robocar

American  

[roh-boh-kahr] / ˈroʊ boʊˌkɑr /

noun

1. an automobile that is navigated and maneuvered by a computer without a need for human control or intervention under a range of driving situations and conditions.

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Etymology

Origin of robocar

First recorded in 1940–50; robo- ( def. ) + car ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

As Silicon Valley started real-world testing of autonomous vehicle technology, GM fell in with most rivals, largely limiting its robocar research to closed test tracks.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 16, 2016

As long as a human driver is required to remain on alert and has a full set of controls, the robocar will be not much more than a glorified form of cruise control.

From Washington Times • Jan. 5, 2015

By the time 20 percent of people are taking the wheel because they are in a hurry, the speeding robocar is clearly the superior result by any metric—based on these assumptions.

From Slate • Oct. 15, 2013

The day of the robocar may be decades off, maybe half a century.

From Forbes • Jun. 10, 2010

Where the rich now hire chauffeurs to drive them to work, for example, the working stiff of the future will be transported to work in his robocar.

From Time Magazine Archive