Feds question Ford in hands-free driving investigation

Core Insights - The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is investigating Ford's BlueCruise hands-free driver-assistance system following two fatal crashes, marking a significant regulatory scrutiny on the technology [1][4][8] - The NHTSA has sent Ford a detailed list of 25 questions regarding the BlueCruise system, including requests for internal documents related to the crashes and the software's development [2][3][8] - The investigation was escalated to an "engineering analysis" level, which is a precursor to potential recall actions by the NHTSA [3] Group 1: Investigation Details - The NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened the investigation in April 2024 after two fatal crashes involving BlueCruise, where drivers crashed into stationary vehicles [4][8] - The NHTSA's inquiry includes basic questions about the vehicles equipped with BlueCruise and more complex requests for information on the software's logic and algorithms for hazard detection [2][8] - Ford has until August 6 to respond to the NHTSA's questions or risk facing civil penalties [9] Group 2: System Capabilities and Limitations - BlueCruise is designed to operate on pre-mapped highways, utilizing cameras, radar sensors, and software for steering, speed, and braking [5] - The system includes an in-cabin camera with eye-tracking to ensure driver attention, but the recent crashes have raised concerns about its ability to detect stationary objects, a known issue with similar systems like Tesla's [5][6][8] - The NHTSA noted limitations in BlueCruise's performance under poor visibility conditions, as both fatal incidents occurred at night [8]