Sep 12, 2007, 9:57 GMT
Gothenberg - Swedish carmaker Volvo has announced what it claims is the world's first on-board system designed to alert tired and distracted drivers.
Volvo says the system uses sensors to assess the impact that fatigue or loss of driving control has on a car's movements rather than monitoring driver behaviour, which can vary from one person to another.
The Driver Alert Control (DAC) device, which is packaged together with a Lane Departure Warning (LDW) system, will be introduced at the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show from September 13 to 23. Both will be available later this year as an option in the all-new Volvo V70 and XC70 and in the Volvo S80 from the end of 2007.
This system consists of a camera located between the windscreen and the interior rear view mirror, a number of sensors and a control unit. The camera measures the distance between the car and the road lane markings, while the sensors register the car's movements. The information is sent to the control unit which calculates whether the driver is at risk of losing control of the car.
If the risk is assessed as high, the driver is alerted via an audible signal. A text message and coffee cup symbol also appear in the car's information display to urge the driver to take a break.
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