Insights

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...

Optalert has more than 20 years’ expertise in drowsiness, developed primally in their work for the mining industry, wherein the equipment and vehicles; the payloads; the operator cognitive loads, and the consequences of an accident caused by drowsiness are all enormous. That’s the demanding environment in which Optalert has grown their know-how. Follow the link...

Join us at InCabin 2022 and hear from Dr Trefor Morgan, Optalert General Manager – Research and Development, who will be delivering a session on Measuring and Demystifying Drowsiness. Session Synopsis If done correctly, drowsiness can be quantified from its early stage through to the late stages. There is a biological based change that occurs...

In the last episode, we discussed how an objective drowsiness measure is implemented in the field. We also briefly touched on techniques called countermeasures that can temporarily alleviate drowsiness. In this episode, we first talk about the way drowsiness systems are built today and their pitfalls. We then define countermeasures and discuss how they can be used to extend safe drive time.

Optalert is excited to announce Release 7.0 of the Optalert Drowsiness Software Development Kit. The updated SDK will be available at the end of June 2022 for Tier 1 and OEM customers and all developers of Driver Monitoring Systems for the Automotive industry.  Headline features include: Objective and predictive drowsiness protection Now with real-time driver state detection and...

Drowsiness in the Field In the previous episodes, we first looked at the sleep-wake cycle and the drowsiness processes we are all subject to. The last episode addressed the different types of drowsiness measures and weighed in on why one was better than the other. In this episode, we will use a case study from...

How is Drowsiness Measured? Last episode, the drowsiness regulation process in humans was discussed. However, to apply this understanding to real world situations we need to be able to objectively measure drowsiness levels. So how is drowsiness measured? There are two classes of methods for measuring drowsiness: objective and subjective. Objective measures are independent of...

How your Body Regulates Drowsiness Last episode, we uncovered the two different types of drowsiness and what they mean. This week we discuss how our body regulates drowsiness throughout the day by covering the sleep-wake cycle, a process that drives drowsiness in humans. Our drowsiness level is regulated by the sleep-wake cycle that contains complex...

What is Drowsiness? In this 5-part mini-series, we discuss all things drowsiness. We start by demystifying the condition, then dive into the human processes that regulate drowsiness, explore how it is measured and describe the development of an objective drowsiness metric.  We finish by explaining how the next generation of vehicles will be able to...

In 1872, Darwin penned a few words describing the act of yawning which read “…a deep inspiration, followed by a long and forcible expiration… during this act tears are often secreted, and I have seen them even rolling down the cheeks”. Unlike everything else the Theory of Evolution has accurately described, the common perception of...