Nissan announced new ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) technology for the 2016 Maxima that will hep prevent drivers from falling asleep and nodding off at the wheel. The system will be revealed at the New York Auto Show.
Nissan’s new Driver Attention Alert (DAA) system detects drowsy and non-alert driving then warns the driver with a gold coffee cup in neart the speedometer with the message “Take a break? while a chime sounds.
The technology senses the driver’s steering patterns to create a base line of normal behavior. If the the steering behavior changes signalling drowsy driving the alerts appear and sound.
The Driver Attention Alert shuts off when the car is off. It can also be disabled by the driver.
The DAA software has been programmed to avoid false alerts by monitoring road curves, lane changes, road surface and braking.
The Nissan news release warns that the system is not take responsibility from the driver, who is still responsible to stay alert and that DAA is only a warning. It does not alert or sense every hazardous driving situation.
Other driver alerts systems in the works use a 3D camera (Anti-Snoozer App), eye tracking, or sensors. This technology monitors driving by steering angle sensors.
The Automobile Club reports that over a third of drivers say the fell asleep while driving in their lives, with 11% falling asleep in the past year. 6,400 fatal crashes a year are caused by drowsy driving.
The National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute found 74% of all accidents involve driver distraction.