Wake Up! How Tech Can Help Fight Drowsy Driving

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), more than 1,550 people are killed and 71,000 are injured each year as a direct result of drowsy driving. The federal agency also estimates that driver fatigue causes 100,000 police-reported crashes annually and results in an estimated $12.5 billion in damages.

Drowsy driving deaths are only a fraction of the more than 30,000 fatalities caused by all auto accidents in the U.S. each year. But more than other car crashes—more than 90 percent of which are caused by human error, according to NHTSA—drowsy-driving accidents are perhaps far more preventable, if proper warnings are given.

Research from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has already shown that active safety or "driver assist" systems can step in when humans make mistakes, like not slowing down when a car ahead has stopped or drifting out of a lane. Features such as forward-collision warning and lane-keeping assistance significantly cut down on the number of car accidents and fatalities, and have become available in more mainstream cars.

Like most driver-assist systems, those that can detect drowsy driving started out on high-end cars. Volvo was the first automaker to offer Driver Alert Control in 2007, followed by Attention Assist in 2009 from Mercedes-Benz. Subaru later introduced Sway Control as part of its Eye Sight system, and Ford added a Driver Alert feature to several models. Now, the new 2016 Nissan Maxima offers a Driver Attention Alert option.

Each of these systems monitor throttle and steering inputs, and typically share a forward-facing camera with driver-assist systems, such as lane-departure and forward-collision warning, to assess whether the person behind the wheel may be drowsy and driving erratically. Then they issue an audible alert and typically flash a coffee cup icon in the instrument panel.

Watching and Feeling for Signs of Driver Drowsiness
While these systems are a good start to warn drivers that they're too tired to continue safely, technology that's just down the road includes a more human touch by watching and feeling for signs of drowsiness. For example, drooping eyes are a clear indication that a driver is falling asleep, and Volvo is developing technology that can watch out for it.

While I was in Sweden last year to observe Volvo's 100-vehicle autonomous car test in its home city of Gothenburg, the automaker also showed a prototype system that uses sensors mounted on the dashboard in front of the driver that works in conjunction with small LEDs that illuminate the driver with infrared light. The sensor analyzes the infrared light, which is just outside the wavelengths that the human eye can see so that it's not noticeable or distracting, but can tell whether a driver's eyes are open or shut and for how long.

While the eyes are a telltale sign of drowsiness, Guttersberg Automotive instead uses the steering wheel as a touchpoint for detecting driver fatigue. The company developed a technology that's able to sense when a driver's grip on a steering wheel has loosened as a sign that he or she may be nodding off. The technology employs resistive sensors between 0.8mm and 0.9mm thick, which can be embedded in a steering wheel to recognize a change in pressure within 200 milliseconds and even responds to hands wearing gloves.

Guttersberg is in discussion with automakers, some of which have shown interest in the system and are testing it. The touch-sensitive steering wheel can be integrated with existing driver-drowsiness warning systems, as well as other driver-assist systems, to prevent a vehicle from, say, veering out of its lane if the driver doesn't respond to audible and visual warnings.

It could also be linked to a telematics system like OnStar so that it alerts emergency responders to a medical emergency and notifies the closest emergency facility. According to Guttersberg, the system can be integrate with a car's navigation and Bluetooth phone system—and maybe even direct the driver to the nearest coffee shop or hotel.