Results of a field study on a driver distraction warning system

The main goal of the distraction and drowsiness field study was to evaluate a system for detecting driver distraction and drowsiness. This report focuses on the results of the study, indicating how a distraction warning system influenced glance behaviour. A vehicle was instrumented with an automatic eye tracker and other sensors. Seven participants drove the vehicle during one month each. During the first ten days a baseline was collected. Afterwards the warnings were activated, which involved that the drivers received a vibration in the seat when the algorithm determined that they had looked away from the forward roadway for a too long time. The main finding was that the drivers' gaze behaviour was not influenced much by the distraction warnings. The drivers received distraction warnings at about the same frequency during the treatment and the baseline phase. Performance indicators like "percent road centre" and others did not change from baseline to treatment phase. The average percentage of very long glances decreased slightly in the treatment phase, suggesting that the warning had an effect on the more extreme glance behaviour. There are also indications that the system helped prevent further extended glances away from the road immediately after a warning was issued.