Driver monitoring in future vehicles

Driver Characteristics (DC), Driver Availability Estimator (DAE), Driver State Degradation (DSD), Traffic and Environment Assessment (TERA) and Cockpit Activity Assessment (CAA) are the basic modules to be designed for profiling the driver. The modules process information available from a camera, CAN bus, and a navigation system. VTT is working with the CAA module which is described here. The module is developed in close co-operation with Volvo Technology, Siemens VDO and Fiat. The aim of CAA is to adapt warnings or aids from the driver assistance systems to the driver's level of attention on the driving task. The DAE module is focused on the primary tasks (i.e. how much pedals, steering wheels, etc. are used). On the other hand, CAA estimates the driver's mental load caused by the secondary tasks, e.g. operating radio, phone calls, daydreaming, etc.