Automotive

The holiday season is the time of the year when impaired and drowsy driving accidents are most prevalent. Many of us would never imagine that a holiday celebration could result in a fatality or imprisonment.  The risks associated with driving while drowsy are very real.  Driving performance can be impaired, reaction times increase and it could result in tragic consequences for everyone involved. The Drowsy Driving Problem Drowsy driving usually happens when a driver has not slept enough, but it can also happen due to drinking alcohol, untreated sleep disorders, [...]

Introduction Optalert has responded to the NTC's recent discussion paper "Clarifying control of automated vehicles" with the following submission...Our understanding of the discussion paper “Clarifying control of automated vehicles” is to resolve issues of control relating to automated vehicles. Determining who is in control, what it means to have ‘proper control’ and how it will apply to automated vehicles, and the interaction between enforcement agencies and automated vehicles. In clarifying these issues there will be greater certainty with road rules, traffic laws and accident and insurance liability and risks. We [...]

Have you heard the term “the quantified self”? It’s a phrase used to describe the movement of incorporating technology to acquire data on a variety of factors that make up a person’s daily life including diet, mood and performance. We’ve become almost obsessed with tracking and analysing a variety of factors in our lives and allocating a name to this obsession has made it far more legitimate. The quantified self can also be referred to as lifelogging, self-tracking, or body hacking. The key to the quantified self is not only [...]

For as long as road travel has existed, so too have road accidents. Consequently, actions have been taken to improve safety and reduce the risk of a road injury or fatality. Could autonomous vehicles be the largest impact on car safety we have ever seen? It looks likely. Road safety has been continuously evolving. From road signs and indicators to seatbelts and traffic lights, the end goal has always been to improve safety. We recently published a blog post that takes a look back through the history of road safety; [...]

First, we had breath tests to test Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC). Then, we had saliva swabs to test for illegal drugs. Now, we could be seeing a test for drowsiness that completes the roadside test trifecta. Roadside drowsiness testing has rapidly become a popular discussion topic across social media, due to a recent announcement that Victoria Police and the TAC would welcome this in their arsenal against road injuries and fatalities. The effects of drowsiness on our roads In a world first, Victoria Police, and the Traffic Accident Commission (TAC) [...]

When describing Optalert’s products to customers, I often use the word preventative along with ‘predictive’, ‘real-time’ and ‘anticipatory’. It is these words that set our technology apart from others. One word I seldom use is ‘responsive’. While we might appreciate the latter in terms of something that responds quickly to a need or error, all too often ‘quickly’ simply isn’t fast enough. There is a real difference between responsive technology and preventative technology. Definitions Let’s start with a few simple definitions: Responsive: (adj.) In response; reacting quickly and positively Preventative: [...]

Australia’s National Transport Commission (NTC) has requested submissions for their paper on “National guidelines for automated vehicle trials”. The purpose is to have state and territory road transport agencies working under a common national approach on how they will regulate and support automated vehicle trials to ensure public safety. The NTC wants to provide certainty and clarity, help with management of trials and establish minimum safety standards to raise awareness and acceptance by the public and to protect those using public roads. From Optalert’s perspective, we see the major problem [...]

It’s hard to believe portable video cameras have been available since the 1980s. Sony and Panasonic were crucial players in the race toward market share with VHS technology winning the first major market battle. Of course digital technology is now favoured by manufacturers and developers alike, and so the market continues twisting and turning depending on the speed and saturation which can be gained by software and hardware developers. As we step through our own R&D environment, it’s interesting to consider the significant differences in software and hardware available in [...]

Historically, automotive manufacturers have focussed on the performance of the car but recently they have turned their attention to the driver. At one end, the automotive industry is taking the driver out of the equation as much as possible, and hence the increasing attention focussed on autonomous vehicles. As stated in previous blogs however, this technology is still in its infancy. Even though there are semi-autonomous vehicles now on the road, it will be quite some time before passenger vehicles are allowed to be driving on public roads with no driver [...]