What is relative risk? Risk is the probability that an adverse event will occur. In the context of road safety, this refers to the risk of a traffic accident or fatality. As a driver becomes impaired by intoxication, drowsiness, or another factor, their risk of an accident increases. To quantify this increase, we look at:...

In the automotive sector, some engineering teams have developed driver monitoring systems (DMSs) that attempt to detect the driver yawning as a proxy for drowsiness. This is not only ineffective, but likely increases the risk of an accident due to drowsiness. Yawning is commonly associated with someone being tired or bored. However, recent research tells...

This year, I have spoken with key decision makers in nearly every major automaker and driver monitoring system (DMS) supplier. Within our team at Optalert, we have a very clear position on driver monitoring: If a driver is objectively impaired (whether by drowsiness, intoxication, or anything else), there must be an intervention. If they are...

From mid-2024, all new models of passenger vehicles in Europe require a driver monitoring system (DMS) that can detect drowsiness. Engineering teams across the automotive industry have scrambled to learn about the science of drowsiness and develop systems that can detect it in drivers. Each of these systems then needs to be validated and shown...

From mid-2024, all new models of passenger vehicles in Europe require a driver monitoring system (DMS) that can detect drowsiness. Engineers across the automotive industry have generally used one of three ground truths to measure drowsiness in drivers. Ground truth Description  JDS  Johns Drowsiness Scale Eyelid movements are a window into the cognitive state of...

Imagine if automotive regulation allowed seat belts to unlatch or airbags to fail to deploy in over half of severe collisions. And legislators were dragging their feet on raising the minimum standard for fault tolerance. In such a scenario, who should fix the problem? Thankfully seatbelts and airbags are mature, well understood technologies, and the...

Optalert’s Johns Drowsiness Scale (JDS) accurately quantifies impairment caused by drowsiness, surpassing competing technologies in predictive power. This post outlines how Optalert has been able to quantify the relative risk of a driver’s impairment from drowsiness with a unique biomarker. It is independent of age, gender, or ethnicity. These claims are substantiated through both internal...

Automotive Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) can now achieve both EU General Safety Regulation (GSR) compliance and European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) assessment using Optalert’s non-invasive Johns Drowsiness Scale (JDS™) as the ground truth. Numerous automotive technical services firms in Europe, including UTAC, TÜV Rheinland, and Applus+ IDIADA, have reviewed the evidence and confirmed...

When we commonly speak of drowsiness, we may use a range of terms interchangeably, such as fatigue, tiredness, or sleepiness. In common speech, this is fine. But for the purposes of understanding the underlying science, we need to be more precise around what each of these words mean. Drowsiness is not fatigue Fatigue is defined...

What is Optalert’s experience in measuring drowsiness in the field? How do we see this technology reaching maturity in the automotive sector? What is the difference between objective and subjective measures of drowsiness? How does Optalert see drowsiness measurement evolving in the future? In the lead-up to the InCabin conference in Phoenix next week, our...