How amazing would that be if you are never late for any of your biz meetings? What if your car knows which direction to take when the entire road is jam packed with traffic? Yes, we not far from the world where our cars would be leading us to our destination rather than we driving the cars. All thanks to the technology

We all are aware of the fact that how technology has left no stone unturned to make the life of people easier, faster and more convenient. Over the years, it has become a significant part of our lives without which it’s hard to imagine a single day. You wake up in the morning and check your email, that is technology.

You Skype an international client to discuss an important business deal, that is technology. Drive home after a hectic day in office and open television for some entertainment, that is technology. You name anything and I’ll tell you how technology is present in every task of yours. It has become an undeniable fact that in this modern era, we are badly spoilt by technology yet we are its blind followers and worship innovation. In short, technology has a huge impact on our existence; it rules our mind and determines even our smallest course of action.

Blockchain technology, much in vogue.

I’m sure you must have heard about blockchains once in your life even if you don’t know what exactly it means. Blockchains are a huge database that keeps several records of data which is known as ‘ledger’ in crypto world. The data exchanges taking place in records are known as ‘transactions’ and each transaction is added to the ledger as a ‘blocks’. The ‘chain’ links them all together with a hash function.

This way records are created and confirmed by a distributed peer-to-peer network of computers. Then, they are combined with previous entries in the chain and this is how blockchains are created. In cryptosphere, there are various cryptocurrencies like bitcoins and other alt currencies that use blockchain. There primary function has been to make payment system smooth, effective and transparent by eliminating the role of middlemen.

Over the years, it has been observed that blockchains hold multifaceted opportunities for people in the forthcoming years. Often, people think that blockchains are only used for money but this is not true. Blockchains are technology based on virtual ledgers and they can offer myriad benefits to its users.

Blockchain technology and self-driving cars

Gone are the days when blockchains were merely used for the purpose of digital payments. Gone are the days when blockchains were associated with bitcoins. Now, bitcoins are just a tip of an iceberg. Blockchain technology has entered the automotive industry and is soon to revolutionize the way people commute.

Autonomous vehicles, also known as self-driving cars, were only a distant dream for us but with the advancement in technology, these autonomous cars are shaping our dreams into reality. How easier it will get when people don’t have to drive the cars? They would just sit inside, give few instructions and voila, they will reach their destination.

It includes two main aspects to give a practical shape to this dream-

1. Encouraging Machine to Machine (M2M) payments for services like tolls, fuel charges, etc.
2. Arranging the data required for machine learning.

Interestingly, blockchain technologies have forayed into the automotive industry and are soon to support microtransactions of cars. With blockchain technology incorporated into self-driving cars, the basic problems that commuters face will become a thing of past.

The combination of machine learning, interconnected web of vehicles and blockchain technology will ensure that the commuters are never late and this combination will focus on optimizing the commuting time of passengers. The interconnected cars would require only three things- destination, time and position of other vehicles on the road.

Had there been roads where people allowed you to go or signals that pardon you when you’re in rush, there wouldn’t have been any need for such ground-breaking technology. Our system doesn’t work that way so these autonomous cars will optimize the commuting time for people who are in rush.

How autonomous cars work with blockchain technology?

We all know how dependent we are on this amazing navigation system GPS. Our latest invention, autonomous cars, will use the same GPS for navigating. It will also use a technology called prediction technology for anticipating future conditions. The prediction technology will make use of historical data and real-time data from every vehicle. Apart from that, toll payments, parking, speed control check, etc will all be taken care of before or during the trip. These technologies will revolutionize the communication and commuting process like never before.

When blockchain technologies will meet these new-age self-driving cars, it will provide a solution to every vehicle by offering a crypto wallets to them. This will facilitate effortless financial transactions between peer to peer. Blockchain technology works in a way where drivers have to set a cost for time delayed and to give priority to other drivers. When you select a particular route, your vehicle would estimate and give you an approximate cost for your route selected.

You’ll be quoted based on predictions made on other vehicles on the road. All that you pay would go directly to the cryptocurrency wallets of other passengers. This type of trade throws light on converting the time into some valuable commodity that can be purchased without human participation or transaction using fiat money.

The future.

Soon, we will be seeing blockchain technologies marrying our commuting process via autonomous cars and leading to route optimization. Blockchains allow people to reach their destination faster if they are late. But, they have to compensate other vehicles on the road by paying them in their crypto wallets. In simple words, blockchain technologies will tackle and provide a solution to all our conveying problems. It will be used for pooling information, making payments like tolls. We can expect to see the autonomous cars on roads in coming 5 to 10 years.

Image Source : https://phys.org/news/2017-12-autonomous-vehicles-uncertain-effects.html