Melbourne scientists develop technology to beat driver fatigue

DROWSY drivers could be pulled from the road before they become a danger following a world-first breakthrough capable of detecting fatigue.

DROWSY drivers could be pulled from the road before they become a danger following a world-first breakthrough capable of detecting fatigue.

The Melbourne development — which tracks eye movements to detect changed road scanning patterns — could be installed in cars to alert motorists when they are tiring or in trucks and heavy machinery so companies can prompt fatigued drivers to take a break.

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The principal behind the breakthrough is also being examined as a potential roadside fatigue test similar to an alcohol breath-test, however its developers at Austin Health’s Institute of Breathing and Sleep say further research is required.

With up to 30 per cent of crashes related to fatigue, lead investigator Assoc Prof Mark Howard and his team found clear and measurable patterns that can predict when a fatigued driver will begin veering out of their lane.

“One of the reasons we have not made gains in drowsiness-related crashes is because we haven’t had good ways of detecting and measuring it,” Assoc Prof Howard said.

“These sorts of tools will make inroads into our ability to measure it and monitor it.”

In conjunction with Swinburne University’s Centre for Human psychopharmacology, the researchers used an eye tracking system to examine people driving on a closed track when they were fully rested and again after they had been kept awake for 36 hours.

While previous research has focused on the time drowsy drivers spend blinking or closing their eyes, the latest Melbourne trial also traced where drivers were focusing their attention as they became tired, finding clear thresholds when they become dangerous.

While rested drivers display clear “strategic” attention patterns — splitting attention between the road, scanning to the side and factors such as speed — Assoc Prof Howard said the focus of drowsy drivers becomes random.

Results published in Scientific Reports found the risks were so high that for every 1 per cent change in a driver’s scanning behaviour their chances of veering out of their lane jumped by 7 per cent.

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