Apparatus and method for improving the awareness of vehicle drivers
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An apparatus comprising:
- awareness determination means for determining a level of awareness of a vehicle driver and comparing the level of awareness with a reference value to determine a decrease in awareness,at least one warning means for generating a warning to the vehicle driver when the decrease in awareness is detected,warning termination means for terminating the warning upon operation by the vehicle driver, andreference value correction means for measuring a response time from the generation to the termination of said warning and for correcting the reference value of said awareness determination means according to said response time for subsequent comparison and warning generation.
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Abstract
An apparatus and method for a driver of a vehicle in which a level of awareness of the driver is determined, and compared with a reference value to determine a decrease in awareness. A warning is generated when driver awareness is low. The driver responds by terminating the warning. The reference value of the awareness determination means is corrected according to a response time of the driver to the warning.
187 Citations
12 Claims
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1. An apparatus comprising:
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awareness determination means for determining a level of awareness of a vehicle driver and comparing the level of awareness with a reference value to determine a decrease in awareness, at least one warning means for generating a warning to the vehicle driver when the decrease in awareness is detected, warning termination means for terminating the warning upon operation by the vehicle driver, and reference value correction means for measuring a response time from the generation to the termination of said warning and for correcting the reference value of said awareness determination means according to said response time for subsequent comparison and warning generation. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. An apparatus comprising:
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heartbeat rate detection means for detecting a heart rate of a driver of a vehicle, heartbeat awareness determination means for comparing the heartbeat rate determined by said heartbeat rate detecting means with a reference value to determine a decrease in awareness of the driver, warning means warning the driver, warning control means for controlling said warning means for generation of said warning according to the comparison by said heartbeat awareness determination means, warning termination means for terminating the warning upon operation by the vehicle driver, and reference value correction means for measuring a response time from the generation to the termination of said warning and for correcting the reference value of said heartbeat awareness determination means according to said response time for subsequent comparison and warning generation.
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10. An apparatus comprising:
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a steering angle sensor for detecting a steering angle of a vehicle and generating steering angle data, steering angle data processing means for calculating a frequency distribution of the steering angle data and extracting a predetermined frequency area to determine a steering characteristic parameter of the driver, steering awareness determination means for comparing the steering characteristic parameter with a reference value to determine a decrease in awareness of the driver, warning means warning the driver, warning control means for controlling said warning means for generation of said warning according to the comparison by said steering awareness determination means, warning termination means for terminating the warning upon operation by the vehicle driver, and reference value correction means for measuring a response time from the generation to the termination of said warning and for correcting the reference value of said steering awareness determination means according to said response time for subsequent comparison and warning generation.
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11. A method comprising:
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determining a level of awareness of a driver of a vehicle and comparing the level of awareness determined with a reference value to determine a decrease in awareness; outputting a warning to the driver upon said determined decrease in awareness; terminating the warning upon receipt of an operated response from the driver; and measuring a response time from the output to the termination of said warning; and correcting the reference value according to said response time to the warning from the driver for subsequent comparing and warning output.
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12. An apparatus comprising:
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determining means for determining a level of awareness of a driver of a vehicle and comparing the level of awareness determined with a reference value; warning means for outputting a warning to the driver upon said determined awareness level falling below said reference value; termination means for terminating the warning by a response operation from said driver; and correcting means for measuring a response time from the output to the termination of said warning and for correcting the reference value according to said response time to the warning from the driver for subsequent comparing and warning generation.
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Specification