reflection, transmission, and other inefficiencies.
The heat produced by solar panels is a byproduct of their operation, but it’s not accurate to say that 85% of the sunlight is converted directly into heat. Instead, the heat is a result of the panels absorbing sunlight and the inefficiencies in the conversion process.
@@sambitdas9416 Information from ECOFLOW and Copilot
Ecoflow: What Is Conversion Efficiency for Solar Panels
Conversion efficiency refers to the proportion of sunlight a photovoltaic panel can convert into usable electricity. It’s an essential performance specification for a photovoltaic (PV) system, as it measures the maximum amount of electricity a panel can generate under peak conditions.
Solar panel efficiency measures the maximum percentage of the sun’s rays that a PV panel can turn into electricity. Higher values indicate better conversion rates.
Over the years, solar panel efficiency has improved significantly due to advancements in materials, manufacturing techniques, and design innovations. Today, the efficiency of consumer photovoltaic panels typically ranges from 15% to 23%.
Laboratory tests have achieved even higher efficiencies - exceeding 40% in some cases. However, these high-efficiency panels are not yet available for the average consumer.
Copilot
This one is from Copilot IA. It’s true that solar panels convert a portion of the sunlight they receive into electricity, and the rest is converted into heat. However, the efficiency of solar panels is generally measured by the percentage of sunlight they convert into electricity. Most modern solar panels have an efficiency rate of around 15% to 20%. This means they convert 15% to 20% of the sunlight into electricity, and the remaining 80% to 85% is not necessarily converted into heat but is rather lost due to various factors, including reflection, transmission, and other inefficiencies.
The heat produced by solar panels is a byproduct of their operation, but it’s not accurate to say that 85% of the sunlight is converted directly into heat. Instead, the heat is a result of the panels absorbing sunlight and the inefficiencies in the conversion process.
but what happens to the drivers of taxis now they no longer needed?
They get different jobs
Crime?
Great video. Engrossing. I can't wait for Waymo to be available in West LA. Waymo is multiple times safer than driven vehicles including Lyft & Uber.
Well, I’m off the waitlist and I was able to use Waymo within Century City and Westwood.
I guess the weird lights and the slow driving is a security measure inside the depot. You could see that a car stopped if a worker was not that far away in front of the car.
0:54 why turn right first. There was a lot of space to just turn left
I have watched enough of these Waymo videos to realize that I am looking forward to being a passenger one day. Suppose, for example, one could subscribe for 12,000 miles per year for $9,999 annual subscription. Go anywhere, anytime, without any other cost. I could save the cost of a car, insurance, maintenance, and the aggravation of owning and maintaining a car. In addition, I could be chauffeured around without needing to worry about looking for a parking spot. Sounds reasonable to me!
I think they might be turning one of a decades old parking lot to a taxi depot at 350 2nd Street in SF
I see them throughout the day and night in SF zooming around with no one driving-LOL---now I know where they go to get serviced. Cool.
Seems like the language we use for AI entities is just wrong. It's not "as they please", it's "as needed" or "as necessary".
Reminds me of the first time I saw a robotic order-fulfillment grocery warehouse (about 44 years ago).
Funny that the lighting on the parking is based on fuel generators, very green attitude
what if you cancel and it's in the depot.. It just go back?
Fascinating Thanks.
Amazing!
Why so much security in the main depot?
no matter where you want to go,your destination will be hell.😂😂😂😂
The Waymo driverless cars seem to be better drivers than many humans. Maybe people who lose the drivers license for being bad drivers or DUI could be ordered by the court that they may only use driverless cars.
Do these run on gas or pixie dust ?
That Waymo parking was being driven by someone. You see them get out in the next clip viewing from the back of the depot lot
There’s actually one more depot not in this video. 350 Pacific Avenue in SF
very cool idea to hail a car from inside the lot!
what would happen if my I have 50 cars from my firm park in this lot?
What is that spinning wheel on the top of the car?
Radar I'd guess
LIDAR sensor (like radar but uses lasers). They have more of them on each corner of the car.
Cars are so slow in the depot area due to so many people working around. It was programmed that way.
Interesting there is no EV Charging (Opportunity Charging) at the first parking lot. Their intention is to only have them wait there briefly and they wait until later to charge 🔋
They probably try to maintain a distribution across the city and not crowd if they're underutilized
So they just sit there idling? That’s pretty bad why not have an idle mode and internal battery?
They’re electric are they not? Idling doesn’t use electricity
@@zachb1706well it uses some, they things are spinning
@@zachb1706Yes these are EVs
The UK needs these! But they need to be able to be chatty if thr rider wants to chat.
They announced a integration of chattyGPT lately. You can choose different indian and pakistani dialects for the real immersion
Imagine a remake of "Taxi Driver" but with a Waymo.
You talking to me?
Waymo Driver 🤖
You downloading to me?!?!
Does slow driving really cause you physical discomfort?
My questions now: who matches rides with customers, does the car take all these decisions on its own, like what to do now since it does not have anything to do..... does each car have someone behind it from the depo such as a controller, like someone who fly a drone using some FPV gogles of some sort.....? I know these question might have top secreet answers....
I don’t know anything about Waymo but here are my guesses:
Matching a rider with a car is automated by servers that know where all cars are, and their status. Similar to Uber etc. It’s not decided by the car or a human.
If and when a human is needed, that is done on demand, once again similar to Uber when you want customer service.
I kept doubting your "painfully slow" comments until I finally remembered... I watch almost all YT vids at 1.5x speed.
How is this service even profitable given all the infrastructure?
Can waymo cars detect a flat tire?
Probably. Normal cars have pressure sensors already. You would want the car’s software to pull over and notify waymo when it detects low pressure.