Optalert manages driver fatigue

Right: Optalert system monitors drivers' eye movements for tell-tale signs of drowsiness

Fatigue management technology provider Optalert has launched a real-time system to monitor and predict the risk of driver fatigue.

With new fatigue laws soon to be introduced in Australia, the company says drivers, especially those in the trucking industry, are seeking more effective ways to prevent driver fatigue.

“The focus is finally shifting to actively managing fatigue. The days of all care and no responsibility are over,” says the company.

The company says that many compliance and reactive tools lack the capacity to allow drivers and managers to continuously and accurately measure the drivers’ actual fatigue levels.

Along with the real-time monitoring, the system also provides auditable individual and fleet fatigue data to drivers and managers to review for rostering and risk identification purposes.

“With the use of Optalert, the guesswork is taken out of driver fatigue as the system continually monitors the driver’s level of alertness and warns when the first signs of fatigue are detected, often before the driver is necessarily even aware of it,” says the company.

Recent research by the National Transport Commission, estimates that road traffic accidents in Australia cost an estimated A$15 billion (US$12.6 billion) per year, with up to 30% of truck fatalities and 52% of major crash insurance claims relating to drowsy drivers.
 

23 September 2008