http://arstechnica.com/cars/2015/03/fords-new-car-automatically-slows-down-when-it-sees-a-speed-limit-sign/

Ford has announced that the new S-Max, which goes on sale in Europe in August, will have a new feature that automatically slows you down so that you're traveling within the speed limit.

Called the Intelligent Speed Limiter, the new feature is a combination of two nascent automotive technologies: adjustable speed limiters and traffic sign recognition. An adjustable speed limiter might sound like cruise control, but it's slightly different: cruise control keeps your speed constant, while an adjustable speed limiter stops the throttle from delivering more fuel to the engine once you reach the desired speed.

Traffic sign recognition is exactly what it sounds like: using a forward-facing camera, usually behind the rearview mirror, an on-board computer scans the environment for signs that might be important. Over the last few years, there have been a number of cars that automatically recognize signs and flash up alerts on a digital dashboard display.

Now, Ford is combining these two technologies to create a car that automatically slows down when you pass a traffic sign that indicates a new speed limit. If you're going over the speed limit, the S-Max will reduce the amount of fuel being delivered to the engine, smoothly slowing you down.

For now, the automatic deceleration can be overridden by pressing firmly on the accelerator. Amusingly, you can also tell the car to decelerate to 5mph above the speed limit—so you can actively choose to do 35 in a 30 if you so wish.

Ford's Intelligent Speed Limiter, like lane-departure warning, adaptive cruise control, and parking assist, is yet another mile marker on the route to fully self-driving vehicles. While autonomous cars already have myriad ramifications to work through—and surely many more issues that are yet to be discovered—something like the Intelligent Speed Limiter, on its own, is just a helpful tool to stop you accidentally getting a speeding ticket.

It's not difficult, though, to see how this could be the beginning of the end for spirited driving. The first cars to offer an automatic speed limiter will have the feature turned off by default—but at some point down the line, it's not inconceivable that a car company might offer an on-by-default vehicle for safety (or speeding ticket) conscious customers.

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For now, the automatic deceleration can be overridden by pressing firmly on the accelerator. Amusingly, you can also tell the car to decelerate to 5mph above the speed limit—so you can actively choose to do 35 in a 30 if you so wish.

Yeah, that sounds safe. Driving on an interstate at 80mph, having your car suddenly let off the gas, then having to smash the pedal down, all potentially in traffic. No way that could go wrong.

If they do this, then how will the cops make money? But really, that's pretty neat.

But what would happen if someone were to, say, spray paint 88MPH over a 50MPH sign using stencils or something so it looked correct? Would the car know the difference? I think it'd be easier and safer to bind the changes in speed to GPS or something.

Quote from: GethKhilafah on March 30, 2015, 12:57:48 AM

Quote from: Cheat on March 29, 2015, 07:06:31 PM

If they do this, then how will the cops make money? But really, that's pretty neat.

But what would happen if someone were to, say, spray paint 88MPH over a 50MPH sign using stencils or something so it looked correct? Would the car know the difference? I think it'd be easier and safer to bind the changes in speed to GPS or something.

How is this neat at all?

I usually go 10-15 miles above the speed limit, so this would affect me quite a lot...

I usually go 2MPH under the speed limit or right at it, so it wouldn't affect me, really. In town, the difference in time spent driving is negligible, and only slightly lower on the short drive into town. You'd have to be driving for like 2 hours to see a difference...

Quote from: GethKhilafah on March 30, 2015, 01:02:19 AM

Quote from: Cheat on March 30, 2015, 01:00:39 AM

Quote from: GethKhilafah on March 30, 2015, 12:57:48 AM

Quote from: Cheat on March 29, 2015, 07:06:31 PM

If they do this, then how will the cops make money? But really, that's pretty neat.

But what would happen if someone were to, say, spray paint 88MPH over a 50MPH sign using stencils or something so it looked correct? Would the car know the difference? I think it'd be easier and safer to bind the changes in speed to GPS or something.

How is this neat at all?

I usually go 10-15 miles above the speed limit, so this would affect me quite a lot...

I usually go 2MPH under the speed limit or right at it, so it wouldn't affect me, really. In town, the difference in time spent driving is negligible, and only slightly lower on the short drive into town. You'd have to be driving for like 2 hours to see a difference...

Or if you're on roads where the speed limit is 25mph to 35mph. Going 10-15 miles above the limit instantly shaves off at least a third of the driving distance, so it saves me several minutes.

Say on a long-term trip to something like LA, that saves me about 1-2 hours of time by simply going 85mph on a 70 zone.

And going 10-15 above is generally pretty safe. Speed limits are only so low because the coppers want ticket traps.

Yeah, I suppose. I just never saw the point in speeding, really (especially speeding that much; it's points on your license, mate, if you get caught).

The fear of getting that $100 or more fine for going just a bit faster swayed me away from the practice, and I find that if I give myself enough time, I have no need to rush.