Exploring the Distraction-Focused Research Facilities at General Motors
Outside, on a test track, and within two experimentation facilities at General Motors Co.'s extensive proving grounds in Milford, Michigan, experts focus on the reasons drivers fail to concentrate adequately while driving – habits of distraction that lead to traffic accidents resulting in severe injuries or fatalities.
"We specialize in technology evaluations and innovations, essentially striving to identify methods from a vehicle standpoint to tackle some of the issues we witness on the road – those risky driving behaviors," stated Tricia Morrow, manager of the GM safety crash avoidance technology and strategy team, sharing her thoughts during a private tour of the automaker's driver distraction test facilities.
"These labs help us determine if these features are meeting our standards," concluded Dan Glaser, who serves as the owner of driver distraction performance and supervises the test labs.
Financial toll of distracted driving
In 2022, a total of 3,309 casualties were attributed to distracted driving, as reported by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA.
Distracted driving is classified by NHTSA as any action that diverts attention away from driving, such as chatting or texting on your phone, nourishing yourself with food, engaging your companions in chat, "messing around with the stereo, entertainment or navigation system."
The agency highlights reading or creating messages as a particularly hazardous activity. Executing this action for just 5 seconds at 55 miles per hour equates to driving with eyes closed for approximately the length of a football field, 100 yards, as per NHTSA.
Drivers are most distracted around midday, reaching their peak at 1 p.m., according to a study published on Tuesday by AI dashboard camera firm Samsara. Arizona is the state with the highest number of distractions per 1,000 miles driven, according to the study. Among the states with the lowest number were Alaska, Idaho, Minnesota, West Virginia, Maine, Iowa, New Hampshire, Vermont, Kentucky, and Wisconsin, the study reported.
Samsara's AI dashboard cams incorporate features such as drowsiness detection and cautionary alerts.
Replicating distracted driving
GM maintains two experimentation facilities at its Milford Proving Grounds – the Drive-On Simulator and the Mini-Sim simulator.
The Drive-On simulator utilizes actual vehicles commonly used by GM or competitors to comprehend which activities lead to intense distraction. A test driver is given a specific task, such as searching for a location on the navigation system, as demonstrated in the video below.
"If a task is structured such that there's an excessive amount of text, length, or busyness, or specific interactions that shouldn't be performed while driving, we'll identify this based on behavioral data, eye gaze data—we'll observe the eyes looking away from the road too much or for an extended period," explained Mike Wuergler, research lead and manager, usability and driver workload team. "We return to the design teams and inform them, 'Can't do that, it's simply too busy.' Consequently, we develop strategies to mitigate these types of behaviors, such as visual and audio warnings, followed by disabling manual keyboard input in favor of voice-activated commands that do not require the driver to look away from the road."
The Mini-Sim simulator is employed for assessing the impact of distracted driving behaviors and countermeasures on prototype vehicles to offer direction to designers and engineers concerning potential ergonomic issues in the early stages of product development, as per Wuergler.
On the test track, a demonstration of one of GM's newest technologies aimed at minimizing driver distraction is presented. Dubbed Driver Attention Assist, this system leverages a camera aimed at the driver as well as steering wheel-mounted infrared LEDs to detect if the driver is becoming dangerously drowsy.
"We're examining visual cues of drowsiness, like blink rate, eye opening, head position, and so forth," explained systems engineer Nicholas Caruana, as he steered the Cadillac Escalade demonstration vehicle along the track.
The system utilizes the nine-point Karolinska Sleepiness Scale to establish the degree of drowsiness exhibited by the driver. Developed by the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, this scale ranges from level one, extremely alert, to level nine, extremely sleepy, struggling to stay awake.
When the system detects Caruana displaying drowsy behavior, a coffee cup icon will illuminate, accompanied by a sound. As his level of drowsiness intensifies, the system will not only emit an alert, but it will also display a menu of suggested activities, including navigating to an area of interest, activating a music playlist, or contacting a friend.
"Our goal is simply to assist the driver, enabling them to become alert enough to safely navigate the road and arrive at their destination," said Caruana.
The customer has the option of disabling Driver Attention Assist or adjusting its sensitivity level based on the desired number of alerts, according to Divya Pemmaraju, senior product manager.
"At present, we're limiting the initial introduction to warnings solely to engage customers with the feature and collect their feedback regarding its effectiveness," explained Pemmaraju. "In the future, based on customer preferences, we're hoping to expand its capabilities."
"We'll have significantly more data to work with, enabling us to fully comprehend the effectiveness," added Glaser. "Should you be on the verge of drifting off to sleep and eventually on the cusp of closing your eyes and falling asleep, our feature is designed to catch this and alert you."
Young drivers, particularly prone to distractions, are twice as likely to be involved in accidents related to divided attention as seasoned drivers, according to research.
"In one study, they were three times more likely to be involved in a crash or near-crash than experienced drivers were, while engaged in a secondary task," Underlined Glaser.
As manufacturers incorporate advanced safety features such as alerts and automated responses, such as emergency braking and lane assistance, they encounter a conundrum. They aim to ensure driver safety, but excessive alerts can also be irritating, potentially leading users to disable these features.
"It's a delicate balance between providing effective alerts to save lives and maintaining road safety, and not over-alerting, causing annoyance and the desire to switch off the feature," said Morrow, elaborating on the challenge posed by evolving driver distraction technology. "As these features advance, we'll see increased acceptance from customers. In fact, that's our mission at GM's driver distraction labs, and our goal in safety is constant refinement."
At General Motors Co., the safety crash avoidance team is actively working to identify vehicle-related solutions for distracted driving behaviors, aiming to reduce risks on the road (general motors, auto safety).
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported 3,309 casualties in 2022 due to distracted driving – a significant safety concern in the automotive industry (general motors, auto safety).
