Volvo has announced a system to help driver’s fatigue. Called ‘Driver
Alert’, the camera-based system monitors what the car is doing as it is driven down the road. This is different from
other, similar, systems, which monitor the steering wheel or the driver’s eye
movement.
“This gives us a more reliable indication if something is likely to go wrong, allowing the system time to alert the
driver before it is too late,” explains Dr. Wolfgang Birk, project manager for Driver Alert at Volvo Cars. “We do not
monitor human behavior — which varies from one person to another — but instead the system monitors the effect of that
behavior. That is why there is less of a risk for false alarms.” The picture at right shows the camera at the heart of
the system.
Volvo expects to release the system within two years.