Tesla Rain-Sensing Wipers Use Neural Net to Catch Raindrops

CARS.COM — Thanks to recent updates, keeping your Tesla car’s windshield clean is going to be easier than ever with minimal driver input. Tesla’s latest software updates for some its vehicles now include a windshield wiper setting with rain-detecting capabilities. This means that, for cars equipped with this feature, the wipers will automatically turn on in the rain.

These rain-sensing wipers were announced with the typical Tesla fanfare — via a tweet from founder Elon Musk, posted just after midnight EST. Since rain-sensing windshield wipers have been a major pain point for potential Tesla buyers, the option of automatic wipers has made the vehicle more appealing to drivers. 

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While many vehicles on the road today have rain-sensing wipers as a standard or optional feature, Tesla had thus far avoided this wiper upgrade. Other cars with rain-sensing wipers use light-detecting sensors; Tesla has instead relied on existing cameras installed in its vehicles. With the use of a “neural net,” cameras in the car detect light and heavy rain and turn on the wipers to clear the car’s windshield if the wipers are on the correct setting. 

While I understand “neural net” only slightly better than “bitcoin” or “blockchain,” I have been assured that it is not a net the driver has to wear over the head, nor is it in any way attached to the brain. It seems rather to be a computer network set up to resemble an actual neural network, capable of learning a task over time — a task like activating the windshield wipers when it detects precipitation. That’s probably better than a hairnet connected to the brain, anyway.

The automatic rain-sensing wipers are currently in beta testing. To see them in action, check out the video below. They are designed to work at any speed and turn on as soon as water droplets are detected on the windshield. 

Using a neural net to detect rain using cameras (no dedicated rain or sun sensors). Computers are very patient. https://t.co/YM0tQ6vLOV

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 3, 2018

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