PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Tracking drivers’ eyes can determine ability to take back control from ‘auto-pilot’ mode

Peer reviewed | Experimental study | People

2023-08-31
(Press-News.org) A team of UCL-led researchers has developed a new method to determine the attention levels of drivers and their readiness to respond to warning signals when using auto-pilot mode.

The research, published in Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, found that people’s attention levels and how engrossed they are in on-screen activities can be detected from their eye movements.

The findings suggest a new way to determine the readiness of drivers using auto-pilot mode to respond to real world signals, such as takeover requests from the car.

Although fully autonomous driverless cars are not yet available for personal use, cars with a “driverless” auto-pilot mode are available for commercial private use in some locations, including Germany and certain US states.

When using the auto-pilot mode, drivers are able to take their hands off the wheel and participate in other activities, such as playing games on their car-integrated central screen.

However, current models may require the driver to take back control of the car at certain points. For example, drivers can use the ‘auto pilot’ mode during a traffic jam on a motorway. But once the jam has cleared and the motorway allows faster than 40mph speeds, the AI will send a “takeover” signal to the driver, indicating that they must return to full driving control.

The researchers tested whether it was possible to detect if a person was too engrossed in another task to respond swiftly to such a “takeover” signal.

To do this, the team tested 42 participants across two experiments, using a procedure that mimicked a “takeover” scenario as used in some advanced models of cars with an auto-pilot mode.

Participants were required to search a computer screen with many coloured shapes for some target items and linger their gaze on targets to show they had found them.

The search tasks were either easy (ie. participants had to spot an odd ‘L’ shape amongst multiple ‘T’ shapes), or more demanding (ie. participants had to spot a specific arrangement of the shape parts and their colour).

At later points in their search task, a tone would then sound and the participants were required to stop watching the screen as fast as they could and press a button in response to it.

Researchers monitored the time it took between the tone sounding and the participants pressing the button, alongside analysing how their eyes moved across the screen during their search, to see if attention levels to the task could be detected from a change in their gaze.

They found that when the task demanded more attention, participants took a longer time to stop watching the screen and respond to the tone.

The analysis showed that it was possible to detect participants’ attention levels from their eye movements. An eye movement pattern involving longer fixations and shorter distance of eye travel between all items indicated that the task was more demanding on attention.

The researchers also trained a machine learning model on this data and found that they could predict whether the participants were engaged in the easy or demanding task based on their eye movement patterns.

Senior author, Professor Nilli Lavie (UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience), said: “Driverless car technology is fast advancing and promises a more enjoyable and productive driving experience, where drivers can use their commuting time for other non-driving tasks.

“However, the big question is whether the driver will be able to return to driving swiftly upon receiving a takeover signal if they are fully engaged in another activity.

“Our findings show that it is possible to detect the attention levels of a driver and their readiness to respond to a warning signal, just from monitoring their gaze pattern.

“It is striking that people can get so consumed with their on-screen activity that they ignore the rest of the world around them. Even when they are aware that they should be ready to stop their task and respond to tones as quickly as they can, they take longer to do it when their attention is engrossed in the screen.

“Our research shows that warning signals may not be noticed quickly enough in such cases.”

Larger datasets are required in order to train the machine learning and make it more accurate.

The research was funded by JLR and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council as part of the jointly funded Towards Autonomy: Smart and Connected Control (TASCC) programme.

END


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Early action to control cardiovascular risk factors preserves brain metabolism

Early action to control cardiovascular risk factors preserves brain metabolism
2023-08-31
Cardiovascular disease and dementia frequently occur together in elderly people. Nevertheless, few longitudinal studies have examined how atherosclerosis and its associated risk factors affect brain health from middle age. Now, a new study by scientists at the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC) in Madrid provides new data on this relationship; the results confirm the importance of controlling traditional cardiovascular risk factors, such as hypertension, cholesterol, diabetes, smoking, ...

Avoid cannabis during adolescence, pregnancy and while driving, say experts

2023-08-31
Experts recommend avoiding cannabis during adolescence and early adulthood, in people prone to or with mental health disorders, in pregnancy, and before and while driving, based on an in-depth evidence review published by The BMJ today. However, they say cannabidiol (one active compound in cannabis) is effective in people with epilepsy, and cannabis based medicines can help people with multiple sclerosis, chronic pain, inflammatory bowel disease, and in palliative care. Their recommendations are based on an “umbrella review” of 101 meta-analyses on cannabis ...

Call for action over unreliable private online hormone tests

2023-08-31
A large private laboratory is still processing finger prick tests for oestrogen levels, which are sold by private retailers online, despite warnings they are unreliable, reveals an investigation published by The BMJ today.  Journalist Emma Wilkinson reports that Eurofins, a large laboratory based in the UK, is still carrying out finger prick tests for oestradiol despite problems being identified in 2021 and two other laboratories and one online retailer withdrawing the tests over concerns that the results might not always be accurate. Finger prick tests for oestradiol are sold by online retailers for between £50 and £180, depending on what is included in ...

Home-monitoring during IVF equally safe and successful

2023-08-31
Home monitoring of ovulation prior to placing frozen embryos during an IVF process works just as well as hospital checks to determine the best time. In addition, it is more pleasant for women to undergo this in their own environment, and it places less burden on the hospital facilities. "Monitoring ovulation at home means a hospital visit once for the placement of these embryos instead of 3 to 4 times for hospital monitoring. This is more sustainable and reduces the cost of treatment by up to 80%," says Tijtske Zaat, researcher at Amsterdam UMC. The study was published today in The Lancet.    To optimize fertility treatments, researchers ...

