The gadgets on top-spec cars these days are truly astounding .. Like the new Mercedes S-Class .. distronic, park-assist, robot-swedo-masseur, bum-coolomatic .. etcetera .. etcetera .. etcetera
But what about the basic problem of keeping drivers awake? It's all very good keeping the driver happy but many of these devices have the effect of lulung you to sleep.
I thought there was a very simple device being worked on a few years ago to 'watch' your blink rate and sound an alarm accordingly. What happened there? Are there any manufacturers out there that have adopted devices to help keep the driver awake?
Other than the Dacia Duster .. ? ;)
rojer@lycos.co.uk
Astra, Renault 18, Renault 25 TXi, Astra Est, Passat Est, Mercedes 190E, Mercedes
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Sure SWMBO knows something about the solution to this one...
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Take the wife and she'll nag you all the way home.
Either that or get her to drive and you'll be so scared you dare not fall asleep!
;-)
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robot-swedo-masseur
LOL. I knew there was a reason I should have gone for the next model up in the Ka range.
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robot-swedo-masseur LOL. I knew there was a reason I should have gone for the next model up in the Ka range.
And if you'd gone to the the Ghia its a
robot-swedo-masseuse ;-)
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There are devices in the Unnovations catalogue that clip over your ear and beep at you when your head dips forward.
I would have thought you would already be a bit far gone if you are at the "head dipping forward" stage, and what happens if you glance down at the radio.
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LOL: Damn those gender inflected languages ... the Ghia has it then.
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On our lengthy national roads, they have introduced a system of rumble strips.
On one route, the 'death road' - the mind-blowingly boring 200kms from Laingsburg to Beaufort West, through bland arid semi-desert - there are several of these at 25km intervals.
The strips across the road are in three sets of five, and when you drive over them, they go zip-zip-zip-zip-zip [pause]zip-zip etc etc etc.
Just after that, there are signs: TIRED? STOP AND REST, in three different languages, and just after that, there is a laybye.
Studies have shown that since the introduction of the project, accidents on this stretch of road have decreased by 30% - previously many smashes were attributed to drivers falling asleep.
My only complaint is that they could have arranged the strips better - had they spaced them out cleverly, the wheels would go "shave and a haircut"!!
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I remember one of the wackier solutions which was suggested a few years back was some kind of sensor to check whether you were falling asleep (something which monitored eye movement or blink rate, I think). If it decided you were about to drop off it spat out a fine jet of water at your face!
So you'd be awake, yes, but you'd still have an accident because you were busy wiping water off your face...
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"shave and a haircut"
Two bob!
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All this weekend I have seen, "Don't drive tired" signs on those big LED cantilevered signs over the M25 and A2.
How much did those signs cost and will they ever show anything congestion related to make them worthwhile?
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