New Lifesaving Technology for Drowsy Drivers Takes A Step Forward In Keeping Us Alert At The Wheel:
The Anti Sleep Pilot (ASP) iPhone App

Written by Connor Barnett

In 2007, Troels Palshof nearly lost his life soon after his newborn child was born.

Suffering from extreme fatigue, Palshof fell asleep at the wheel for a brief second and nearly crashed. Four years later, Palshof has come up with a product that serves as a miniature Dr. Dement for your car: The Anti Sleep Pilot (ASP)

Originally a device you install on your car, ASP Technologies released an app for the iPhone in mid-February (iPad app is expected soon). The app doesn't come super cheap ($19.99 for iPhone), but a simple cost benefit analysis, assuming you value your life, would tell you that this app is actually quite economical.

In addition to Palshof's own incident, the inspiration for the app comes from staggering Swedish research that illuminates the dangers of drowsy driving: 40% of single vehicle accidents and 20% of all accidents can be attributed to fatigue.

As we know from the Stanford Sleep Book, 20% of the workforce works night shifts. Many people don't have much of a choice, for economic reasons, when they are given these shifts, and almost all of these workers have to do some sort of commute to get to the job. We need ways to help ensure that these drivers are safe to drive, and ASP Technologies has done the world a huge favor by taking us one step closer. This technology is a significant breakthrough in reminding people that on the road, "Drowsiness is RED ALERT!"

How Does The Anti-Sleep Pilot App Work?

The app takes into account 26 different factors in determining your fatigue levels. When you first purchase the app, you answer a series of questions (regarding you age, your BMI, when you work, why you drive, etc). When you get in the car, you can either tell the app how drowsy you are or do a short series of simple tests that will determine your drowsiness level.

Once you start driving, the app starts to become quite useful. It tracks route information by hacking Google Maps (shows you how long you have been driving, good places for you to stop when you are drowsy, etc.). It uses the iPhone's accelerometer to see if you are swerving at all or showing signs of drowsiness. It also requires you to press a button from time to time to ensure you are not drowsy (but how pressing a button on your iPhone while driving and being potentially drowsy doesn't add an element of danger, I do not know).

This app could radically reduce the amount of fatigue-related car accidents. However, even with the There are two fundamental problems I have with the app:

1. The button pressing while driving seems needlessly dangerous and distracting; and
2. The fact that it is only on iPhones worries me. This is because in my opinion, many of the people working night shifts perhaps would be working day shifts if they didn't need the money, and thus, the people that need this app the most are more likely to be the people that in general cannot afford an iPhone, or the $179 car gadget.

This might be an overgeneralization, but even so, this type of technology should be further developed and become standard in the software systems in all cars built from here on out. Making drivers more aware of the dangers of drowsiness on the road should be a top priority of innovative car manufacturers.

ASP Technologies has done an amazing job in realizing that drowsiness is red alert and helping to expose the dangers of drowsiness to the broader public. Though the app is not perfect, I believe their vision for safer driving through technology is realistic, practical, and ground breaking.

See the source of inspiration article at VentureBeat

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