Google teaching its driverless car to honk

The company is experimenting with the algorithm by playing the horn inside the car to make sure the honking does not confuse other drivers.

The company is experimenting with the algorithm by playing the horn inside the car to make sure the honking does not confuse other drivers. (AFP)

Software giant Google, in its Self-Driving Car Project's latest monthly report, has said that it has been experimenting with horn algorithms in the vehicle.

The company is experimenting with the algorithm by playing the horn inside the car to make sure the honking does not confuse other drivers.

"It is also an important step in developing the capabilities of autonomous cars, and highlights the fact that teaching robots to drive among humans is not about merely learning a set of rules-or even the edge cases when it's okay to bend or ignore those rules. It is a highly cultural, intuitive process," a report in MIT technology review said.

Google said its cars are meant to be "polite, considerate, and only honk when it makes driving safer for everyone".

Google added that its cars will have two kinds of beeps- "two short, quieter pips" for politely grabbing another driver's attention, and a loud, long honk when the situation "requires more urgency".