GM’s planned semi-autonomous driving system will use facial recognition to help determine if a driver is sufficiently alert, according to a new Reuters report.
The feature has come to light through a letter from the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to GM that has been made public. The letter is a response to GM’s request for permission to include a feature in its ‘Super Cruise’ system that would make the vehicle pull over if a driver is ignoring certain alerts. According to a GM spokesperson, the system would also uses facial biometrics to ascertain whether a driver is inattentive, or even falling asleep.
It’s not the first automotive system to use biometrics for this kind of safety end. For example, Harman International Industries has developed a system for monitoring driver alertness via changes in the driver’s pupils. That company was recently bought by Samsung, a company that has been exploring iris biometrics and may have an eye to bringing that kind of technology to the automotive sector itself.
It’s all part of a coming biometrics boom in the automotive sector, according to a recent report from Frost & Sullivan. And as major automotive companies like GM continue to explore autonomous solutions for the smart cars of the future, these kinds of biometric monitoring technologies could prove to be valuable safety components.
Source: Reuters
(Originally posted on FindBiometrics)
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