Japanese engineers put a pair of googly eyes on a self-driving car

A comic pair of googly eyes on the front of a self-driving car could reduce traffic accidents, a new study suggests. Researchers in Japan fitted a golf cart with two large, remote-controlled robotic eyes, making it look like the beloved children's TV character'Brum'. In experiments in virtual reality (VR), they found pedestrians were able to make'safer or more efficient choices' when the eyes were fitted than when they weren't. According to the researchers, pedestrians generally like to look at vehicle drivers to know that they've registered their presence. But in a future where self-driving cars are commonplace, pedestrians won't be able to do this as the driver's seat will be empty.