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The script for selling one of these "automated revenue enhancement devices" to a municipality might go something like "and the best feature of the Robthepopulace 3000 is that it never makes a mistake - machines don't lie!" Tell that to Thomas, who received a citation in the mail after a South African traffic camera nabbed his VW Polo "clearly traveling in excess of the 60 km/h limit." Right. Technically, the camera is not lying, but machines are incapable of interpreting on their own, otherwise the fleece-bot would have noted that while the car was indeed traveling in excess of the limit, it was on a hook! Thomas got the ticket because his car obscured the plate of the tow truck dragging his little Polo somewhere. While the picture doesn't lie, the government agency drew a false conclusion and stuck to it. We wonder if the amount of the ticket could be deducted from Thomas's income tax to ensure fairness. Now that's just crazy talk. Thanks for the tip, Erwin!

[Source: Daily WTF]

Traffic Enfarcement: What's wrong with this picture? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 05 Aug 2008 17:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>automated cameraautomated fineAutomatedCameraAutomatedFinesouth africaSouthAfricaspeeding ticketSpeedingTicketticket robotTicketRobottraffic cameratraffic citationtraffic fineTrafficCameraTrafficCitationTrafficFineTue, 05 Aug 2008 17:58:00 EST<![CDATA[Another automated fine - thanks, HAL]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/14/another-automated-fine-thanks-hal/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/14/another-automated-fine-thanks-hal/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/14/another-automated-fine-thanks-hal/#commentsFiled under: , , ,



Sure, they'll say it's for safety, driving on excessively worn tires is dangerous, but something more sinister is afoot. German firm ProContour has developed a tire tread depth measuring system that beams a laser at the wheels of passing vehicles and takes 430 million measurements per second to develop a three-dimensional profile of that tire. Tread depth and pattern are then calculated, and if there's less than .06 inches of tread or the pattern is clearly inappropriate (studded snows in the summer, for example), a citation is automagically issued. While we're admittedly being cynical, the safety aspect of what ProContour has developed is pretty impressive. The ability to scan the tires of vehicles as they pass at speeds in excess of 50 km/h takes some doing, and we've seen horrid things posing as tires, so kudos, but a fine strikes us as a bit hardcore. Of course, financial pain might have a Pavlovian effect and cause those bitten by the Tire Ticket Fairy to keep a closer eye on their tires. It'd be a joke to assume that everyone already inspects their tires for condition and inflation on a regular basis, but that's how it should be, but then, there'd be no business model for ProContour. None of ProContour's big-brother rigs have been installed yet, but the company is shopping it around to local governments eager for yet another way to stick it to the citizens. The safety idea is laudable, but we're skeptical how a challenge to the seemingly infallible computer might go, should the system go all HAL9000 on us. Thanks for the tip, Rod! Video after the jump (in German).

[Source: thenewspaper.com]

Continue reading Another automated fine - thanks, HAL

Another automated fine - thanks, HAL originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 14 Jul 2008 11:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>automated citationautomated fineautomated ticketAutomatedCitationAutomatedFineAutomatedTicketbald tireBaldTirepro contourprocontoursafetytire citationtire finetire safetytire ticketTireCitationTireFineTireSafetyTireTicketMon, 14 Jul 2008 11:34:00 EST