Welcome to the HFML Lab’s Automated Vehicle Event Social Medial Reporting Guidelines page. This page is part of an ongoing effort to assist Public Information Officers in providing timely, consistent, and accurate messaging on Automated Vehicle events. Our hope is that with this messaging, we can encourage drivers to use and trust Automated Vehicle technology appropriately.
The initial version of the guidelines
- Communication within the first 5 days of a crash will be the most effective to get public attention.
- Consistent terminology should be used when communicating about automated vehicle technologies. The most common terms referring to these technologies and their definitions are represented below.
| Name | Definition |
| Automated | A vehicle in which at least some aspects of a safety-critical control function (e.g., steering, throttle, or braking) occur without direct driver input. |
| Self-driving | A vehicle having the ability to drive by itself using onboard sensors, without the need for any intervention from a human driver. |
| Driverless | A driverless car is a robotic vehicle that is designed to travel between destinations without a human operator. |
| Autonomous | A vehicle that is capable of sensing its environment and navigating without human input. A human may select a destination but is not required to mechanically operate the vehicle. |
| Connected | Connected vehicles (CV) are those that can communicate with other vehicles, infrastructure, and devices through wireless network technology, such as Wi-Fi and radio frequencies. A vehicle can be connected but not automated, automated but not connected, neither or both. |
- In the event that technology brand names contrast with the capabilities of the technology, the term from the table that best describes the technology should be used.
- The words “fault” and “blame” in reference to drivers or automation being “at fault” in a crash should be used sparingly.
- Public education efforts should focus on clarifying technology capabilities and assuaging The NHTSA website and the SAE standards (see NHTSA automated vehicle safety) are good resources for this information.
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