Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

How researchers can shut down your phone while you're driving

With every state looking to enact (or having already passed) legislation that makes it illegal to operate a mobile phone while behind the wheel, researchers at Stevens Institute of Technology and Rutgers in New Jersey are taking it one massive step further.

A team led by Drs. Chen Stevens, Marco Gruteser and Richard Martin have created a system that utilizes a phone's Bluetooth connection and a vehicle's speakers to detect if the driver is using their handheld while driving. The algorithm-based system measures the acoustic signals emitted from the stereo and the proximity of the phone to the Bluetooth receiver, essentially pinging both systems to determine where the phone is being operated. If the signals are coming from the driver's seat, it can shut down the phone with 95 percent accuracy, or around 80 percent if the phone is stashed in a cupholder or cubby.

Obviously, the system is designed to allow passengers to use their phones while the vehicle is in motion, but the biggest hurdles to overcome include the amount of road, wind and background noise interfering with the acoustic signals and a general lack of Bluetooth connectivity in most vehicles. Now the doctors just need an automaker to partner with...

http://www.autoblog.com/2011/12/05/h...ile-youre-dri/

KillaIS250

iTrader: (1)

I don't think most people will appreciate a technology that shuts down your phone while your driving. Nobody likes being told what to do
Might be a very good application for parents who want their kids to stay off the phone while driving though!

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

you can bet Bluetooth Special Interest Group, and its 15,000 members will be first in the opposition line

Kaydee

pretty stupid invention considering that it fails to address when and where the driver could be when he/she is using the phone. ie. highway.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

i find the biggest problem with people on the phone is they drive slow in the left lane, but overall, not a huge deal, but of course the nanny state must solve this.

KillaIS250

iTrader: (1)

...and what if you're alone and need to make a 911 call? lol

greg0126

iTrader: (2)

This is what I was thinking.

mmarshall

Well then, using your reasoning, what about kids who don't like to be told what to do?

When you accept a drivers' license, though, you agree to obey State and Federal driving laws. And many states simply don't allow cell-phone use or texting while driving. Period. Some allow cell-phone use if it is a hands-off unit.

mmarshall

In most cases, for the driver, it usually safer to make a call (especially a 911-type call, when you are likely to be stressed and prone to making a driving error).....when you are stopped and not moving.