Treatment for problematic snoring can also reduce night-time heartburn and respiratory symptoms

2023-08-31
A treatment for obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) can also reduce night-time heartburn, coughing and wheezing according to a study published today (Thursday) in ERJ Open Research [1].   People with OSA often snore loudly, their breathing starts and stops during the night, and they may wake up several times. Not only does this cause tiredness, but it can also increase the risk of high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease and type 2 diabetes.   Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machines work by blowing air through a face mask throughout the night to prevent the user’s airway from closing. CPAP is ...

Boys who smoke in their early teens risk passing on harmful epigenetic traits to future children

2023-08-31
EMBARGOED: NOT FOR RELEASE UNTIL 00.01 BST ON THURSDAY 31 AUGUST 2023. Boys who smoke in their early teens risk passing on harmful epigenetic traits to future children People whose fathers smoked in their early teens had epigenetic markers associated with asthma, obesity, and low lung function Biomarkers associated with paternal preconception smoking were different from those associated with maternal or personal smoking ‘We must act now to stop teenage vaping’ say scientists A new study suggests boys who smoke in their early teens risk damaging the genes of their future children, increasing their chances of developing ...

Emphasising the need for energy independence could change the views of climate deniers, study says

2023-08-30
Emphasising the need for energy independence and environmental stewardship could help to change people’s minds about the climate crisis, a new study says. Climate change deniers focus on what they can see and have experienced personally, so solutions need to be framed in a way which makes sense to local communities. But for this to work the political-media ecosystem also needs to shift to support climate action, and their corporate backers held accountable for the damage they have wrought, according to the research. The study, published in Ethnos Journal of Anthropology, was carried out by Dr Susannah Crockford from the University of Exeter. Dr Crockford ...

Study helps explain SARS-CoV-2 variants’ rapid spread

Study helps explain SARS-CoV-2 variants’ rapid spread
2023-08-30
The omicron variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which have rapidly spread around the world over the past year, latch onto our cells more tightly, invade them more efficiently, and elude many of the antibodies induced by previous infections and vaccines. These are some of the key findings from a multinational team of researchers reporting today in the journal Nature.  The lead authors of the study were Amin Addetia, a graduate student, and Young-Jun Park, a research scientist, in the laboratory of David Veesler, professor of biochemistry at the University of Washington School of Medicine, and Luca Picolli, director ...

Experiencing the texture of skateboard sounds can mediate divisions new research says

2023-08-30
Experiencing the harsh sounds of skateboarding can help bridge the gulf between the joy and distaste of the noises created by the sport, a new study says. Skate sounds can also help individuals sense and feel the urban environment in new and novel ways. Skateboarders have a specialised knowledge of the texture of cities, and sharing this with the public could help to soothe conflict, according to the research. Paying attention to sound can give both sides “sonic” agency over spaces in the city. Skate sounds, are a common basis of complaint from the general public. Yet these sounds can act as a source of inspiration and joy for ...

Kindergarten conduct problems could cost society later, researchers find

2023-08-30
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A new economic analysis has linked, for the first time, conduct problems among kindergarten students with significant costs to society in terms of crime and associated medical expenses and lost productivity when they are adults. “Providing effective, evidence-based programming designed to address behavioral problems early on has the potential to improve students’ wellbeing in the long term,” said project collaborator Damon Jones, associate research professor in the Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center (PRC). “This study implies that there could be an additional benefit ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Exercise as an anti-ageing intervention to avoid detrimental impact of mental fatigue

UMass Amherst Nursing Professor Emerita honored as ‘Living Legend’

New guidelines aim to improve cystic fibrosis screening

Picky eaters by day, buffet by night: Butterfly, moth diets sync to plant aromas

Pennington Biomedical’s Dr. Leanne Redman honored with the E. V. McCollum Award from the American Society for Nutrition

CCNY physicists uncover electronic interactions mediated via spin waves

Researchers’ 3D-printing formula may transform future of foam

Nurture more important than nature for robotic hand

Drug-delivering aptamers target leukemia stem cells for one-two knockout punch

New study finds that over 95% of sponsored influencer posts on Twitter were not disclosed

New sea grant report helps great lakes fish farmers navigate aquaculture regulations

Strain “trick” improves perovskite solar cells’ efficiency

How GPS helps older drivers stay on the roads

Estrogen and progesterone stimulate the body to make opioids

Dancing with the cells – how acoustically levitating a diamond led to a breakthrough in biotech automation

Machine learning helps construct an evolutionary timeline of bacteria

Cellular regulator of mRNA vaccine revealed... offering new therapeutic options

Animal behavioral diversity at risk in the face of declining biodiversity

Finding their way: GPS ignites independence in older adult drivers

Antibiotic resistance among key bacterial species plateaus over time

‘Some insects are declining but what’s happening to the other 99%?’

Powerful new software platform could reshape biomedical research by making data analysis more accessible

Revealing capillaries and cells in living organs with ultrasound

American College of Physicians awards $260,000 in grants to address equity challenges in obesity care

Researchers from MARE ULisboa discover that the European catfish, an invasive species in Portugal, has a prolonged breeding season, enhancing its invasive potential

Rakesh K. Jain, PhD, FAACR, honored with the 2025 AACR Award for Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research

Solar cells made of moon dust could power future space exploration

Deporting immigrants may further shrink the health care workforce

Border region emergency medical services in migrant emergency care

Resident physician intentions regarding unionization

[Press-News.org] Tracking drivers’ eyes can determine ability to take back control from ‘auto-pilot’ mode
Peer reviewed | Experimental study | People