Technology Keeps Your Mind on the Road

Forget to signal a turn? A voice reminds you to do so next time.

IBM is developing other ways to keep your mind on the road in a project called Smart Passenger. It focuses on using voice commands to operate the radio, get directions, and answer the phone -any task that could take a driver's attention away from the road. The IBM car also develops a profile for each driver and keeps him alert by starting conversation. A slow or incorrect response that suggests the driver is drowsy or distracted would, for example, trigger the car to open a window or send a spray of cold water to get his attention.

Now, not everyone agrees with making technology primarily responsible for keeping drivers focused. "What strikes me about the high-tech cars is that they are predicated on the car having a whole lot of processing power that somehow needs to be made use of. Better education and less tolerance of reckless behavior on the roads would be simpler ways to fight driver distraction,” advises said Gary S. Vasilash, editor in chief of Automotive Design & Production, a trade publication.

But even the critics of high tech vehicles admit that the technology can help.

In the MIT car, the two most important elements, one on either side of the steering wheel, are the master alarm and the "busy button." The idea for the master alarm comes from airplane cockpits. If something goes wrong, the alarm goes off, and the driver, like a pilot, pushes it to find the specific problem. The busy button is designed to thwart information overload--putting incoming phone calls or other distractions on hold until a driver can deal with them.

Chrysler is using some of the MIT research to create the Driver Advocate, a three-button steering wheel-mounted system for managing the driver's workload. Which is being tested on a Town & Country minivan, it enables the driver to control the inflow of information from cell phones, navigation systems and warning messages. The company said parts of the new technology could be in a production car in a few years.

With or without this new technology though, you are still primarily responsible for keeping your focus on the road. Here are a few tips to keep you less distracted.

• Buy your children personal CD players so they can listen to their loud music without it distracting you.
• Tune the car radio before you leave and leave it on the station you selected no matter what. Actually, research has found that radio itself distracts you from driving so leaving the radio off is your safest choice.
• Turn your cell phone off right before you leave. Cell phones are the biggest driver distraction there is and a top cause of traffic accidents. Trust me! Your children will survive leaving you voice mail. Your employers or employees can live without you while you travel. And, there is always someone who can handle a client emergency.