Do you get stressed out sometimes while driving? Ford has a solution! The Driver Workload Estimator!

Ford has been a leader in delivering solutions for in-car communications and simplifying the user interface, and now they are researching ways to use the car's own intelligence to further help drivers. Vehicle control inputs, sensors, road conditions and biometric information such as a driver's pulse and breathing can all be used to create a driver workload estimation that can then help manage certain functions in demanding situations. The driver workload estimator is an algorithm using real-time data from existing sensors such as radar and cameras combined with input from the driver's use of the throttle, brakes and steering wheel. The result is an intelligent system enabling management of in-vehicle communications based on the assessed workload of the driving situation. For example, the side-looking radar sensors used for the Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) and the forward-looking camera for the Lane-Keeping System are on watch even when there is no active warning provided to the driver. These signals could indicate there is a significant amount of traffic in the lane that you are merging into while entering a highway.

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