Next week I will review some of the novelties that have been seen at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) in Las Vegas this week, and that has been full of applications and products developed with artificial intelligence (AI) as technology star. But for sample, a Bosch button, or rather a smart camera that helps cars keep an eye on their passengers for greater comfort and safety.
Microdreams, distractions, … many things that happen inside a vehicle can have serious consequences. To avoid critical driving situations and possibly accidents, it is planned that in the future cars will use their sensors not only to monitor the road but also the driver and passengers. For this purpose, Bosch has developed a new indoor monitoring system with cameras and artificial intelligence. “If the car knows what its driver and occupants are doing, driving will be safer and more comfortable,” says Harald Kroeger, member of the Board of Management of Robert Bosch GmbH.
New requirements for vehicles
The Bosch system can go into production in 2022. That year the EU will require that new vehicles be equipped as standard with technology that warns drivers about drowsiness and distractions. The European Commission estimates that by 2038 its new vehicle safety requirements will save more than 25,000 lives and help prevent at least 140,000 serious injuries. By monitoring what is happening inside the car, a fundamental problem of autonomous cars can be solved. If, for example, the responsibility of driving must be transferred back to the driver after automated motorway driving, the car must ensure that the driver is not sleeping or reading the newspaper or writing emails on his phone.
At 50 km / h a vehicle will travel 42 meters without supervision if the driver falls asleep or looks at his phone for just three seconds. Many people underestimate the associated risk. International studies indicate that almost one in ten accidents are caused by distractions or drowsiness. This has led Bosch to develop an interior monitoring system that detects and alerts about this danger. A camera integrated in the steering wheel detects the heaviness of the driver’s eyelids when he is distracted and when he turns his head towards the passenger or towards the rear seats. Thanks to artificial intelligence, the system draws the correct conclusions from this information and warns inattentive drivers, recommends a break or even slows the vehicle, depending on the wishes of the automaker and legal requirements.
Machine learning systems
Engineers at the German company have used intelligent image processing and machine learning algorithms to teach the system to understand what the driver is actually doing.Taking the example of drowsiness, the system is trained using recordings of real driving situations and, based on recordings of eyelid position and blink rate, learns how tired the driver really is.This allows you to issue an alert appropriate to the situation and use the driver assistance systems to intervene. Warning systems that sound the alert in case of distraction and drowsiness will be so important in the future that Euro NCAP, the European New Car Assessment Program, will include them in its roadmap for the assessment of vehicle safety. by 2025. The vehicle software evaluates the information, which is not saved or passed on to third parties.
When cars start to drive autonomously, it will be critical that they understand their drivers.Cars will travel on the highways without human intervention. However, they must also be able to give control back to their drivers in difficult situations, such as work zones, or when the freeway exit is approaching.Drivers must be able to safely regain control at any time during the automated driving phase, and the camera ensures that they do not fall asleep. If your eyes are closed for a long time, an alarm will sound. The system also interprets the camera recordings to establish what drivers are doing at all times and if they are ready to respond.
Surveillance for all passengers
The new Bosch system not only watches over the driver, but also all other passengers, whether to the side or behind the driver. With this lens, a camera mounted above or below the rear view mirror monitors the entire cabin. It recognizes if children have unbuckled the rear seat belts and warns the driver. If a passenger in the rear seat leans too far forward or puts his feet on the seat next to him, the airbags and belt pretensioners will not be able to adequately protect him in the event of an accident. The indoor monitoring camera can determine what position they are sitting in and configure the airbags and pretensioners to ensure the best possible protection. The system also prevents the front passenger seat airbag from deploying if there is an infant carrycot in the seat.
Related to children, sometimes parked vehicles can be a death trap for them, either by being left alone in the car for a short period of time or by forgetfulness. The new system can recognize this danger and warn parents instantly by sending a message to their phone. In an emergency, you can also alert the emergency services.
The interior monitoring camera also means greater driving comfort, as you can see who is about to drive and adjust the rear-view mirrors, seat position, steering wheel height and infotainment system to personal preference. It can also be used for eye and hand gesture control of the infotainment system.
