Driver Monitoring Camera in a Volvo research vehicle
Your future Volvo could literally stop you from killing yourself if it detects you are driving inebriated or distracted.
Starting in the early 2020s, all Volvo models will be fitted with special cameras which can detect if you are intoxicated or distracted, like using your phone.
The system, which is part of the automaker’s vision for zero traffic deaths, uses a combination of cameras and sensors to detect driver behaviour.
The system lets the car intervene if the driver does not respond to warning signals and is risking an imminent accident involving “serious injury or death”.
Intervention could involve limiting the car’s speed or alerting Volvo On Call assistance service.
If need be, the future Volvo can actively slow down and safely park the car.
Driver Monitoring Camera in a Volvo research vehicle
A complete lack of steering input for extended periods of time, drivers who have their eyes closed or off the road for extended periods of time, as well as extreme weaving across lanes or excessively slow reaction times, are examples where Volvo says the car can intervene.
“When it comes to safety, our aim is to avoid accidents altogether rather than limit the impact when an accident is imminent and unavoidable,” said Henrik Green, senior vice-president of research and development at Volvo Cars.
“In this case, cameras will monitor for behaviour that may lead to serious injury or death.”
Introduction of the cameras on all Volvo models will start “in the early 2020s” on the next generation of Volvo’s SPA2 vehicle platform.
Volvo will release details on the exact number of cameras and their positioning in the car’s cabin.
This follows the automaker’s announcement of limiting all its cars to 180km/h from 2021.
In addition, the automaker also unveiled the programmable Care Key, which lets Volvo owners impose limitations on their vehicles before lending them to other drivers.
