VOA慢速英语--警察阻止特斯拉车内司机睡觉

 

Police in California say they were able to stop a Tesla vehicle that was speeding with the driver sleeping inside.

The California Highway Patrol (CHP) reported the Tesla’s Autopilot driver assistance system might have made it possible for officers to stop the vehicle.

The incident was described in a police report. It happened early in the morning on November 30.

The report said the CHP officers observed the Tesla Model S traveling at speeds up to 113 kilometers an hour on a road near San Francisco. The car was violating the speed limit for vehicles in the area.

When officers drove up next to the vehicle and looked inside, they saw that the driver appeared to be asleep in the driver’s seat. The report said the officers then drove behind the Tesla and turned on their car’s warning lights and siren in an attempt to get the driver to stop. But they said the driver did not wake up.

The officers knew that Tesla vehicles are equipped with a driver assistance system and thought the driver might have been using it at the time.

There are different levels of driver assistance systems. The technology is generally designed to electronically help drivers stay in a lane and keep a safe distance from other vehicles. The systems can also slow or stop a vehicle to avoid an accident or in case of an emergency.

The police report said the officers got an idea for how they might be able to stop the vehicle as the driver slept inside. They decided¹ to move the police car directly in front of the speeding Tesla and gradually slow their car down.

The officers said that as the police vehicle slowed, the speeding vehicle also reduced its speed. Eventually, the Tesla came to a complete stop, the report said.

Officers were then able to wake the driver and they took him to a service station nearby. Police also drove away the Tesla. Its driver, a 45-year-old male, was given a test by officers to see whether he was driving while under the influence of alcohol. He failed the test, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, and sent to jail.

The report said the CHP could not confirm whether the Tesla’s driver assistance system was activated² at the time of the incident. But it noted³ that considering the vehicle’s ability to slow and stop when the driver was asleep, “it appears the ‘driver assistance’ feature may have been active at the time.”

The report followed several highly publicized crashes involving Tesla vehicles equipped with driving assistance tools. Tesla says that owners of its vehicles are told that none of its driver assistance tools are meant to fully⁴ drive the car by itself.

One of the tools, Tesla’s Autopilot system, is designed to permit full self-driving capabilities⁵. But the company says when using this tool, drivers should still keep their hands on the steering⁶ wheel and be ready to take control if the system fails to work.

Telsa chief Elon Musk⁷ reacted to the incident in a message on Twitter. He said the company was investigating to see what happened. He added that if Autopilot was being used at the time, the system was supposed to gradually slow and stop the vehicle “if there’s no driver input⁸.”

A recent study found that driver assistance systems can fail to perform some actions in real-world test situations. The American Automobile⁹ Association, known as AAA, tested several vehicles equipped with the technology. It found that test vehicles repeatedly struggled on busy roads when dealing¹⁰ with common traffic situations.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

siren – n.piece of equipment that makes a loud sound as a warning

lane – n.part of road that is marked by painted lines and used as a single line of vehicles

alcohol– n.a colorless liquid that acts like a drug when taken

feature – n.an interesting or important part, quality, ability, etc.

steering – n.the controlling of a vehicle in one direction or another

gradually – adv. happening slowly over a period of time

eventually - adj. at some later time : in the end

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 activated   

adj. 激活的 动词activate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The canister is filled with activated charcoal.蒸气回收罐中充满了活性炭。

3 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

4 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

5 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

6 steering   

n.操舵装置

参考例句：

• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration. 他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。
• Steering according to the wind, he also framed his words more amicably. 他真会看风使舵，口吻也马上变得温和了。

7 musk   

n.麝香, 能发出麝香的各种各样的植物，香猫

参考例句：

• Musk is used for perfume and stimulant.麝香可以用作香料和兴奋剂。
• She scented her clothes with musk.她用麝香使衣服充满了香味。

8 input   

n.输入(物)；投入；vt.把(数据等)输入计算机

参考例句：

• I will forever be grateful for his considerable input.我将永远感激他的大量投入。
• All this information had to be input onto the computer.所有这些信息都必须输入计算机。

9 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

10 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。