China looks to make trucking safer with life-saving AI vision

In a bid to make its roads safer, China, the world’s largest automobile market, is taking to artificial intelligence solutions. Israel-headquartered Eyesight, a leading provider of edge-based computer vision AI solutions for the automotive industry, has teamed up with top Chinese GPS and telematics firm Exsun to make trucking safer, helping commercial trucks comply with new Chinese regulations which came into place in order to reduce accidents caused by driver drowsiness and inattentiveness.

More than a quarter of a million people a year – over 700 a day – are killed in traffic accidents in China, according to the WHO, and millions more are injured. Road accidents are the leading cause of death for residents of China aged 15-44. Accidents involving large vehicles like trucks are much more likely to be serious or fatal. Truck accidents are particularly devastating because of the sheer weight of the vehicle. Truck drivers have long dull drives, and a driver’s attention can wander or they can get drowsy. According to the US Labor Department, being a truck driver is the deadliest job in America 

Chinese authorities are demanding that trucking companies combat this danger. Shenzhen, one of China’s largest and fastest-growing cities, recently passed a law requiring all heavy trucks to have Driver Monitoring Systems (DMS) installed by June 2019.

To meet these new safety requirements, Eyesight and Exsun have signed a multi-million dollar deal to produce an aftermarket Driver Monitoring System. Eyesight’s camera and Computer Vision AI will be part of Exsun fleet management and telematics solutions, which are installed in hundreds of thousands of trucks. Eyesight’s technology tracks the driver's gaze direction, pupil dilation, eye openness, blink rate and head position to determine in real-time if the driver is drowsy, inattentive or unfocused on the road.

Computer Vision company Eyesight makes cutting-edge technology to track a driver's gaze, pupils, eye openness, blink rate and more to tell if the driver is drowsy or inattentive. It is teaming up with  GPS company Exsun to put the new tech into hundreds of thousands of trucks in China, to warn drowsy or distracted truck drivers.

“Driver exhaustion and drowsiness are serious issues in the trucking industry,” said Gideon Shmuel, CEO of Eyesight. “With Exsun’s help, our Driver Monitoring System will give Chinese truck drivers vital real-time alerts that will prevent accidents and save lives. The technology helps truckers and other large commercial vehicle drivers, protecting them and everyone they share the road with, all around the world.”

Based in Israel, Eyesight creates advanced edge-based computer vision and AI solutions that improve daily life experiences in the car, home, and with other consumer electronics. The company’s technology uses proprietary algorithms to deliver a range of applications, from user recognition and gaze tracking to active interactions using touch-free gesture control. With Eyesight’s technology devices both ‘see’ and ‘understand’ their users, unlocking a world of enhanced user experiences.

Also read: EyeSight’s in-cabin AI computer vision technology into cars within a year